Capitals forward Alex Ovechkin led the way, and his teammates followed suit in showing respect to one of the greats, who will be retiring at the end of the season.
“(We) just wanted to congratulate him on an amazing career,” Ovechkin said to reporters after the game. “Obviously, it’s a sad moment, but it’s life, and it’s sad but I wish him all the best.
“It’s a show of respect, obviously. It’s a game, but after the whistle, it’s to show respect to him for all he’s done for this game, for this league, and it’s just about all of our respect.”
Kopitar announced in September that this would be his final season and has been on a bit of a farewell tour throughout the year.
He met with Pittsburgh Penguins captain Sidney Crosby after their matchup in November to swap jerseys, then did the same with Ovechkin after their initial matchup in Washington, D.C. earlier this season.
Tuesday marked the final regular season matchup between Kopitar and Ovechkin.
Kopitar has played all 20 seasons of his career in Los Angeles. He won the Stanley Cup in 2012 and then again in 2014 and has served as the Kings captain since 2016.
NHL.com independent correspondent Dan Greenspan contributed to this report
