Anze Kopitar turned the Kings’ all-time main scorer on Saturday, passing Corridor of Famer Marcel Dionne with a third-period objective in a 6-4 loss to the New Jersey Devils at Prudential Heart.
Kopitar, who stated he’ll retire on the finish of the season, has 1,308 factors — one higher than the 1,307 factors Dionne had in his 12 seasons with the Kings from 1975 to 1987.
Kopitar, 38, has a franchise-best 858 assists. With 450 profession targets, he trails solely Luc Robitaille (557) and Dionne (550) on the staff’s all-time listing.
Anze Kopitar scores towards the New Jersey Devils to turn out to be the Kings’ all-time main scorer.
The Kings captain tied Dionne’s mark on a power-play objective within the second interval towards the Devils. He broke the file on his tenth objective of the season, tying the rating 4-4 with 6:18 left within the third interval.
New Jersey’s Jack Hughes scored about 4 minutes later to place the Devils again into the lead earlier than Timo Meier put the sport away with an empty-net objective within the ultimate seconds.
Artemi Panarin and Taylor Ward additionally scored for the Kings (27-24-15), who’re battling the San José Sharks, Seattle Kraken and the Nashville Predators for the ultimate playoff spot within the Western Convention. The Kings fell out of the ultimate wild-card spot Saturday after San José’s 4-2 win over the Montreal Canadiens.
Kopitar ranks thirty eighth in NHL scoring historical past and is certainly one of 9 gamers in league historical past to have performed in 1,500 video games with one staff.
“It’s wonderful,” Kings basic supervisor Ken Holland stated earlier this month. “The league’s been round 100 and one thing years. You’re watching certainly one of 9 that performed 1,500 video games with one staff. I believe it speaks to his ardour. It speaks to he does it proper daily.
“To play 1,500 video games within the Nationwide Hockey League, a lot of occasions when gamers get to a sure age the league begins to go by them as a result of it will get laborious. It’s laborious through the summer time, all of the sacrifices you must make within the summertime. Going to the health club and household sacrifices.
“He performs 200 ft. He performs a tough recreation. He’s one of many premier two-way centermen of his time. First-ballot Corridor of Famer. It’s wonderful what he’s completed. It simply speaks to his ardour, dedication, love of the sport, sacrifices. He’s a tremendous participant that the followers of the L.A. Kings have gotten to observe for a very long time.”
Kopitar, a Slovenian native, was chosen eleventh general by the Kings within the 2005 NHL draft. He scored twice in his Kings debut a 12 months later. A five-time All-Star, Kopitar received the Stanley Cup twice with the Kings in 2012 and 2014. He’s additionally the longest-serving captain in franchise historical past.
The Kings hope to make Kopitar’s ultimate season in Los Angeles a memorable one after 4 consecutive playoff losses to the Edmonton Oilers.
