Jones’ return

Randy Jones will be back in the Kings’ lineup tonight, after missing the previous two games. Jones’ last appearance came in overtime of Game 1, when his turnover led to the Canucks’ overtime goal. After that, Peter Harrold replaced Jones in the lineup, but Jones will go back in tonight. Today, Jones and Terry Murray talked about Jones’ game, and what needs to be different going forward…

Question: What would you say are the things in your game, going forward, that you need to emphasize in order to be effective in the playoffs?

JONES: “I’ve got to be moving my feet at all times. Sometimes when you get the puck, rather than looking up and waiting to make a play, it’s a lot more beneficial, and easier on your teammates and yourself, if you start skating with it and start moving your feet, and then start looking to make plays. It just opens up a lot more for you, and that’s what I’ve got to get back to doing.”

Question: You missed some time with what they called an upper-body injury. Is there any thought that the recovery process from that has taken a while?

JONES: “I want to say no. I never want to use injuries as excuses or anything like that. I was injured at the time, and the trainers made sure I didn’t come back until I was 100-percent healthy, so I never want to use injuries as an excuse.”

And here’s what Murray said today about Jones’ inclusion in the lineup…

MURRAY: “We have an experienced player going in, in Randy Jones. He’s been in this situation many times. He was taken out for reasons that I did speak to him about, and I think he got the message. We’ll get him in and get him going.”

Question: Randy has said that, in terms of not moving his feet and things such as that, it’s something that he might not even be aware of until he sees it on video. For you, and as a former player, does that seem like a reasonable thing?

MURRAY: “It is very reasonable. That’s exactly what happens with Jonesy, and it goes back through my time with him in Philadelphia, when he was coming into the league from the (AHL) Phantoms. They had a great year down there, won the Calder Cup, and he comes in and shows flashes of being a top-four defenseman in the National Hockey League, and then he gets into this lull in his game, standing and watching and waiting for things to happen. He gets the puck on his stick and, instead of being assertive with it, he throws the puck around the boards and it gets to be a turnover situation. So that’s the areas that I address with him on a fairly regular basis. Most important is, get your feet moving, get skating. He’s a good skater. He can carry the puck out of danger and he can make good plays.”