Drew Doughty is looking to begin contract extension talks with the Los Angeles Kings.
Days after the team was swept out of the playoffs by the expansion Vegas Golden Knights, the Norris Trophy finalist reiterated his desire to remain a King for the foreseeable future.
"I always wanted to be an L.A. King and I want to stay an L.A. King," Doughty said during exit interviews Friday, according to NHL.com's Dan Greenspan. "I can't remember what day we can start talking, but I'm sure we will when the time comes."
Doughty can become an unrestricted free agent on July 1, 2019, but can sign an extension with the Kings beginning the same date this year. A new deal won't come cheap, though. Doughty is on record saying he and Erik Karlsson of the Ottawa Senators deserve "quite a bit more" money than P.K Subban's annual cap hit of $9 million, highest among all defensemen.
Although the Kings exited the playoffs as early as possible, Doughty sees a bright future for the franchise.
"(General manager) Rob Blake and (president of business operations) Luc Robitaille, they took this job because they want to win and they want to transform this team into their winning ways again," Doughty said. "Whether or not they do a lot in the offseason, I don't know, but we have these young guys coming up that I think are going to make a difference. I think that shows me how much potential we have in the future and I'm good with it and I'm happy to hopefully re-sign here."
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