Kopitar: Byfield's been Kings' best player 'for quite a while now'

Anze Kopitar credited Quinton Byfield with carrying the red-hot Los Angeles Kings on his back of late.

"(Byfield) has been our best player for quite a while now," the Kings' captain told NHL.com's Tracey Myers.

"It's really great to see him confident on the ice and doing all the things that he's been doing," Kopitar added. "I guess we just had to wait a little bit longer than anticipated, but he's been a force for this team. He's been winning us games."

The Kings drafted Byfield second overall in 2020, and he notched a career-high 55 points last season after three unproductive campaigns to begin his NHL tenure. The 22-year-old is up to 44 points in 70 outings in 2024-25 and is averaging over 18 minutes per contest as Los Angeles' second-line center.

L.A.'s won nine of its last 10 games, with Byfield scoring seven goals - including two overtime winners - during that span. The 22-year-old's recent effort is especially impressive considering he didn't score in his first 13 contests this season.

"I think the confidence, you can see it," Kings defenseman Mikey Anderson said, according to The Athletic's Eric Stephens. "Just the way he moves out there. He touches the puck. He wants it on his stick. He makes some plays. Yeah, he's been really fun to watch and someone we're going to want to have keep going in that direction. It's awesome."

The Kings currently hold the second spot in the Pacific Division with 89 points.