March 27, 2011
by Gann Matsuda
Los Angeles Kings star forward Anze Kopitar (center) suffered a broken right ankle late in the second period during a 4-1 win over
the Colorado Avalanche at Staples Center
in Los Angeles on March 26, 2011.
Photo: Noah Graham/NHLI via Getty Images and the Los Angeles Kings
LOS ANGELES — Going into the 2010-11 season, the
Los Angeles Kings were expected to be a playoff team, as they were last season. But expectations were higher this season, their benchmark for success being to make it into the second round, the Western Conference semi-finals, and with just eight games remaining, their prospects were looking good.
But all that may have come crashing down on March 26, during a decisive 4-1 win over the hapless Colorado Avalanche, as the Kings lost star center Anze Kopitar, who suffered a broken right ankle in a freakish fall late in the second period.
He will be out of the lineup for a minimum of six weeks.
Kopitar will undergo a magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) examination on March 28, when the full extent of his injury will become clear, and although there has been no further word from the Kings medical staff, no one should be surprised if Kopitar will be out of the lineup for much longer than six weeks.
At the 15:39 mark of the second period, Kopitar fell backwards, his right leg twisting while his skate remained firmly planted on the ice. Video of the incident, especially slow motion replay, was a gruesome sight to behold. Read more of this post
