Drew Doughty

Drew Doughty (born on December 8, 1989) is a Canadian professional ice hockey defenceman who currently plays for the Los Angeles Kings of the National Hockey League (NHL).

Drew was selected second overall by the Kings in the 2008 NHL Entry Draft following a standout junior career with the Guelph Storm of the Ontario Hockey League (OHL), where he was twice voted the league's top offensive defenceman.

Drew made his NHL debut in 2008 as an 18-year-old and was named to the All-Rookie Team. He has represented Canada four times internationally, winning a gold medal at the 2008 World Junior Ice Hockey Championships, where he was named the tournament's top defenceman, and a silver at the 2009 Men's World Ice Hockey Championships.

The youngest player on the team, Drew won a gold medal at the 2010 Winter Olympics He was a finalist for the Norris Trophy as the top defenceman in 2010 and was a member of the Stanley Cup winning Kings team in 2012.

Major Junior Hockey Career
Drew was selected by the Guelph Storm fifth overall in the 2005 Ontario Hockey League (OHL) Priority Selection draft. He scored five goals and 33 points for the Storm in 2005–06 and was named to the OHL All-Rookie Team on defence.

Drew played in the 2007 OHL All-Star Game and was voted the top offensive defenceman in the league by the coaches following a 74 point season in 2006–07. He again won both honours in 2007–08 with a 50 point season and was awarded the Max Kaminsky Trophy as the OHL's outstanding defenceman.

The National Hockey League (NHL) Central Scouting ranked Drew as the third best North American prospect for the 2008 NHL Entry Draft.

Drew was selected second overall by the Los Angeles Kings, a choice that excited him as he grew up a Kings fan and wanted to play in Los Angeles.

Professional/NHL Career
Following a strong training camp, Drew made the Kings opening day roster to start the 2008–09 NHL season, one of eight 18-year-olds to do so across the league. Earning a spot on the Kings roster overwhelmed Drew, who did not expect to play in the NHL so quickly.

On October 11, 2008, Drew made his NHL debut against the San Jose Sharks, and scored his first goal on October 20 against the Colorado Avalanche. The Kings had the option of returning him to junior without using up one year of his rookie contract if they did so before he played his tenth NHL game. However, they chose to keep him on the roster for the season.

Drew's defensive partner, Sean O'Donnell agreed with the decision, praising Doughty's maturity. He played 81 games in his rookie season, finishing with six goals and 21 assists, earning a spot on the NHL All-Rookie Team while also playing in the Youngstars Game as part of the 2009 All-Star fesitivities.

Drew improved to 59 points in his sophomore season of 2009–10 and finished third in the league in scoring amongst defencemen. He was named to the second all-star team and was named a finalist for the Norris Trophy as the league's top defenceman.

Drew's coach, Terry Murray praised him for his improvement during the season. He helped lead the Kings into the playoffs for the first time since 2002 though they lost their first round series to the Vancouver Canucks.

Drew played all six games of the series despite suffering a wrist injury in the first game that forced him to decline an invitation to play for Canada at the 2010 Men's World Ice Hockey Championships.

The Kings' media voted Drew the team's outstanding defenceman for the third consecutive season in 2010–11. His offensive output fell from 59 points the previous season to 40, but he scored his 100th career point on December 21, 2010 against the Colorado Avalanche.

A restricted free agent following the season, Drew and the Kings struggled to agree on a new contract.

The Kings offered $6.8 million per season over seven years, but Drew rejected the offer. Though the Kings publicly stated they were not willing to sign him for a higher annual salary than team leader Anze Kopitar's $6.8 million, the two sides ultimately agreed on an eight-year, $56 million contract that made Doughty the highest paid player on the team at an average of $7 million per season.

Drew missed the majority of Los Angeles' training camp as a holdout, including five pre-season games, before signing the contract on September 29, 2011.

In addition to missing training camp, Drew suffered a concussion early in the season that forced him onto injured reserve. He struggled upon his return from the injury and faced criticism that he had allowed his physical conditioning to lapse.

Drew himself admitted that he was not enjoying the game early in the season. He said that his season turned a corner when the team replaced Murray with Darryl Sutter.

Drew was elevated into a role where he was expected to shut down the opposition's top forwards, forcing him to focus more on his defensive play than his offensive.

Consequently, Drew's 36 points on the season was his lowest total in three years. He was the top-scoring defenceman in the 2012 Stanley Cup Finals, however, recording 16 points in 20 games to help the Kings win the first Stanley Cup championship in franchise history.

Drew was praised as the top player for either team in the final series, a six-game victory over the New Jersey Devils.

International Play
In 2006, Drew played with Team Ontario at the World U-17 Hockey Challenge, finishing fifth, then won a gold medal with the national under-18 team at the Ivan Hlinka Memorial Tournament.

Drew participated the 2007 IIHF World U18 Championships, scoring five points in six games for the fourth place Canadians and while he was considered for the Canadian junior team for the 2007 World Junior Ice Hockey Championships, he did not make the cut.

Drew was named to participate in the 2007 Super Series, an eight game tournament against the Russian juniors meant to commemorate the 35th anniversary of the 1972 Summit Series.

Drew played in all eight games, recording two assists, as Canada finished the series unbeaten with seven wins and a tie. He then earned a spot on the roster for the 2008 World Junior Ice Hockey Championships.

Drew was named a tournament all-star, and given the Directorate Award for Best Defenceman after helping lead the Canadians to their fourth consecutive gold medal at the tournament.

Following his rookie season in the NHL, Drew made his debut with the senior team, playing in the 2009 Men's World Ice Hockey Championships. He scored one goal and added six assists in nine games, however the Canadians settled for silver after losing the championship game to Russia, 2–1.

Drew's strong play in the World Championships earned Doughty an invitation to Canada's summer orientation camp for the 2010 Winter Olympics. He earned one of the final spots on the Canadian defence, beating out established players such as Dion Phaneuf, Jay Bouwmeester and Mike Green.

Doughty became the youngest player to represent Canada in a major best-on-best tournament since Eric Lindros participated in the 1991 Canada Cup at the age of 18.

Drew emerged as one of the top defenders on the team and won the gold medal as Canada defeated the United States in the final game. He was on the ice when Sidney Crosby scored the tournament-winning goal in overtime.

Personal Life
Drew is the son of Paul and Connie Doughty. He was introduced to hockey when he was given a mini stick for his first birthday, was skating by the age of two and he was playing before he was four years old.

Drew also played soccer as a youth as a goaltender; his father had a history with the game and his sister Chelsea is named after the English team of the same name. He was considered for a provincial under-14 team, but he gave up the sport at 13 to focus on hockey.

Nonetheless, Drew felt that his time playing goal in soccer helped him develop an awareness of the players and the game in hockey.