No player is more integral to the Los Angeles Kings’ postseason hopes for the 2017-18 season than captain Anze Kopitar.
When center Anze Kopitar was named the Los Angeles Kings captain last offseason, no one was surprised. After all, he is one of the best players they’ve ever had. Kopitar was coming off a 74 point season in 2015-16. For all intents and purposes, it was the right move. However, Kopitar’s first year of reign as the Kings’ captain didn’t go well.
Los Angeles missed the postseason for the second time in three seasons. And believe it or not, Kopitar just turned 30 years old in August. That’s when most players begin their significant decline. Kopitar had just 52 points last season, his lowest total in a full season. His 12 goals were a career low as well and his 40 assists were the second lowest of his career.
And it wasn’t just Kopitar’s scoring that suffered. As a two-way center, his possession numbers and goals for numbers are usually outstanding. They weren’t last season. His 55.27 percent even strength Corsi For percentage looks very strong on paper. However, the Kings had the highest even strength Corsi For percentage in the NHL last season. Kopitar’s 47.59 percent even strength goals for percentage was the lowest of his career.
Maybe the pressure of being captain caught up to Kopitar. Perhaps his decline is already beginning. Maybe averaging over 20 minutes a game in all but one season of his career has put a ton of miles on his legs. Whatever the case, the Kings need Kopitar to return to being a 60 point player to have any chance of winning with this core.
So why did the Kings captain see such a huge decline last season? Travis Yost from TSN notes the quality of his line mates likely played a significant role.
"A few years ago, Kopitar was taking regular shifts with the likes of Marian Gaborik, Jeff Carter, and Justin Williams. But over time, former head coach Darryl Sutter kind of pushed Kopitar into a more defense-oriented role. In 2015-16 his more common line mates turned into Milan Lucic and Dustin Brown. Last season, it was a mix of the aforementioned Gaborik and Brown, as well as Trevor Lewis, Dwight King, Tyler Toffoli, and Jarome Iginla."
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Sidney Crosby and Connor McDavid could probably take a random homeless bum off the street and turn them into a 20 goals scorer. They’re that darn good as making everyone around them better players. However, centers like them are extremely rare. As great as Kopitar is, he can’t turn an injured and slow Gaborik or an inefficient Brown or a third line wing like Lewis into a first line wing.
So how can the Kings help Kopitar rebound and get back to being the dominant first line center he was? First of all, they can get him better wings. Signing Mike Cammalleri should help. He’s a proven productive wing who has an underrated 200 foot game, just like Kopitar.
Secondly, Sutter’s system put a ton of pressure on the centers. They were relied on to drive the offense without much help from the defensemen. John Stevens is looking to change this philosophy, encouraging his blue line to be more mobile and active. This should help ease the constant pressure on Kopitar.
The Kings don’t have much time left to win with their current core. Drew Doughty‘s either leaving or taking up a significant portion of their salary cap after the 2018-19 season. This gives the Kings a two-year window to win another Stanley Cup. Getting Kopitar back to being an elite, productive two-way center is mandatory for their success.