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Drew Doughty

Is it Drew Doughty's time to win the Norris Trophy?

Jimmy Hascup
USA TODAY Sports
Los Angeles Kings defenseman Drew Doughty has 33 points this season.

Daniel Sedin’s jaw dropped.

“(Drew Doughty) doesn’t have a Norris?” the Vancouver Canucks winger asked. "He should have a few I think. He’s up there with the best of them. He does it on both sides of the rink, which is impressive.”

Doughty, a two-time Norris Trophy finalist, is in his eighth season with the Los Angeles Kings. Despite being considered one of the best all-around defensemen, he has never captured the award given to the league’s top blueliner.

That’s partially because he has never put up gaudy offensive numbers. His career high is 16 goals and 59 points, recorded in 2009-10. He's also faced some stiff competition.

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His prospects for this season don't appear to be great because Ottawa Senators defenseman Erik Karlsson, last season’s winner, is third (60 points) in the scoring race among all players. He could be the first defensemen to record 90 points since Ray Bourque had 91 in the 1993-94 campaign.

Mention Doughty, though, and Karlsson can’t hold back.

"When we play them I watch him, and when we don’t play them I still watch him,” said Karlsson.

Karlsson believes Doughty could produce like him if he wanted. Doughty has 33 points in 51 games this season, though his production at five-on-five is 70th among defensemen with at least 750 minutes. Offense has never been his focus.

"Obviously I want to jump into the rush and play offense as much as I can too, but the No. 1 priority is shutting down the other team’s best players, and I take a lot of pride doing that,” Doughty said.

It’s hard to find a fault in Doughty’s game. He matches up against first-line scorers. He logs heavy minutes in all situations. He skates with fluidity and ease. He drives possession. He has experience in pressure-packed situations, winning Olympic gold twice and the Stanley Cup twice.

Poll players, coaches and general managers and the majority believe he is long overdue for the Norris.

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"Doughty can bring anything you want,” Dallas Stars coach Lindy Ruff said. "For me, he’s the best in the league when it comes to a two-way game. What has really grown in his game is he knows how to balance that act now — that it’s not about one or the other. He knows when to lock it down and he knows when he has to bring it."

Ruff coached Doughty at the world championships in 2009, and called him the “best player on the ice." It also was an early glimpse at Doughty’s most overlooked attribute: stamina. Doughty played half of the game then, and has averaged 29 minutes and 27 minutes, 57 seconds of ice time the past two seasons.

Since he entered the league in 2008-09, he is second in total ice time (regular season and playoffs) behind Chicago Blackhawks defenseman Duncan Keith with more than 17,048 minutes.

"You see a lot of him, I’ll tell you that,” Sedin said. "We played him (Dec. 28) and I didn’t think he came off the ice.”

The scary part for opponents is that Doughty is 26 years old, an age when a defenseman is supposed to be hitting his prime. The 2008 second overall pick has 652 NHL games on his resume and at least four more years with an organization that has become envied for its successes.

"I would love to win a Norris,” Doughty said. "Some of the guys who have won it over the years — those are some legendary names. I would love to win one, but it’s not the be all end all — I just want to win Stanley Cups."

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