80′s flashback aside, what the fuck right?
I won’t post the stats. I refuse to post the stats because when I read them, they piss me off. The number of goals divided by the number of games = shit.
I love Anze Kopitar.
You love Anze Kopitar.
Kopitar states he wasn’t injured. Banged up, but not injured.
Courtesy of Jon Rosen:
“I guess I’m getting back to no discomfort and good strength in my knee and should be fine,” said Kopitar, who plans to shed the knee brace that he used during the season. “And [in regards to] being injured during this playoffs, there was really no significant injury that I suffered. It’s normal being just banged up a little bit – a few bumps and bruises, but that’s about it.”
The knee brace didn’t keep him from scoring goals. It may have limited some of his range of motion but the Kopitar I saw (a) did not go to the net often enough (b) did not stay near the net when he did go there (c) was knocked off the puck far too easy (d) was rarely a factor on the forecheck and (e) didn’t get open to take high percentage shots on goal.
Game 5 was his best game. Notice from where he scored the goal. Not coincidence. And a powerplay goal! When the hell did he last have one of those? Screw it, don’t pull the stat, it will result in anger.
And really all of that comes down to a lack of effort, right?
That is why I thought there must be an injury.
That is why I just could not chalk it up to a “slump” (as Rosen called it) because we’re talking about the playoffs, with a 25-year-old star in the league and a veteran of this hockey club that just won the Cup and he knows what it takes to win it and also knows what a critical piece he is to our success…
Do we just say, meh, slump at the wrong time and let’s hope it doesn’t happen again? I can’t do that. Is he just a streaky player and we have to pray one of his cold streaks doesn’t last 30-40 freaking games?
Was it conditioning and Kopitar needs to be in much better shape? He struggled with this in his first few seasons and took great strides after 2010.
Is he not telling us the whole story, meaning he really was and is injured?
I hear he is getting married…I mean, women do make you soft (I swear, I heard the unison of hissing and angry meows as soon as I typed that…shit, they are probably even madder after the meow reference and I don’t even have a saucer of milk laying around) but that can’t be it. No way. I have seen his girl friend / fiance. She is hot. And it’s not like he is…nevermind, that can’t be it…you know, Kopi does live with his parents I think and this is a big step and all, wait, wait, wait, is it even true he is getting married? Someone help out with this before we take it further.
Look, maybe I should do what Surly is doing and not let it bother me and move on.
It bothers me.
That is why I want to know…
‘Sup?
Filed under: L.A. Kings News
