While we often hear all the talk across the wide world of sports that the influx of youth is taking over our country’s favorite pastimes—from baseball to basketball to football, hockey is the one sport that doesn’t receive its proper recognition when discussing the nation’s best young athletes. Of course, from the casual fans perspective, hockey is dominated by the likes of Sidney Crosby, age-22, and Alexander Ovechkin, age-24, and rightfully so. Yet there’s more to the great game of hockey than the dynamic duo from the East. In fact, six of the top ten point scorers (as of 11/9) are 27 years old or younger.
Without looking at the NHL scoring leaders, take a guess on who leads the league in offensive production. Crosby? Nope. Ovie? No thanks. Malkin? Not close. The league’s leading scorer is none other than Anze Kopitar, from the third best team in the Western Conference, the Los Angeles Kings. Most probably can’t even pronounce the Slovenian’s (since when are they good at hockey?) name, let alone even know who he is. The question remains, is this guy for real or is he an aberration?
First things first: Kopitar is leading the league right now with 27 points, four over Ovechkin. The Washington Capital has been out since November 1st, with a shoulder injury, but could return to action this Friday. Third place in the race for the league’s scoring title goes to Marian Gaborik, of the New York Rangers. The brittle Gaborik has also dealt with his own injury woes, missing a couple game due to a knee injury. Malkin hasn’t played since October 29th because of his own shoulder injury, so it’s no wonder he ranks 37th in the league in scoring. Pavel Datsyuk, who finished fourth in the league with 97 points last season, has also missed two games for the Red Wings. I’d hope by now all you readers are sensing a theme. Only Crosby has started off “slowly,”—by his standards at least, with 16 points in 17 games.
Still, the question remains, is this guy, Anze Kopitar, a legitimate threat to become the top offensive force in the NHL?
To put his season in perspective, Kopitar has 27 points in 17 games. Last season, Ovechkin had 24 points in his first 17 games ; Crosby had 22, Datsyuk had 17, and Malkin had 30. So as of now, we’d have to say this Kopitar character has been rather impressive.
What’s even more astounding is the fact that Kings’ center is only 22-years old. He’s also been in the league for four seasons. After his sophomore campaign, in which he totaled 77 points in all 82 games played, it looked as if he was going to breakout. But last season, he only had 66 points, so the pessimists certainly looked to write him off for this season. Little did they realize, Kopitar played on the Kings, a team that hasn’t eclipsed the .500 mark since he’s been in the league. Still, he’s 22, and has 231 points in 253 games played.
This year is looking quite brighter for the Kings. They have a nice core of young players—playmakers, snipers, and rising leaders. They are second in the West in scoring, lead by Kopitar. Centering a line of Justin Williams, who hasn’t had a full season in two years, and Ryan Smyth, a newly-acquired steady left-winger, has most definitely aided Kopitar’s development.
Not only does Kopitar have the supporting cast to be a constant producer this season, he’s also showing his versatility. Earning over 21 minutes of ice-time, Kopitar sees number one time on the power play unit, and also just under two minutes a game of penalty-kill time. At this pace, Kopitar will greatly outnumber his short-handed time from last season, which shows how much Kings coach Terry Murray Kelly trusts him. Additionally, Kopitar has a plus-8 rating, fully showing that he’s more than a scorer, he’s also responsible in his own end.
With imposing size, 6’3”, 222 pounds, the center is the definition of a power forward. With great hands, speed, and shot, Kopitar has the make-up to become a superstar in the NHL for years to come.
-Jimmy
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