Reasons for optimism, questions facing Kings

NHL.com is providing in-depth analysis for each of its 30 teams throughout August. Today, the biggest reasons for optimism and the biggest questions facing the Los Angeles Kings.

A first-round exit in the Stanley Cup Playoffs was not what the Los Angeles Kings envisioned a season after they missed the postseason altogether.

Los Angeles ran into the San Jose Sharks, who were out for revenge after having lost to the Kings in the 2014 Western Conference First Round despite building a 3-0 series lead.

For the second straight season, the Kings were left with several concerns as to why they fell far short of their expectations. Their roster contains high-dollar contracts that put them up against the $73 million NHL salary cap, and that’s why they made few waves in free agency and lost top left wing Milan Lucic to the Edmonton Oilers.

Their core, though, remains among the best in the NHL and remains in its prime.

Here are four reasons for optimism entering this season:

1. Anze Kopitar, Drew Doughty, Jonathan Quick

Few teams can control all three zones with premier players like the Kings. Kopitar won the Selke Trophy for the first time last season, and Doughty won his first Norris Trophy.’

Kopitar led the Kings in scoring for the ninth straight season and, because of his ascension to their best all-around player, was named captain June 16.

“We all knew, before they won the awards, what type of players they were,” forward Tyler Toffoli said of Kopitar and Doughty. “They’re our best players and our leaders.”

Quick was second in the NHL last season with a Kings-record 40 wins, tied for fifth with five shutouts and seventh with a 2.22 …

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