Will latest first-line mix boost Kopitar’s numbers?

The assists are coming for Anze Kopitar, but the goals aren’t really following? Will Marco Sturm help Kopitar’s production? Kopitar has five points in his last five games, but has only one goal in his last 15 games and two goals in his last 25 games. He did manage one during the most recent road trip — at Washington — and despite the lack of goals, his overall level of play seemed to be good, as Terry Murray indicated today when asked after practice about “getting more” out of Kopitar…

MURRAY: “Not more than what he has given us in the last three games, four games. I think he really elevated his game. When you come face the Flyers, that was a tremendous effort on his part. I just want him to continue with the level of play that he showed at the end of the road trip, because he did take it up to the next level.”

Question: Is there anything that can be done to help the goal production?

MURRAY: “It always comes down to that easy answer, `Shoot the puck more,’ but in reality, I would like to see him hitting the net more often. He’s taking shots. We all have a tendency to try to be a little too fine, trying to put it under the crossbar, inside that far-side or short-side post, and it’s a very small, hard spot to hit sometimes. Get pucks to the net. I think if we can get a little more chaos around the net, it doesn’t matter who ends up — at the end of the day — as responsible for that puck going in. But give us an opportunity, through some battles for those loose pucks in front, by hitting the net, hitting the goaltender, force him to make a stop, and then we take it from there.”