No change in Doughty’s status

Before Saturday’s game even ended, general manager Dean Lombardi said that Drew Doughty would be out 7-10 days because of the undisclosed upper-body injury he suffered in the first period against Philadelphia. The Kings put Doughty on injured reserve Sunday, meaning that the earliest he would be able to return would be the Oct. 25 home game against New Jersey. I asked Terry Murray today if there was any change in Doughty’s status…

MURRAY: “I think the report, right after the game, is accurate. There’s going to be some time here that he’s going to need. Obviously putting him on the IR, there’s definitely seven days that are required before he can come off of it, so we’ll see where he is at the end of the seven days, with rehab and strengthening it. I talked to him this morning. He was getting some work done. He’s got a smile on his face. He’s just going at it and getting himself ready to get playing again.’’

Murray was also asked for his thoughts on Zac Rinaldo’s hit on Doughty and, as he did after Saturday’s game, said he didn’t have a problem with it.

MURRAY: “I thought it was a hockey hit. You’ve got a player coming into the offensive zone with the puck, and he got a glimpse of him, I think, at the last second. The way teams are structured, on the checking part of the game today, you’ve got four, five guys backing up, protecting that red line, to the top of their circles, and if there’s any lateral movement, you’re going to see those kinds of hits. I didn’t think that the player launched himself. He seemed to hit him straight on. It’s just a hockey play.’’

Of course, the hit also, in a way, ended up costing the Kings Dustin Penner as well. After the hit, Penner jumped Rinaldo and apparently bruised his knee during the ensuing fight. Penner got an instigator penalty and an automatic 10-minute misconduct, but Penner’s actions got a thumbs-up from Murray.

MURRAY: “I didn’t know if it was an instigator. Two players came together. I guess they have to interpret it as that, but I’m fine with what he did, sure. A player sticking up for a teammate, it’s a good thing.’’