Kings signs Captain Anze Kopitar to a 2-year extension worth $14 million US
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One of the last remaining links to the Kings’ Stanley Cup championship teams and one of the best players in franchise history extends his stay in Los Angeles.
Captain Anze Kopitar signed a two-year, $14 million US extension with LA on Thursday. He is now under contract through the 2025-26 NHL season at a $7 million annual salary cap.
“We are pleased to have reached an agreement that will keep Anze in Los Angeles as our group takes the next step in the fight for a Stanley Cup,” general manager Rob Blake said in a statement. “He is the heart and soul of this team as our captain and he will continue to play a major role at our club.”
The center from Slovenia was almost a point-a-game player and the Kings’ top scorer last year at the age of 35 with 28 goals and 46 assists. His eight-year, $80 million contract expires after next season.
LOOK | Kopitar scores late tying goal in Kings’ Game 1 OT victory over Oilers:
Anze Kopitar’s goal for Los Angeles with 16.7 seconds left in regulation extends the opening game of their playoff series against Edmonton.
Kopitar is one of two remaining players from 2012 and 2014, when the Kings won the Cup for a first and second time, along with defenseman Drew Doughty.
Kopitar has played all 17 of his NHL seasons with LA. He has twice won the Selke Trophy as the league’s best defensive forward and recently won his second Lady Byng for polite conduct.
In 1,384 regular season and playoff games, he has 1,218 points. He ranks second in Kings history in games, assists and game-winning goals, third in points and fourth in goals.
