Anze Kopitar honored after Kings beat nemesis Oilers during regular-season home finale

The Kings' Anze Kopitar waves to fans after his final regular-season home game, a 1-0 win over Oilers on Saturday. (Scott Strazzante/For The Times) When the final horn sounded Saturday on the Kings’ 1-0 matinee win over the Edmonton Oilers, Anze Kopitar made his way to center ice, a microphone in his hand and his heart in pieces. "Thank you very much," he said to the fans, his voice cracking.

"Thank you for being here. " Kopitar then held his hands in front of him and folded his fingers into the shape of a heart before skating away — not quite into the sunset, but headed in that direction. Kopitar announced in September that this season would be his last, so unless the Kings make the playoffs — a distinct possibility after the team's fourth win a row and fifth in six games, its best streak of the season — Saturday marked the final home appearance of a brilliant 20-year career spent entirely in Los Angeles.

The Kings' Anze Kopitar vies for position in front of the Oilers' Darnell Nurse during the second period on Saturday at Crypto. com Arena. (Scott Strazzante/For The Times) And the announced crowd of 18,145 at Crypto.

com Arena made sure he knew that parting is such sweet sorrow, standing and cheering long after the game had ended. “Eventually it was going to happen,” Kopitar, 38, reflected before the game. “Whether it was this year or two years from now, there was going to be a last day.