In a season full of good and bad times for the Los Angeles Kings, the team from California saw one of their players achieve a milestone in hockey. This occurred during a 6-0 victory against the Minnesota Wild on March 20, when Anze Kopitar became the 52nd player in NHL history to reach 1,200 points in his career.
Kopitar, the Kings captain and first-line center, achieved his 1,200th point with an assist and a goal during the shutout against the Wild on Wednesday. David Rittich started as goalie for the Kings and prevented all 30 shots from the opposing team, contributing to Los Angeles earning their 36th win of the season.
Even though Kopitar was already one of only four players in franchise history to surpass the 1,000-point mark, the Slovenian became the second Kings player to reach at least 1,200 points for Los Angeles. Kopitar joined Marcel Dionne (1,307 points) in this exclusive club.
“It's been amazing to play with him, to get to play with him and see him achieve all these records,” Kings left wing Trevor Moore, who assisted two of Los Angeles’ six goals, told reporters in his postgame press conference. “To be a small part of that and have those memories is really cool.”
Anze Kopitar, 18 Seasons With the Kings Since 2007 Debut
Kopitar, 36 years old, became the 52nd player in NHL history to reach 1,200 points by assisting Kevin Fiala‘s first-period goal against the Wild. Later in the game, already in the second period and a Kings power play, Kopitar scored a goal to make his tally 1,201 through 1,361 games played, surpassing Dino Ciccarelli‘s 1,200 career points.
The center has played all of his 18 NHL seasons with the Kings after being drafted 11th overall back in the 2005 draft by the team.
Kopitar started his NHL career by appearing in 72 games once he moved from Europe heading into the 2007 season, achieving 20 goals and 41 assists (61 points) as a rookie and finishing with the fourth-highest votes for the Calder Trophy award.
According to the NHL, Kopitar became the fourth player born outside of North America to gather 1,200 career points with a single team. Per Stathead, Kopitar also became the third player drafted in 2005 or later to reach 1,200 career points, only surpassed by Patrick Kane and Sidney Crosby through Thursday, March 21.
Kopitar is also one of only seven players in that group to surpass the 1,000-point mark in their careers.
Los Angeles Defeats Western Conference rival, Wild-Card Threat Minnesota
By helping Los Angeles beat Minnesota on Wednesday, Kopitar kept the Kings firmly in the race for a Stanley Cup Playoffs spot.
As of Thursday, March 21, the Kings are the third-ranked team in the NHL Pacific Division with 83 points in 69 games played. They trail the Vancouver Canucks (96 points in 70 games) and the Edmonton Oilers (83 in 67) while sitting one position and two points above the Vegas Golden Knights (81 in 69).
Even if Los Angeles gets overtaken by Vegas at some point throughout the remainder of the regular season, odds are the Kings still make the playoffs.
According to MoneyPuck, Los Angeles is highly likely to make it to the postseason as a Wild Card team. MoneyPuck predicts that there is a 63.5% chance of Los Angeles finishing third in the Pacific Division, a 3.1% chance of finishing as the top Wild Card team, and a 24% chance of securing the second Wild Card position.
Interestingly, the team that Los Angeles played against on Wednesday is one of the teams they are competing with to reach the postseason next month. The Wild are currently struggling in the Central Division, with only 76 points in 70 games, placing them 23 points behind the third-ranked Dallas.
The Wild can only enter the playoffs by securing one of the two wild-card berths. However, their chances took a hit as they lost to the Kings, putting them 5 points behind Vegas and trailing behind the St. Louis Blues (77) by one point as of Friday.
