Kings' Drew Doughty month-to-month after fracturing ankle

Los Angeles Kings defenseman Drew Doughty is considered month-to-month following an ankle injury that will require surgery, the team announced Friday.

Doughty fractured his left ankle in the Kings' 3-2 preseason win against the Golden Knightson Wednesday, when the2016 Norris Trophy winner slammed into the boards alongside Vegas forward Tanner Pearson in the first period.

"You don't want to have Drew out for an extended period of time, but that's just a sad reality now and we're going to have to deal with it," Kings center and captain Anze Kopitar told reporters.

Ever since his rookie season in 2008-09, Doughty has been a top pairing and/or top-four stalwart for the Kings. He appeared in all 82 games last season, the 11th time in his careerDoughty completed a campaign that saw him play more than 76 games.

Only Washington Capitals defenseman John Carlson logged more ice time among skaters in 2023-24 than Doughty, who finished with an average of 25:47 compared with Carlson's 25:53.

Doughty, 34, also scored 15 goals and finished with 50 points for a second straight season. It was the fifth time Doughty reached the 50-point mark.

Doughty averaged nearly five minutes more in ice time than his next closest teammate, Matt Roy, who left in free agency. Doughty also led the Kings with 266:08 of power-play ice time. His 183:07 in short-handed ice time ranked third on the team.

Figuring out how to replace Roy was arguably the biggest question facing the Kings' defense heading into the new season. But now with Doughty out, Los Angeles' top-four mix could feature Mikey Anderson, Kyle Burroughs, Vladislav Gavrikov and Jordan Spence, with promising prospectBrandt Clarkepotentially making a push for more playing time.

The upcoming season is an important one for the Kings, who missed the playoffs from 2018-19 through 2020-21 while undergoing a rebuild. Since then, they've reached the playoffs in three consecutive seasons but have been ousted in the first round by the Edmonton Oilers each time.

Over that span, teams such as the Golden Knights, Oilers, Colorado Avalanche and Dallas Stars have emerged as serious Stanley Cup challengers. And with others such as the Nashville Predators and Vancouver Canucks taking major steps in 2023-24, the Kings could be among the cadre of teams challenging for a wild-card spot, as they look to reach the second round of the playoffs for the first time since winning the championship in 2014.