There seems to be a certain excitement with the return to the lineup of Ryan Smyth and Wayne Simmonds, and the news that Jack Johnson doesn’t have a long-term injury. Too much excitement, perhaps? The question of the day came courtesy of longtime online writer (and friend of the blog) Gann Matsuda, who asked Terry Murray if he was concerned that the team might let up with the injured players returning.
In other words, would the desperation the Kings showed against Edmonton and Calgary be there when the Kings returned to full strength?
MURRAY: “That’s a good question. It is a bit of a concern. I have seen that many, many times in the past, where it’s, `Joe is back now, and he can take over, where I might be able to back off a little bit.’ Absolutely. I’ve always worried about that kind of an attitude. Not an attitude, but maybe just that kind of a reaction to good players coming back into the lineup.
“We’ll stay on top of it. I’m going to talk about it. I’m going to make sure that we, as a coaching staff, are aware that this can creep into your game. It does take the 20 players that are in the lineup that night to make sure that they’re playing their best. That will be a reminder from us, and hopefully some of the leadership guys will do the same.”
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