And when you sign the richest deal in team history, that only intensifies things.
For Drew Doughty, the season probably hasn't gotten off to the start he was hoping for. Sure, after missing all of training camp, he jumped right into the line-up on opening night and started playing major minutes. Then, a shoulder injury in Philadelphia forced him to miss five games.
He returned over the weekend to face Phoenix and Colorado. However, after six games played, he's yet to find the offense touch from previous years (no goals, two assists at the moment).
After practice today, coach Terry Murray spoke about Doughty...
"He has played with a great deal of 'I want to do it' and he wants to make a difference every time he's on the ice, every shift. Sometimes, you can get yourself into a jackpot when you're going out with that attitude. And I understand where he's coming from, the importance of him having the puck and trying to do a lot of good things with it. But, when you come back after being out (of the line-up) for a little while, it's better sometimes to do less - advance the puck, get it off your stick, get it up to the forwards, let them screw up instead of you. (laughter) But, he has a couple games under his belt now and they were fast paced games and they were back-to-back. At the end of the day, for me, his conditioning is really good, he feels confident battling along the boards, he has no hesitation whatsoever. I know his game is going to get to the level we've seen in the past."
More notes and quotes coming up later today.
The Mayor
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