Defense contributing on offense

In terms of improving the Kings’ offense, from the early part of the season, the onus has clearly been on the forwards to improve their production, but it could be argued that the Kings’ scoring improvement of late is tied more to the activity of the defensemen, both in terms of jumping into plays and doing a better job of getting shots to the net. Looking purely at the offensive end, players such as Drew Doughty and Slava Voynov in particular have been more aggressive and effective The question is, can the defensemen maintain the proper balance, in terms of engaging more in the offensive end without taking undue chances defensively…

SUTTER: “It’s weighing their percentages and maximizing their skill set. The big thing, since I came here, is to get them out of the methodical game, to where they play more on their toes and, as I said, maximize their ability. Because they all have different skill sets, so maximize them. They have to be part of the group of five that are up the ice. When I came here, it was just three guys. Then you try to get it to four. Then you try to get it to five, and to where there’s not a risk factor, so they can trust each other.’’

Question: And that’s different for every player, right? Doughty is different from…

SUTTER: “Everybody has different skating skills. For guys like Drew, especially Drew, it’s not so much about the skill set. It’s about the mental part, making sure that his percentages are right.’’