Continuing with our look at storylines heading into Kings Training Camp, we now turn attention toward the elephant in the room.
Will this be Anze Kopitar’s final NHL season?
As we begin to peel the onion on this potential story, let’s jump right to the end. We don’t want to see any stories talking about him ‘arguably’ having a Hall of Fame career. There is nothing to debate or consider. Whenever Kopitar decides to hang up his skates, he’s a first ballot Hall of Famer. Period, end of story.
Now, where were we…
Ah yes, the possibility of retirement.
At this very moment, nobody knows 100% for sure. Yes, there was that tweet back in July. And, yes, there was at least an acknowledgment by Kopitar that he’s at least considered it here last month.
What comes next?
If he’s retiring, there’s two likely ways to do it. He could either come out and say it sometime during training camp — as early as opening day — to avoid ongoing speculation. Or he could follow Dustin Brown’s chosen path and wait until the final month of play and then let everybody know he’s ready for the next chapter whenever the Kings next playoff run comes to an end.
Without speculating, as it’s his announcement to make on his timeline, we see Kopitar as more likely opting for the former. He’s not a publicity seeker, nor does he want to bothered by distractions. If this is a story capable of snowballing as the season wears along, he’ll probably want to get in front of it and turn everybody’s attention back to what’s happening on the ice.
Either option is equally acceptable, though. It’s his career, his decision, his future. If Kopitar wants to keep playing, great. If he elects to prioritize family over playing after 20 years, that’s easily understandable.
Three Fourths of Mt. Rushmore
If he chooses to retire, Kopitar would be the third player among the Kings core four to no longer be part of the Kings on-ice roster, leaving Drew Doughty as the last man standing.
When Kopitar signed his current two-year deal in July 2023, it was somewhat believed to be his final NHL contract. While the option always remains for another extension, Kopitar turned 38 years old a few weeks ago and is about to embark on his 20th season with the Kings.
Brown retired in 2022, while goaltender Jonathan Quick’s contract in New York expires next summer. It’s not that far of a stretch to think that he too could be wrapping up his own Hall of Fame career next summer, as well.
Meanwhile, Doughty has two years remaining on his current contract. Riffing off of the Oasis song Live Forever, the boisterous defenseman just might plan to Play Forever. Maybe he’ll even challenge Chris Chelios, who was the longest-tenured defenseman in NHL history when he retired after 26 years in the league. There’s also Zdeno Chara’s record of 1,680 NHL games played on the blueline. Doughty could easily show interest in going after that marker.
Enough about Doughty, though, and back to Kopitar.
If this ends up being his last NHL season, the Kings should make it a yearlong love letter to their longtime captain. They owe him that much.
Statistically Speaking
If Kopitar decides that 2025-26 will be his last laps around the league, here’s a fun look at 11 sets of numbers in his honor:
— He already owns several of the Kings top records in franchise history, including games played (1454) and assists (838). He’s also set to pass Marcel Dionne’s 1,307-point mark, which would make him LA’s all-time scoring leader. With just 29 points needed to tie that mark, historical trends point to Kopitar likely hitting it sometime around mid to late-December. Taking a quick peek at the schedule, LA plays against Anaheim on Dec. 27. Kopitar recorded his first NHL point against the Ducks on Oct. 6, 2006. Seems rather fitting to break the point mark against the same team he began his totals against.
— Multiple league awards have made their way to Kopitar over the past two decades, including a pair of Selke Trophies for best defensive forward (2016, 2018) and three Lady Byng Trophies for gentlemanly play (2016, 2023, 2025). He’s claimed two Stanley Cups along the way too, with an eye to add at least one more.
— His No. 11 will obviously never be worn by another player in Kings history. However, did you know it wasn’t the first number he wore in LA? That would be No. 52, as pictured above — and it was something he reminisced about in a previous article here.
— Speaking of jerseys, Kopitar enters play this season set to wear his 21st different Kings jersey (when the team finally announces their rumored third sweater design for 2025-26). Over the course of his career, he’s worn 20 different Kings jerseys, from the various black and purple designs when he first broke in, to the home plate design, plus the various outdoor and other specialty jerseys.
— Nearly everything Kopitar does he does to near perfection. A coach’s dream is a phrase often repeated by NHL bench bosses who speak about the Slovenian. How about this, he has nearly a perfect split among his goal totals. Of Kopitar’s 440 regular season goals, 224 have been scored at home, leaving 216 to come on the road. That’s rather remarkable consistency over 19 years in the league.
— Sticking with coaches for just a moment. Kopitar has played for a Lucky 7 of NHL head coaches thus far. Things began with Marc Crawford, then Terry Murray, Darryl Sutter, John Stevens, Willie Desjardins, Todd McLellan, and Jim Hiller.
— When he scores a goal, it matters. Kopitar has recorded 305 goals in a Kings victory. By contrast, he’s only scored 96 in a loss, and 39 in a tie (something that isn’t even possible anymore). Back to those wins… his 305 goals in 720 wins means that if he scores, there’s about a 50% chance the Kings will win that game. This pattern holds true for assists also. Kopitar has 522 assists in wins, compared to just 216 in losses (and 100 more in ties). Bottom line, if he finds the scoresheet, LA has a far better statistical chance of winning that game.
— Kopitar also sits two back of tying Jeff Carter (11) for the most overtime goals in Kings history. That’s a mark he could possibly tie or surpass this season.
— He’s scored 259 goals in the month of March, more than any other month of the regular season. December is second-most at 235 goals. While Kopitar has played more games against the Sharks (97), he’s scored the most goals against Anaheim, finding the back of the net 32 times in 93 games.
— When it comes to the postseason, Kopitar has played in the most playoff games (103) than any other player in Kings history — beating Doughty to that mark by just two games. Should the Kings make the playoffs again, Kopitar needs just six points to pass Wayne Gretzky’s Kings playoff total of 94 points.
— How about a crazy stat? Much is made about the importance of winning faceoffs. Kopitar has won 14,493 faceoffs in his career. He has lapped the field among all players Kings players since the turn of the century. In fact, he’s won three times as many as the guy in second place — that’s Jarret Stoll who won 4,321 in a Kings uniform.
Can’t Make This Up Dept.
At the end of each Kings season, it’s customary for the last home game of the regular season to be designated as Fan Appreciate Day. Well, this year, the last home game of LA’s 2025-26 campaign is scheduled for April 11 against Edmonton. If you didn’t catch that when you read it the first time, the Kings final regular season home game will be 4/11.
If he’s calling it a career, indeed it will be for 11.
Follow @mayorsmanor
MORE LA KINGS NEWS:
Note to webmasters/reporters: When recapping news or interviews from this site please remember to include a link to www.MayorsManor.com
Continue reading...