LA Kings 2017-18 Midseason Awards presented by All the Kings Men Podcast

The LA Kings have reached the halfway mark of the 2017-18 season, and it's been quicte a fun ride so far.
After playing 42 games, the Kings find themselves in second place in the Pacific Division and have
three players heading to the NHL All-Star Game
in Tampa Bay at the end of January.
But which players have made the biggest impact on the club? And how different will the list look
compared to last season's winners
?
Based on their performances so far, here are the players who are favored to win the Kings post season awards.

LA Kings Leading Scorer:

Anze Kopitar

There's no debate over this award, but the fact that Anze Kopitar is back leading the Kings in scoring is worth acknowledging.
The 6'4 center is on pace to score more than one point a game for the first time in his 12-year NHL career.

Not only has the captain of the Kings regained his scoring touch, but there's talk of him being nominated for the Selke Trophy and he was just named to his fourth NHL All-Star Game.

Bill Libby Memorial Award (MVP) & Defensive Player Award:

Jonathan Quick

Jonathan Quick may not lead the league in any one goaltending category, but anybone who has watched the Kings this season knows he's having such a phenomenal season that he should wind up taking home both of these awards.
The former Olympian ranks second in goals against average and save percentage (among goalies with 30+ games played), plus his three shutouts are tied for fourth overall.
It's never easy to separate the impact a team has on a goalie's stats, but the Kings have allowed the fewest goals in the NHL at the halfway point, and that is a testament to his dominance.

While he may not win the Vezina Trophy for his efforts, he should easily be a finalist for the award for the third time in his career. Along with Kopitar and Drew Doughty, Quick was named to his third NHL All-Star Game this week.

Outstanding Defenseman:

Drew Doughty

As a testament to how important the coaching staff thinks he is, Doughty leads the Kings, and the entire NHL, in playing time with over 27 minutes a game.
As previously mentioned, the Kings have allowed the fewest goals in the NHL, and Doughty leads the team in plus-minus, Corsi% and CF% Rel.
Due to the Kings recent defensive "possession-oriented" style of play, Doughty never matched the offensive output of players like Brent Burns or Erik Karlsson. However, this season the 10-year veteran is on pace to match the highest offensive output of his career, a 59-point effort in his sophomore season (2009-10) that earned him his first Norris Trophy nomination.

While a strong candidate to win his second Norris Trophy (on what would be his fourth nomination), Doughty also earned a spot at the NHL All-Star Game for his fourth appearance.

Ace Bailey Memorial Award (Most Inspirational):Dustin Brown

Dustin Brown deserves mention for his tremendous season so far.
This season, Brown has been reunited with Kopitar on the top line. His resurgance has led to him ranking second on the team in overall points and third in goals. That comination means he is on pace for the highest offensive output of his 14-year career.

Playing 19+ minutes per game, Brown is getting the most ice time he's had since the 2012-13 season.
Drafted in 2003, Brown recently joined Dave Taylor and Luc Robitaille as the
only players to appear in over 1,000 games in a Kings uniform
.

Mark Bavis Memorial Award (Best Newcomer)Alex Iafallo

At training camp, Alex Iafallo surprised everybody by being named the left-wing on the top line alongside Brown and Kopitar.
While there are others who have more points, more goals and more ice time, the 24-year-old rookie was an early season catalyst for the Kings re-energized offense.
Seemingly always in the right place to force a turnover or keep the play alive, Iafallo rarely looked out of place with his notorious linemates.
He's been paired recently with Nicholas Shore and Trevor Lewis, and the trio have become a highly effective shutdown line, outshooting opponents by more than a 2-1 margin.

Unsung HeroTanner Pearson

Tanner Pearson's numbers have improved annually over the course of his five seasons in the NHL.
He's been given every chance to succeed this year, and, like so many of his teammates, is on pace for his highest offensive output.
More than 80% of his even strength ice time has come alongside either Tyler Toffoli or Kopitar (or both). It should come as little surprise then that Pearson is fifth on the Kings in scoring and third in possession (CF% and Corsi Rel).

Pearson plays on both the power play and the penalty kill, and has played the third highest minutes among active forwards.
There's every reason to believe that his shooting percentage (8.6%) will get closer to his career average (12%) over the second half of the season.
Pearson brings speed, skill, tenacity and a host of other qualities every franchise searches for in a player.
All of that plus his dog, Emma, was the 2016 Bark Madness Champion despite being the No. 15-seed.
ith the recent departure of Arlo Dowd, Emma has to be considered a favorite to regain the crown.