July 19, 2012
by Gann Matsuda
Looking ahead to 2012-13, can Los Angeles Kings star center Anze Kopitar, shown here during the team’s
Stanley Cup Championship Rally on June 14, 2012, at Staples Center in Los Angeles, avoid the prolonged
slumps that have plagued him throughout his career?
(click to view larger image)
Photo: David Sheehan/FrozenRoyalty.net
LOS ANGELES — Although it certainly ended with a huge bang, the 2011-12 season was one of struggle for the
Los Angeles Kings, given the fact that they qualified for the playoffs by the skins of their teeth.
Indeed, the Kings’ inability to score goals, a problem that plagued them until the trade deadline in February, almost cost them an invitation to the post-season party, and would likely have resulted in a shake-up in the Kings front office (see 2011-12 Los Angeles Kings Year-In-Review: Front Office Turnaround Set Stanley Cup Run In Motion, and 2011-12 Year-In-Review: Doughty Holdout, Failure To Execute In Offensive Zone Almost Sunk LA Kings Early).
But, as detailed in the previous story in this multi-part series that looks back on the Kings’ 2011-12 season, they put it all together in the final six weeks of the season, earning an 11-4-3 record, good for 25 points, securing the eighth and final playoff berth in the Western Conference, setting up their dominant run to the first Stanley Cup Championship in the 45-year history of the franchise.
In part 4 of Frozen Royalty’s 2011-12 Year-In-Review, it is now time to evaluate the players, coaches, and management. In this installment…the forwards. Read more of this post
