Medal-winning pair

No defensive changes are expected for the Kings tonight, meaning that the Kings will stay with a top pairing of Drew Doughty and Jack Johnson. It’s an interesting scenario. In putting Doughty and Johnson together, there’s an obvious plus, in that the Kings have a young, talented pair that can regularly play more than 25 minutes per game. On the other hand, those are arguably the Kings’ two most mobile, best puck-moving defenseman — you could certainly make a case for Randy Jones — so does that leave them exposed a bit when Doughty/Johnson aren’t on the ice? Regardless, it’s hard to blame the Kings for at least wanting to get a long look at what Doughty and Johnson can do together. Here’s what Terry Murray said about the pair this morning…

MURRAY: “They’re big, strong players, young guys who are going to grow together and can handle big minutes in all critical situations. I think the pairing is the right thing to do. They seem to get an understanding, now, of the chemistry, what they need to do for each other. We’ll just stick with it. It’s working.”