Artemi Panarin
Panarin is the Kings' first-line left wing and a first power-play unit fixture, and the early reporting I found shows no sign of that changing.
Role
Inside the Rink's Oct. 31 preview projected him on line 1 with Alex Laferriere at center and Adrian Kempe on the right. It listed him on the first power-play unit with Kempe, Quinton Byfield, Laferriere and Erik Gustafsson. The Morning Puck's page, last updated for the Oct. 29 game against Ottawa, showed the same line and a similar first unit. I did not fetch Daily Faceoff's page, so none of this is a live read. ESPN's game log shows 24:50 on Oct. 31, 24:07 on Oct. 29 and 23:54 on Oct. 27, with one 19:52 game on Oct. 26. The first power-play unit is the one that carries his scoring. Trevor Moore, Byfield and Corey Perry skate on other lines, and the second power-play unit listed Perry, Erik Haula, Moore, Drew Doughty and Brandt Clarke. Nothing I found named a direct competitor for his spot.
He gets heavy minutes, over 23 in most of the recent games ESPN lists, and he is on the top line and the top power-play unit. ESPN's log has him with 7 shots on Oct. 29, when he scored a power-play goal and added an assist. Our data shows 8 goals, 4 power-play points and 42 shots on goal in 13 games. Reporting from February said the coaches would lean on him as much as they could in offensive situations.
The Kings were 4-6-2 going into Oct. 31, and ESPN's page afterward showed 4-7-2, so the team is struggling. Our data shows a -4 rating. Our data also shows only 5 assists in 13 games against 8 goals. The Oct. 31 game against Buffalo was a 3-shot, scoreless night in a 3-2 loss. He is 35. Linemates have shifted this season: early-season power-play data showed Mats Zuccarello and Perry alongside him, and an edge-stats site showed Anze Kopitar on the first unit in a sample I could not date. Other sites give different line and power-play mixes, which suggests his linemates are not settled.
Where analysts split
broad agreement
Research confidence: reported. Outlooks are grounded in web search over current reporting and refreshed through the season.
Others at LW
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