All through the 2024-25 NHL preseason, there was an irregular variety of accidents to confirmed NHL stars. There have been so many conversations about whether or not or not veteran NHLers ought to be enjoying in these meaningless video games, risking the success of their membership for the common season.
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Final Wednesday in a sport in opposition to the Vegas Golden Knights, defenseman Drew Doughty collided with former Los Angeles King Tanner Pearson. It was a clumsy collision into the boards that noticed Doughty go away the ice in excessive ache, unable to place any weight on his left leg. It was later confirmed that Doughty could be out month-to-month with a fractured ankle.
Doughty Is Irreplaceable
It’s no secret the sort of significance Doughty holds for this Kings group. He’s been a staple on their blue line for greater than a decade and probably the most constant and dependable defensemen within the league. The 34-year-old performed all 82 video games for Los Angeles final season and led them in time on ice with 2115:04 minutes which was second in your complete league solely to John Carlson of the Washington Capitals. Doughty additionally led the Kings in factors by a defenseman with 50, ending with 15 objectives and 35 assists. From being a first-pairing man, to quarterbacking the primary energy play unit, to enjoying on the penalty kill, to sporting a letter on his chest, the variety of roles Doughty carries is countless. For a participant who produces the best way he does, eats up the variety of minutes he does, and the type the affect he has within the locker room, the outlet Doughty leaves is huge and not possible to fill fully.
You possibly can go down your complete Kings roster and ask every participant what Doughty means to this squad and the 2 commonest issues you’ll hear are how vocal he’s within the dressing room and the way he’s a “one-out-of-one” participant who can’t get replaced. It’s going to take your complete defensive group’s efforts to step up and check out their hardest to fill that giant hole.
Alternatives Come up for Clarke, Spence, And Different Defensemen
With Doughty unable to return to the ice for an honest period of time, it opens up prospects and alternatives for different defensemen. Two younger blue liners who’re the way forward for this franchise will see their roles enlarge so much prior to anticipated. Brandt Clarke and Jordan Spence shall be relied on closely on the correct facet to choose up the slack. The transition to an even bigger function and extra ice time is likely to be a better one for Spence since he has had one full season within the NHL. No matter their inexperience, each Spence and Clarke aren’t going to shrink back from the chance to make their mark and show their price.
“I believe if there’s alternatives for myself to get extra ice time, play PK and PP, I must step up and do the very best I can and try to contribute and win video games,” stated Spence.
“I’m up for the problem, I’m sort of thrown within the deep finish right here however I don’t thoughts that in any respect, I’ve completed that earlier than in my life, and I’m sort of doing it once more now and that’s going to be enjoyable,” Clarke stated, “I’m in the very best form I’ve ever been in my life proper so I’m prepared for what’s to return for positive.”
With Clarke’s offensive expertise, there’s one key ingredient to his prolonged function and it’s going to be quarterbacking the facility play. It’s an space Clarke is hoping to thrive in and he may have extra time and house to point out off these offensive items and create performs from the blue line.
“I believe it’s simply fast puck motion, now we have such stellar guys on the market […] I wish to sort of be seamless and sort of match proper in with these guys so if that’s the way it performs out, I’m simply going to do the very best I can to be one other clog within the wheel and assist them out, get pucks to the web, and get pucks to our different gamers on that unit,” he stated.
The three right-handed defensive spots would have been stuffed with Doughty, Spence, and Clarke and that proper facet would have been phenomenal, however with Doughty out, a spot on the correct facet opens up. A participant who the Kings clearly see some worth in (as they traded for him this offseason) involves thoughts.
Kyle Burroughs — who was dropped at Los Angeles in alternate for Carl Grundstrom — could be the main candidate to fill in on that proper facet, most certainly on the third pairing relying on how the Kings determine to distribute the expertise they’ve. Burroughs isn’t going to assist with offensive manufacturing and he isn’t going to play on the facility play, which is okay as a result of they’ve Spence and Clarke to deal with that, however he’ll have the ability to assist convey a stage of physicality that shall be lacking with Doughty gone.
It’s vital that the conditions and matchups Burroughs faces are monitored carefully to ensure that him to be essentially the most profitable. If one factor is for certain about Burroughs it’s how good his work ethic is. He’s a seventh defenseman who’s going to convey it each evening and he was introduced in to be a man who can fill in when accidents happen.
“There’s probabilities for folks to step up, however you gotta be a deep group to be group and for me to get probabilities, perhaps get extra touches, and have extra of an affect on the sport is one thing that I clearly don’t wish to wander off,” Burroughs stated.
The Kings have a number of completely different routes they will go if they’re nice slotting in a left-handed defenseman to play on the correct facet. Caleb Jones, who has seemed considerably promising over the preseason, has expertise enjoying on the correct facet and might be another choice. As soon as once more, Jones isn’t going to convey the Kings any kind of significant offensive manufacturing. He performed 25 NHL video games final season with the Colorado Avalanche ending with 5 assists and a plus-18 score. Similar to Burroughs, Jones may be relied on in the correct conditions.
It’s going to take a full group effort for the Kings to attenuate the results of dropping Doughty, however it’s going to be much more attention-grabbing to see how guys like Clarke and Spence embrace this chance and the way they deal with an even bigger and extra important workload.
