Los Angeles Kings captain Anze Kopitar will retire after this season, his 20th in the NHL, he announced Thursday.
Kopitar, who helped lead the Kings to Stanley Cups in 2012 and 2014, turned 38 last month. The two-way center is entering the final season of a two-year extension he signed in July 2023 after playing his entire career with Los Angeles.
One of the most respected, defensive-minded forwards in the league, Kopitar has won two Selke Trophies (2016, '18) and three Lady Byng Trophies for gentlemanly play (2016, '23, '25).
According to those close to the captain, Kopitar wanted to make the announcement before the season so he could fully focus on the 2025-26 Kings, a team with Stanley Cup aspirations. The Kings have not won a playoff series since winning their last Stanley Cup in 2014, losing to the Edmonton Oilers in the first round each of the past four seasons.
The Kings, under new general manager Ken Holland, made several additions this summer to help with that title push, including signing veterans Corey Perry (who played last season with the Oilers), Joel Armia, Cody Ceci and Brian Dumoulin.
Kopitar will retire as a franchise legend. He already sits atop the Kings' record book for games played (1,454) and assists (838) and is 29 points away from tying Marcel Dionne's mark of 1,307 points as the team's all-time leading scorer. Kopitar is also two back from Jeff Carter's record for most overtime goals (11) in team history.
Kopitar is coming off another sound season, finishing second among Kings forwards in points (67) and ice-time (18:57), trailing only linemate Adrian Kempe. Kopitar also tied for the team lead last season with seven game-winning goals.
He is also regarded as a national hero in his native Slovenia. As the No. 11 overall pick of the 2005 draft, Kopitar became the first Slovenian to play in the NHL when he debuted in 2006-07. While Kopitar has appeared for the Slovenian national team on various stages, including the 2014 Olympics in Sochi, Slovenia did not qualify for the 2026 Milan Olympics, where NHL players are once again participating.
