People use lifealert when they fall, that's the joke. Kopi cannot stay on his skates with a frequency I have never seen before. He started the year strong and has declined visibly. Cumulative stats including his energetic start are meaningless. The problem is he is sharpied into his role as top center in all situations, burnout be damned, and that reduces line flexibility on a team that needs to find forward chemistry badly.
I mean I get the joke but I guess I just don't agree with the assessment that Kopi hasn't been able to stay on his skates lately???? I haven't really seen/noticed that?
I also don't agree that "Cumulative stats including his energetic start are meaningless" - I feel like cumulative stats are, um, definitely meaningful??????? Even if he did get off to a hot start it wasn't like some ridiculously hot start that wasn't sustainable - He's been roughly a point per game player all year and all of his career?
And the same is true even over the recent 6 game losing streak - Kopi has 5 points over the last 6 games so like...... Can you really say that's him declining???
You'd
maybe have a point if it was like "woahhhh Kopitar only has 2 points in his last 6 games - maybe he is slowing down / declining and that's the cause for the team's recent skid" (Although even then I'd suggest over a small sample size like 6 games it could just be a cold streak).... But that's not even the case.
The problem over the last 6 games is that the depth scoring they've relied on all year has dried up.... Not that Kopitar has worn down.
Kaliyev: 0 points in the last 5 games
Dubois: 2 points (both came in the same game) in the last 6 games
Lizotte: 0 points in the last 5 games
Grundstrom: 0 points in the last 5 games
Spence: 1 point in the last 5 games
Before last night Moore had just 1 goal in his previous 5 games and Danault had just 1 assist.
The problem recently isn't at the top of the lineup - It's at the middle/bottom of the lineup. The Kings were getting phenomenal depth scoring all year, now they're not. That's why they're losing games lately.
And on this 6 game losing streak by the way 5 of those 6 games have been 1 goal games. 3 out of 6 games have gone past regulation (2 of which went to a shootout). The difference???? Depth scoring. If the Kings are getting that extra 1-2 goals a game they were used to getting from their depth lines, those one goal games become wins.
At least, the organization as a whole is pretty top notch. Ownership has showed no reservation at making sure the team has the best resources across the board, at least health, fitness, and equipment/facility-wise. They do everything it takes to make sure the buck lies with hockey operations
