Sasha Barkov vs Anze Kopitar

Who has the better career when it's all said and done?


  • Total voters
    134

Sol

Smile
Jun 30, 2017
22,758
18,367
Yeah because cups are a solo effort.
Kings would be basement dwellers without Kopitar. Get real. What an asinine statement. Go look at Kopitars production in the playoffs.


Well in the poll's defense, it IS asking us to use future predictions/projections to form our answer. It's really not that crazy.

If somebody made a "Will McDavid have a better career than Crosby" thread, you might not think it was so ridiculous.

Potential doesn't equate to a successful career. Look at Yakupov. Kopitar is an extremely accomplished center in the NHL. Barkov has accomplished nothing potential aside. For Barkov to have a better career than Kopitar he needs to be better than Kopitar, be as durable, consistent, and push/carry his team to the highest accomplishment.

Intangibles are a thing and Kopitar has that in spades. When the Panthers make the playoffs let's see how it all unfolds.


Lastly, to say that Barkov will have a better career than Kopitar then a ton has to go right for him.
 
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Plural

Registered User
Mar 10, 2011
33,703
4,853
Yeah. I agree largely with you guys. Barkov seems like he might be even more talented than Kopitar. But to string together a career like Kopitar already has (and he's still going strong) is a tall order.
 

elmaco

Registered User
Feb 1, 2017
1,948
1,032
Kings would be basement dwellers without Kopitar. Get real. What an asinine statement. Go look at Kopitars production in the playoffs.

Insert Kopi on Florida and watch him win cups for them? Get real.
 

Icebreakers

Registered User
Apr 29, 2011
9,260
4,163
Kopitar...not close. For Barkov to have a BETTER career than Kopitar means he has to actually SURPASS him in terms of accolades and accomplishments. Matching them doesn't put him ahead. If he matches it then he isnt going to have a better career.
 

cgf

FireBednarsSuccessor
Oct 15, 2010
59,991
19,060
w/ Renly's Peach
Right this moment it is Anze Kopitar, who is an MVP candidate.

For next year and beyond I would much rather have Barkov

I can get on board with this, though Sasha ain't exactly far from being an MVP candidate himself...and is certainly a Selke candidate, if not the clear favorite.
 

Hischier and Hughes

“I love to hockey”
Jan 28, 2018
9,408
4,357
Kopitar has two cups - as little as cips matter when comparing players, if Im choosing a better 'career' I want the guy who has already won twice and still has time to go. On top of that Barkov isnt that much better right now anyway
 

tuozzi

Registered User
Dec 9, 2011
558
313
Turku
Intangibles are a thing and Kopitar has that in spades. When the Panthers make the playoffs let's see how it all unfolds.

Lastly, to say that Barkov will have a better career than Kopitar then a ton has to go right for him.

Intangibles are a thing, but not a very big one compared to what the player actually does on the ice.

Not sure about a ton, but sure, quite a bit has to go right for him. At least staying healthy and fulfilling his potential. I’m guessing both will happen. That is something you seem to be misunderstanding. This is 50% making a guess that he’ll have a better career, not 50% saying he will.

Also, the answer to the question depends on what is meant by better career. It could mean which one is considered to have been the better player, which one has achieved more team success, or some combination of both. If emphasis is on team success, I would say Kopitar. Winning cups is hard.

Edit. Typo
 

Sol

Smile
Jun 30, 2017
22,758
18,367
Kopitar has two cups - as little as cips matter when comparing players, if Im choosing a better 'career' I want the guy who has already won twice and still has time to go. On top of that Barkov isnt that much better right now anyway

People keep saying he's better but Kopitar is ahead of him in points. Don't know where the "better " comes from
 

Ace of Hades

#Demko4Vezina
Apr 27, 2010
8,143
3,937
Oregon
They are even right now as players. I give Kopitar the edge.

I don't see Barkov having a better overall career though (unless you want to eliminate team accomplishments, via 2 cups Kopitar acquired with the kings)
 

b1e9a8r5s

Registered User
Feb 16, 2015
12,904
4,039
Chicago, IL
The question is better career. Barkov is awesome and he's young, so there's a wide range of possible outcomes. He has a chance to be better than Kopitar, but I just don't think it's likely. I'd give him about a 10% chance to have a better career. 20% to equal Kopitars career and 70% to fall short. All numbers approximate, lol. That's no slight on Barkov, it's just the career that Kopitar has already put together is a really high bar.
 
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Raccoon Jesus

Todd McLellan is an inside agent
Oct 30, 2008
61,490
60,934
I.E.
The question is better career. Barkov is awesome and he's young, so there's a wide range of possible outcomes. He has a chance to be better than Kopitar, but I just don't think it's likely. I'd give him about a 10% chance to have a better career. 20% to equal Kopitars career and 70% to fall short. All numbers approximate, lol. That's no slight on Barkov, it's just the career that Kopitar has already put together is a really high bar.

And I think that's the problem in this conversation consistently, people seem to think we're slighting Barkov but it's really that Kopitar's resume is phenomenal.
 

freecheese

Registered User
Dec 5, 2017
77
47
If Barkov’s career doesn’t turn out to be better than Kopitars, it would be low key disappointing. That’s how much talented Barkov is.
 
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HyPnOtiK

Registered User
Aug 21, 2007
3,394
650
Philadelphia, Pa
I Think Barkov is the better player currently and will have a longer and higher peak... but Smart money is on Kopitar, he's very accomplished.

Voted Barkov because he's my favorite young player in the league besides Provorov
 

HyPnOtiK

Registered User
Aug 21, 2007
3,394
650
Philadelphia, Pa
If Barkov’s career doesn’t turn out to be better than Kopitars, it would be low key disappointing. That’s how much talented Barkov is.
Calm down with that...

2 cups
1 Selke
1 lady bing
4 all star games (kinda meaningless now)

And 21 awards given out by the kings organization.

Barkov very likely doesn't win 1 cup in Florida let alone 2.
 

bathdog

Registered User
Oct 27, 2016
920
157
The question is better career. Barkov is awesome and he's young, so there's a wide range of possible outcomes. He has a chance to be better than Kopitar, but I just don't think it's likely. I'd give him about a 10% chance to have a better career. 20% to equal Kopitars career and 70% to fall short. All numbers approximate, lol. That's no slight on Barkov, it's just the career that Kopitar has already put together is a really high bar.

Good assessment. People underestimate great Kopitar has been for how long, and how hard that is to do by lacking either health or consistency.

I would not be surprised to see Barkov peaking slightly higher though. (at least in the RS)
 
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