Los Angeles’ all-time leader in games played, assists and points, Kopitar played his last NHL game on April 26, when the Kings were swept by the Colorado Avalanche in the Western Conference First Round.<\/p>\n
While his former teammates are gearing up for the new season, Kopitar is relishing the time he now gets to spend with his family.<\/p>\n
“I am very happy,” Kopitar said about his retirement. “It’s great. Obviously, I get to spend a lot more time with my family. I get to go (watch my) kids … my son’s hockey tournament, my daughter’s figure skating competition. So, there is still life in ice arenas, but I’m enjoying it very much.”<\/p>\n
Family keeps him so busy that he could not even stay in Trencin on Saturday, when Chara had planned either a golf competition or a cycling trip for his guests.<\/p>\n
“I’m flying (home) tomorrow,” Kopitar said. “I’ve got to go home, there is some family stuff that we have going on Sunday.”<\/p>\n
Kopitar will be back in Los Angeles this season, though, most notably on Feb. 24, 2027, when he will have his No. 11 retired and a bronze statue unveiled by the Kings<\/a> in a ceremony at Crypto.com Arena prior to their game against the Montreal Canadiens.<\/p>\n Kopitar will become the eighth Kings player to have his number retired, joining Rogie Vachon<\/a> (No. 30), Marcel Dionne<\/a> (No. 16), Dave Taylor<\/a> (No. 18), Wayne Gretzky<\/a> (No. 99), Luc Robitaille<\/a> (No. 20), Rob Blake<\/a> (No. 4) and Dustin Brown<\/a>\u00a0(No. 23).<\/p>\n Kopitar’s bronze statue will join those of Gretzky, Robitaille and Brown, as well as broadcaster Bob Miller.<\/p>\n Despite all the success Kopitar enjoyed in the NHL, it was harder for him to achieve similar accomplishments on the international stage with Slovenia. The one exception, however, was the 2016 World Cup of Hockey<\/a> in Toronto, where Kopitar played for Team Europe, which was made up of European players from countries outside of Czechia, Finland, Russia and Sweden. The team, featuring players like Chara, defenseman Roman Josi<\/a>\u00a0(Switzerland) and forwards Leon Draisaitl<\/a>\u00a0(Germany), Marian Hossa<\/a> (Slovakia) and Mats Zuccarello<\/a>\u00a0(Norway), advanced to the final, where it lost to Canada in two games (best-of-3).<\/p>\n