Harrold holding down a spot

For a third consecutive game, the Kings will go with a defensive pairing of Jack Johnson and Peter Harrold. Terry Murray is managing Harrold’s minutes carefully — Harrold has played fewer than 10 minutes in each of the last two games — and that pairing is unlikely to survive when Willie Mitchell returns, but for now, Murray is satisfied with what he’s seeing. Harrold has one goal and three assists in 11 games. Last season, he had one goal and two assists in 39 games. This morning, Murray talked about the Johnson-Harrold pairing…

MURRAY: “What we like about it is the lefty-righty, on the three pairs. For handling the puck, seeing the ice, making plays out of own zone on your breakouts, your faceoffs, it works real well. And I think both guys are pretty mobile puck-handlers, skill players who can make some plays and work well together in tandem. They work hard to get open for each other. There’s a common theme there, with the U.S. players, and I think they like it. They really feed off of each other, in their play, and it’s working for us right now.”