Kings swept away by Avalanche in Kopitar’s final game

LOS ANGELES — There had been one ceremony after another for the Kings’ all-time leading scorer, but Anže Kopitar’s farewell game was largely bereft of pomp, circumstance and, for his squad, offense.

The Kings were inundated, 5-1, by the Colorado Avalanche at Crypto.com Arena on Sunday afternoon, mustering just five goals across a four-game sweep at the hands of the Presidents’ Trophy winners.

Kopitar, who bid a tearful adieu to the fans in his final regular-season home game, received immense support from the crowd on hand in the dying embers of the game. He heard chants of “thank you, Kopi” and received a standing ovation. He announced before this campaign, his 20th, that he would retire at its conclusion.

His swan song was often off-key. The Kings narrowly cleared the playoff hurdle with the lowest point total, worst goal differential and other ignominious distinctions among postseason qualifiers in a season where goals and wins, particularly in regulation, were rather infrequent.

“The series went the way the season had been going for us. Playing good enough, playing hard enough, but the results haven’t been there,” leading scorer Adrian Kempe said.

An emotional Kempe was brought to tears during the discussion of his linemate Kopitar, the only King of both two decades and two Stanley Cups.

“His leadership and everything he’s done for the organization, it’s obviously going to be different,” Kempe said, choking out most of his words. “Other guys, like myself, have to step up and do stuff that he’s been doing for this team for so long.”

Kopitar’s longest-tenured teammate, Drew Doughty, tried his best to summarize Kopitar’s impact without his own emotions overflowing.

“He had an unbelievable career. He means so much to this organization, and, yeah, it’s going to be tough without him,” said Doughty, trying hard to keep his composure.

Joel Edmundson scored the hosts’ solitary goal. Kopitar finished the round with no points, as did Doughty and a dozen other Kings skaters. Anton Forsberg started all four games, wrapping up by making 27 of 31 saves.

Nathan MacKinnon rifled in a goal, tacked on an empty-netter and assisted on another tally by Devon Toews, whose defense partner, Cale Makar, also scored. Nicolas Roy added a goal and captain Gabriel Landeskog contributed two assists. Scott Wedgewood stopped 24 pucks and posted the first round’s second-best save percentage behind Carolina’s Frederik Andersen.

The Avs never trailed on Sunday and only played from behind for 3:21 of the series, a fleeting Game 2 Kings lead. In the third period, they slathered on two insurance goals, at 3:13 and 6:01, before MacKinnon’s vacated-cage marker with 5:38 to play.

“It hit me with about five or six minutes to go that this could be it. For the last 20 years, I’ve never experienced that emotion. There was always a ‘next year,’” said Kopitar, flanked by his two children, ages 9 and 11. “Now, it’s done. It’s hard to comprehend, but, at the same time, these are the two reasons that I’m really going to enjoy next year, too. It’s very bittersweet, for sure.”

Before that, MacKinnon slowed Colorado’s rush, turning back toward the blue line to find a trailing Toews, whose laser from just above the left faceoff dot made it 4-1.

It became 3-1 after Sam Malinski’s stretch pass sprung Artturi Lehkonen, who beat both Edmundson and Cody Ceci to fire a shot that generated a rebound goal for Roy.

The Kings got on the board at the 13:43 mark with Edmundson’s first goal and point of the series. Edmundson, who’d lost MacKinnon on his first goal, atoned by receiving Kempe’s pass in the high slot and flicking a shot that clipped Wedgewood on its way into the net.

They’d trailed 2-0 after Makar’s second goal in two games. Scott Laughton’s gentle, disrupted clearing attempt came to Makar. He juked Taylor Ward with a move to the outside before fending him off as he cut inside to deliver a short-side snipe at 5:58.

“Makar is just a different force out there. I thought he was really, really good tonight, and that really drives it for their team,” said Trevor Moore, a Thousand Oaks native and University of Denver alumnus. “They’re just a good, solid team all the way through.”

The Kings skated with vigor in the early going and drew the first two penalties of the game. But all their underlying success went for naught once they gave up the game’s first goal, 16 seconds into their first infraction of the afternoon and 13:13 into the contest.

Nazem Kadri made a seam pass from the top of the right circle to the bottom of the left one for MacKinnon. The Maurice “Rocket” Richard Trophy winner notched his first goal of the postseason when his one-timer got through a sliding Forsberg’s six-hole.

This marked the Kings’ fifth consecutive first-round exit in as many seasons and their seventh straight first-round loss overall. They have lost eight straight postseason games and 15 of their past 18.

They’ve also had three coaches in three years, and with the interim tag still affixed to Coach D.J. Smith’s title, there has been some speculation that they might make it four in four. Smith said that it would be up to General Manager Ken Holland to decide ultimately.

“All I know is, as a coach and as a coaching staff, (you ask) is your team prepared, are they detailed and do they show up every night?” Smith said. “And the answer to that question is yes, they did, under me.”