Let's be honest here: Kopitar is now getting his chance to "fatten up" his stats vs. the "also-rans" in the relegation round...so not a true comparison vs. Crosby,Ovechkin.Malkin now playing tougher competition...
Also--we all know that Backstrom was better than him in the SEL this season,and too bad Backstrom got bumped back off Team Sweden when Zetterberg arrived after Detroit's demise in the NHL playoffs...so the real story of this tournament isn't Kopitar--but rather Backstrom's abscence --because I'm certain that in direct comparison to PHIL THE THRILL's less than stellar performance so far,Backstrom would have wowed 'em,thus cementing the "fall" in ranking for PHIL that some still continue to disbelieve...