Anze Kopitar

Anže Kopitar (born on August 24, 1987) is a Slovenian professional ice hockey center and alternate captain of the Los Angeles Kings of the National Hockey League (NHL).

The 11th overall pick in the 2005 NHL Entry Draft, Anze became the first Slovenian to play in the NHL in 2006. He has spent his entire career with the Kings and has led the team in scoring for five consecutive seasons.

Anze played junior hockey for his hometown team HK Acroni Jesenice before moving to Sweden when he was sixteen years old to play in a more competitive league. He spent one season with the junior teams of the Södertälje SK organization, and then with the senior team of the top-level Elitserien.

In 2006, Anze moved to North America to join the Kings, a year after he was drafted, and he finished fourth in the Calder Trophy voting his rookie year. Anze's dynamic offensive talent allowed him to immediately become Los Angeles' best offensive weapon, but in recent seasons, he has improved his defensive game and emerged as one of the NHL's premier two-way forwards.

Anze helped win the first Stanley Cup championship in Kings history in 2012. Internationally, he has represented the Slovenian national team in several junior and senior tournaments.

European Hockey Career
In 2002, Anze began playing for the youth team of his hometown, HK Acroni Jesenice. He split the year between the team's under-18 and junior club's, and also appeared in 11 games for the senior team HK Kranjska Gora of the Slovenian Ice Hockey League.

He had 4 goals and 4 assists for 8 points in the senior league, and recorded 76 points in 14 games for the Jesenice under-18 team and 27 points in 20 games for the junior club. Anze led the Slovenian Ice Hockey League in scoring at sixteen years old and Swedish scout Lars Soder recruited him for the Elitserien in 2004 (Soder had originally discovered Anze when he was thirteen years old at a European Youth Olympic Festival).

The Slovenian Ice Hockey League did not have a high enough skill level, so Anze decided that if he wanted to improve his career prospects he would have to leave the country. He was offered a chance to play in Sweden for Södertälje SK. Anze played for their junior team and led the league in scoring with 49 points (28 goals, 21 assists) in 30 games.

Prior to the 2005 NHL Entry Draft, Anze was ranked the top European skater by the NHL Central Scouting Bureau. After his first season in Sweden, he was chosen 11th overall by the Los Angeles Kings in the 2005 NHL Entry Draft. Unlike most top-ranked prospects, Anze was not at the draft, but in Sweden playing in preseason games. Some members of the team had a party for the draft, including Niclas Bergfors who was selected 23rd overall by the New Jersey Devils.

Prior to the NHL Draft, Anze was also selected in the CHL Import Draft by the Regina Pats of the Western Hockey League. He declined to move to North America, hoping to further his development by continuing to play against professionals in the Elitserien, rather than the juniors in the WHL.

Los Angeles Kings
On September 7, 2005, Anze signed an entry-level contract with the Kings, but he went back and played in Sweden for another season. In 2006, he accepted an invitation to the Los Angeles Kings' rookie camp. On October 6, 2006, Anze made his NHL debut against the Anaheim Ducks and scored two goals in the game.

In January of 2007, Anze was named to the NHL YoungStars Game (an event of the NHL All-Star Game). He recorded two goals and three assists. Anze completed his first NHL season third among rookies in scoring behind Evgeni Malkin and Paul Stastny with 20 goals and 41 assists for 61 points.

It marked the fifth highest point total by a Kings rookie and the highest since Luc Robitaille in 1986–87. He finished fourth in voting for the Calder Memorial Trophy as rookie of the year. was awarded the Mark Bavis Memorial Award as the best first-year member of the Kings and named the King's Most Popular Player.

The following season, Anze was selected to represent the Western Conference at the 56th NHL All-Star Game in Atlanta, his first appearance in the game. He was the youngest player in the game, nearly two years younger than Paul Stastny.

Anze finished the season with 32 goals and 45 assists for 77 points. Kopitar led the Kings in assists and points and was second in goals. He was named the winner of the Bill Libby Memorial Award as the most valuable player on the Kings; he also received an award for leading the team in scoring.

On October 11, 2008 (early in the 2008-09 season), Anze signed a seven-year extension with the Kings worth $47.6 million. The contract would keep him with the team until the conclusion of the 2015–16 season. Anze finished the season with 66 points in 82 games, leading the Kings in both assists and points, while second in goals.

On October 22, 2009, Anze scored his first career hat trick against the Dallas Stars.He finished the 2009–10 season with a career-high 34 goals and 81 points. For the second time in his career Kopitar won the Bill Libby Memorial Award as the Kings most valuable player, and led the team in scoring for the third straight year.

Anze also made his NHL playoff debut in 2010 as the Kings qualified for the playoffs for the first time since 2002. The Kings lost in the first round to the Vancouver Canucks and he finished tied for third on the team with five points in six games.

On March 15, 2011, Anze played his 325th consecutive NHL game and set a new record for the Kings, passing Marcel Dionne. Eleven days later, however, Anze's season and ironman streak came to an abrupt end at 330 games with a broken ankle. Even so, he led the team in scoring for the fourth straight season, amassing a 73-point campaign prior to his injury.

In the 2011–12 season, Anze led the Kings in scoring with 76 points, including a career-best 51 assists. He won the Stanley Cup with the Kings, the first time the team won the Cup. Anze tied with Dustin Brown to lead the team in playoff scoring, with each having twenty points in twenty games. Anze was the first Slovenian-born player to win the Stanley Cup.

Due to the 2012–13 NHL lockout, Anze joined his younger brother Gašper Kopitar's team Mora IK of the Swedish second-tier league HockeyAllsvenskan, signing a contract with the team for the 2012–13 season. The lockout ended on January 6, 2013 and Anze returned to the Kings to play in the shortened 2012–13 NHL season.