Zuccarello back on IR, and the Kings' injury list keeps growing

Mats Zuccarello is headed back to injured reserve after another upper-body injury, the Kings announced Tuesday. It's the second time in recent weeks the veteran winger has been shut down with the same issue, and the timing is lousy — Los Angeles is just starting to find its footing after a rough early stretch.

The Kings already have Quinton Byfield sidelined with an upper-body injury of his own, picked up during that 5-2 win over Washington six days ago. Jakub Dvorak and Jan Jenik are also on injured reserve. That's a lot of bodies to be missing at once, and the depth is getting tested in a hurry.

Zuccarello was brought in as a $1 million reclamation-type bet, per the news out this week. At this point the Kings just need him healthy enough to play, which hasn't happened consistently. A player his age — he's been in the league a long time — doesn't always bounce back from the same injury twice in quick succession on the same timeline.

The good news, if there is any, is that Drew Doughty is apparently not going anywhere. The longtime Kings defenseman said this week he believes he can play past 40 and is willing to sign a team-friendly deal to stay. Right now, continuity on the back end is about the most stable thing Los Angeles has going.