Utah, Kings receive defensive boosts ahead of clash

Utah, Kings receive defensive boosts ahead of clash

The Los Angeles Kings and the Utah Hockey Club are both expected to welcome back a key defenseman when they come off their two-week break on Saturday evening in Los Angeles.Mikey Anderson, third on t

The Los Angeles Kings and the Utah Hockey Club are both expected to welcome back a key defenseman when they come off their two-week break on Saturday evening in Los Angeles.Mikey Anderson, third on the Kings in average ice time at 22:50, is set to return after missing the past four games with an upper-body injury sustained against the Tampa Bay Lightning on Jan. 30.Sean Durzi, who spent his first two NHL seasons with Los Angeles, is slated to return for Utah after missing 52 games with a shoulder injury. Durzi was injured on Oct. 14 against the New Jersey Devils after averaging 21:27 of ice time through the first four games.”I think it’s a great boost. I think the player, but the person as well,” Utah coach Andre Tourigny said of Durzi. “The energy, the leadership he brings, the commitment he has. It’s good to have him back and, obviously, he’s a good player.”Both teams are as close to 100 percent healthy as they’ve been all season.Drew Doughty returned on Jan. 29 after missing the first 47 games with a broken ankle, and the veteran defenseman then played for Canada at the 4 Nations Face-Off over the past two weeks.After celebrating the win against the U.S. in the championship game on Thursday night, Doughty will be available to play on Saturday, Kings coach Jim Hiller told reporters on Friday.”We get Dewey for a little bit, but now he’s got four more games under his belt at a very high pace, so that’s going to be really good for us and for him,” Anderson said. “I think everyone’s excited. It adds another layer to the team.”Los Angeles forward Adrian Kempe is also coming off three games at 4 Nations with Team Sweden and is expected to play Saturday.

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