Grading Los Angeles Kings' Stars Through the First Few Games of 2014-15 Season

The 2014-15 NHL season is underway, and the Los Angeles Kings have shown signs of a Stanley Cup hangover—see the shutout loss to the San Jose Sharks. But they've also shown signs of how dominant they can be, with a 4-1 win over the Winnipeg Jets.

We should expect similar results the rest of the way. The Kings have underperformed in the previous few regular seasons, only to turn it on when it matters.

They are 1-1-1 through their first three games, with individual performances varying from great to very poor. With that in mind, here are the grades for the Kings' stars through the opening few games. 

Jonathan Quick

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Grade: C

Jonathan Quick appeared in the Kings' first two contests, and he has a save percentage of .896 and a goals-against average of 4.01 in two losses. 

That's an extremely small sample size, and it's hard to blame Quick for the team's poor effort on opening night. Quick has had some highlight saves and some weak goals allowed, as you might expect when you face 67 shots in two games.

Quick has allowed two goals on breakaways and a few weaker goals through traffic that he might not have seen. That includes the Arizona Coyotes' overtime winner, which came on the power play.

Give it another 10 games or so and his stats will be dramatically improved, and he will likely start stealing games. 

Drew Doughty

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Grade: B+

Drew Doughty has played a ton of minutes through the first three games. He ranks fourth in the league in average ice time and is first on the Kings by five full minutes—a huge margin. 

Doughty has been the workhorse and the backbone of the team early on. While he's had a couple minor defensive lapses, his overall impact may be matched only by Jeff Carter. 

The defenseman has two assists, a plus-two rating, four hits, three blocked shots and just two giveaways. Expect Doughty to be more physical and to better adjust to playing on the power play with Alec Martinez, should that pairing continue going forward. 

With a healthy defensive core, Doughty's ice time should decrease a bit in the coming weeks.

Jeff Carter

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Grade: A-

A 40-goal season for Jeff Carter? 

It could happen. That 70s Line is in fine form to start the season. The trio of Tanner Pearson, Tyler Toffoli and Carter has combined for five goals and four assists. 

If Carter can continue to develop chemistry with the two youngsters, and they continue to improve as playmakers and two-way players, this could quickly become one of the most dangerous second lines in the league. 

Carter has a pair of goals and an assist, and he leads the Kings with 11 shots and a plus-five rating. Where he needs to improve is in the faceoff circle. While he is the best in the dot on the team thus far, Carter is winning just 49.1 percent of his draws. The Kings rely on all four centers to win the majority of their draws, specifically in the defensive zone. 

Expect Carter to get above 50 percent in the coming games. 

Anze Kopitar

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Grade: C+

Anze Kopitar got off to a bit of a slow start, especially through the first two games, during which he and Marian Gaborik weren't connecting as they did in the playoffs. 

According to LAKingsInsider.com, Kopitar touched on the duo's chemistry after the loss to the Coyotes: 

"

We definitely have to get the chemistry back at what we had before. I thought towards the end of the game it was a little bit better. We were making some plays, but we’ve got to start and we’ve got to score goals and create chances. That’s the bottom line.

"

For now he will have to find chemistry with Mike Richards, as Gaborik is day-to-day.

Kopitar has registered one goal and no assists through three games and is a minus-one. What's worse is his faceoff percentage, which is a dismal 45.8 percent. Kopitar will no doubt improve on his slow start. It's just a matter of when and with what linemates. 

Stats courtesy of NHL.com.