Drew Doughty is getting his wish: He'll play for Canada in place of Alex Pietrangelo at the upcoming 4 Nations Face-Off, the Los Angeles Kings announced Saturday night.
In late January, Doughty expressed a desire to play in the tournament rather than take time off during the pause in the NHL schedule.
"I'm still hoping I have that outside chance to play in 4 Nations," the Kings defenseman said at the time. "I don't want to break, I want to play. So, we'll see what happens."
Doughty was left off Canada's roster, which was originally revealed Dec. 4. However, he had been out all season at that point after breaking his ankle in training camp.
The 35-year-old made his season debut Jan. 29. He came into Saturday's game against the Anaheim Ducks having averaged 26:07 of ice time in five prior contests.
Doughty has represented Canada at the Olympics in 2010 and 2014, as well as the 2016 World Cup of Hockey, the most recent best-on-best event.
Pietrangelo was ruled out of the 4 Nations Face-Off on Jan. 26. The Vegas Golden Knights said Pietrangelo would be tending to an injury and wanted to be ready for the rest of the regular season. He then played hours later and hasn't missed a game since.
