Doughty, Couture will be friendly foes

There are plenty of tie-ins between the Kings and San Jose Sharks heading into this first-round series. Both teams are California-based Pacific Division teams, but there’s also a personal connection, as Kings defenseman Drew Doughty and Sharks forward Logan Couture are childhood friends. Doughty, a Norris Trophy candidate last season, and Couture, presumed to be one of the top contenders for the Calder Trophy this season, both grew up in London, Ontario, and Couture is only eight-plus months older than Doughty. The two were teammates in minor-junior hockey with the London Jr. Knights, and Doughty said he and Couture have already been in touch regarding this playoff series…

DOUGHTY: “We texted each other and we were talking a bit about it, but (there are) no friends on the ice. We’re friends back home in London, Ontario, but when we hit the ice, especially in this playoff series, it’s going to be war and it’s going to be a lot of fun and, like I said, there are no friends out there.”

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