Los Angeles Kings Broadcasters: Anze Kopitar Is Now An Elite Player

October 9, 2012 by 11 Comments

FROZEN ROYALTY EXCLUSIVE: As this series featuring the long-time broadcasters of the Los Angeles Kings continues, like everyone else, they marveled at how forwards Dustin Brown, Drew Doughty, and Anze Kopitar raised their level of play during the Kings’ 2012 run to the Stanley Cup. Part nine of a series.

LA Kings center Anze Kopitar, shown here during the on-ice celebration at
Staples Center, after the Kings won their first Stanley Cup
Championship on June 11, 2012.
(click above to view larger image)
Photo: Gann Matsuda/FrozenRoyalty.net

LOS ANGELES AND EL SEGUNDO, CA — As the Los Angeles Kings blew through the 2012 Stanley Cup Playoffs with a 16-4 record, winning the first Stanley Cup Championship in the 45-year history of the franchise, many pointed to the fact that they got contributions from everyone in the lineup as a key factor in their success.

That the Kings got those contributions from every player, all the way through their lineup, was significant, without a doubt. However, no team can win the Stanley Cup unless their best players are just that, in every game.

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NHL To Experiment With Rule Restricting Line Combination Changes

April 1, 2010 by 12 Comments

NEW YORK — Although the cry for a rule banning hits to the head was the focus of the recent National Hockey League general manager’s meetings, other rules were proposed that were designed to improve the game and, most notably, the fan experience.

Perhaps the most controversial rule proposed was to restrict the changing of line combinations during the season.

The proposed rule change would limit teams from changing established line combinations, barring injury, to no more than six different line combinations for each of their forward lines and defensive pairings.

Constant changing of line combinations by NHL head coaches has been a frequent complaint by fans across the league for many years. Read more of this post

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LA Kings’ Improvements May Not Be Easy To See

November 3, 2008 by 4 Comments

LOS ANGELES — One month of the 2008-09 National Hockey League season is in the books and the Los Angeles Kings have been pretty much what was expected in terms of wins and losses.

As of this writing, the Kings have a 3-6-1 record, good for seven points. They are ranked last in the Pacific Division, already eleven points out of first place, and in the Western Conference standings, the Kings are also dead last—both are right where they were last season.

Against the rest of the league, the Kings are ranked 28th in the thirty-team NHL, just two points ahead of the last place New York Islanders.

The Kings ended the 2007-08 season in 29th place, tied in points with last-place Tampa Bay.

In short, the Kings are right about where most people expected them to be, showing no significant improvement in the standings over the previous season so far. But if you think the Kings have not improved over last season, guess again. Read more of this post

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