Los Angeles Kings preview: Anze Kopitar leads aging LA Kings squad
Season Prediction
The Los Angeles Kings are undeniably an aging team. They are also a good team. Those two facts are both true and don’t contradict each other. Their long-term outlook isn’t that great, but for now, the Kings are still a playoff caliber team.
That said, it’s not hard to see how things could go wrong for Los Angeles. Even with Kovalchuk, it’s hard to be optimistic about their offense. Their goaltending was great last season, but goaltending is voodoo.
The Kings certainly have top-notch talent. Kopitar, Kovalchuk, Doughty, Muzzin, and Quick are all among the best at their respective positions. But can they keep doing what they’ve been doing? Kopitar, Kovalchuk, and Quick are on the wrong side of 30 years old. They’ve done a great job of deftly dodging Father Time to this point, but they can’t do it forever.
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Due to a weak Pacific Division, it’s not hard to see the Kings getting into the postseason. This year, though, with how deep the Central Division is, they’ll have to get in as one of the top three teams in the Pacific. I’d be surprised if there’s a wild card spot available for a Pacific Division team to grab. But again, the Pacific is weak and the Kings are probably one of the three best teams in it.