Los Angeles Kings: How Experience Has Changed This Team

As the Los Angeles Kings near the 20-game mark of this season, experience is starting to shine through.

With injuries to Alexei Ponikarovsky and Willie Mitchell, the Los Angeles Kings of 2010-2011 are virtually the same as the team that ended last season. 

How do these injuries affect the Kings?

These injuries allow fans to see how the young core of this team has grown.  With the key offseason acquisitions out of the lineup, fans can see just what kind of team Dean Lombardi has built through years of careful drafting and acquisitions.

A lot of hockey minds agree that Los Angeles is the next Chicago, without the salary cap woes.  It's hard to disagree when you look at the continued offensive and defensive development shown from the hockey club. 

The key to all of this success can be attributed to the fact that these guys have grown together.  They know each other well, both on and off the ice. 

How much credit should be given to Terry Murray?  A lot. 

Murray has turned a struggling, bottom-dwelling team into a top contender for Lord Stanley's cup.  It's no mistake that a team with the same core has gotten better in each of his three years behind the Los Angeles bench.  It is important to credit Murray as one of the best coaches in the National Hockey League today.

Looking at the entirety of Murray's tenure in Los Angeles, one can't help but noticed the continued development and growth of Anze Kopitar.

When Kopitar was drafted 11th overall in 2005, there was no doubting his offensive talent and prowess.  The concerns were present in his defensive game.

After Murray's first season in Los Angeles, which is always a difficult season for coaches as they are adapting to their new players, Kopitar's stats took a jump in the right direction on both sides of the puck. 

Not only did Kopitar establish himself as one of the premiere power centers in the league, he also established himself as a defensively aware player.  No one is expecting him to win the Selke Trophy, but seeing stellar play on the entire ice surface is a great thing for Kopitar and the Los Angeles Kings.

Experience has changed this team in that these players seem to know how to make each other stand out as great players in the league.  Jarret Stoll and Justin Williams are great players in the NHL.  Playing with younger players like Brown, Kopitar, Doughty, Johnson and so many more has helped these two men re-gain some of their youth.

Both Stoll and Williams are hovering right around a point per game average at the moment.  There is no doubt that the increased experience of the younger players has had a direct effect on these gentlemen's production.

Dean Lombardi's culture has really helped the experience factor for the Kings.  Having players like Willie Mitchell and Sean O'Donnell around has shown guys like Drew Doughty and Jack Johnson how to be classy NHLers. 

Can it really be a surprise that Doughty and Johnson have developed so quickly?  No.  These two guys have been brought up with great role models around them.

Whether it be coaching, player development or culture, the Los Angeles Kings are a team where experience has helped everyone.  This team is going to be one of the best in the league for a long time.  With more experience, there is no doubt that the Kings can contend for the cup. 

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