Kings’ Kopitar and Armia leave game with injuries

THE Los Angeles Kings are forced to finish their match against the Minnesota Wild with two fewer attackers than at the start. The team will have to make do without its captain, Anze Kopitar and its right winger Joel Armia.

THE Kings announced Kopitar would not return to the game with a lower body injury, while Armia is sidelined with an upper body injury.

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Kopitar only played 4:54 of ice time in the first period and did not return at the start of the second period. Los Angeles said he would not return in the second half.

As for Armia, his departure was announced by the Kings during the second intermission. He had 9:14 of playing time before being removed from the game, forcing Los Angeles to finish the game with 10 attackers.

From Kopitar to uncertainty: the Kings’ Center crisis LOS ANGELES, CA — For two decades, the Los Angeles Kings have spent years chasing luxury franchises: a true number one center in Anze Kopitar. Alongside Jonathan Quick and Drew Doughty, the Kings formed the Holy Trinity of Hockey: three pillars of the franchise in the middle, on the back and in front of the net. At their peak, all three ranked among the best at their respective positions. This backbone was responsible for two Stanley Cups in three years, before the Mike Richards and Slava Voynov situations derailed the Lombardi administration.

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The Kopitar is in his final campaign to cap off a 20-year career, all spent with the Kings.

This is the second time this season that Kopitar has suffered a lower-body injury. In mid-October, he missed about a few weeks with a lower body injury.

This previous injury was due to a puck hitting him in the ankle in a clearing attempt by his teammate and Kings right winger. Adrian Kempe. However, it is not yet known if this injury is related to what forced him to withdraw from Los Angeles’ game against Minnesota.

This was Kopitar’s 37th appearance this season, and in that span he had six goals and 15 assists for 21 points. With that, he leads all Kings players in the plus-minus department with a plus-12 rating.

Prior to this game against the Wild, Kopitar averaged 18:54 of ice time per game, the lowest average ice time he has ever recorded in his career. He ranks fourth among Kings forwards in average ice time, behind Kevin Fiala, Kempe and Quinton Byfield, who leads all forwards.

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Furthermore, the Slovenian is only one point away from reaching the 1,300 mark. Only 38 players in NHL history have reached this milestone.

Additionally, once the game against the Kings and Wild enters the history books, he will be just nine games shy of logging 1,500 NHL games, which only 24 players have done it in NHL history.

Armia, on the other hand, could miss the Olympics if his injury is particularly significant. Finland announced that Armia was part of the Olympic roster on January 2 – the tournament begins on February 11.

This season, the 32-year-old has played in 41 games – including the game against the Wild on Monday – and has nine goals and 16 points for the Kings.

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This is Armia’s first campaign with the Kings after a seven-year tenure with the Kings. Montreal Canadiens. He signed a two-year contract at $2.5 million per season in the off season.

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