Kings’ Oscar Fantenberg making most of added minutes

LOS ANGELES — Oscar Fantenberg was averaging 15:31 of time on ice for the Kings this season ahead of Thursday night’s game against Vancouver at Staples Center. But he is playing considerably more than that since the team traded fellow defenseman Jake Muzzin to Toronto in late January.

In the six games since that move, Fantenberg has been on the ice for an average of 18:40, and he’s taking full advantage of the extra time. Beyond shoring up his defense, he has scored his only two goals of the season in his team’s past two games – losses at Boston and Washington.

Fantenberg embraces the situation.

“I mean, Muzz played over 20 minutes a night and guys have to take those minutes away, and I’ve been fortunate to take a couple of those minutes,” he said. “… I mean, it’s fun to play a lot, too, and your confidence gets better and better and you kind of get into games a little bit better.

“I think it’s easier to play with more minutes.”

Since he’s in just his second season in the NHL, Fantenberg realizes what this means.

“It’s a good opportunity for me to show that I can play those minutes and be a good defenseman in the league,” Fantenberg said at Thursday’s morning skate.

Fantenberg, 27, might never become the kind of scoring defenseman a player such as teammate Drew Doughty is. Fantenberg had two goals and seven assists in 27 games in 2017-18 – his rookie season – and he has just two goals and one assist in 41 games this season.

Is he trying to assert himself more on the offensive end?

“I mean, you play more minutes, you’re going to have more opportunities, too, I think,” he said. “And we’ve been working on shooting and getting the puck to the net a lot in practice.

“And I think it’s fun when it works in games, too.”

One thing’s certain, he wants to contribute more in this regard. For good reason – the Kings averaged only 2.39 goals per game, second-worst in the league, before Thursday.

“I want to improve more offensively, too, be more involved and make plays, shoot the puck more and I think that’s what I’ve been doing lately,” he said. “Luckily, it’s been working.”

Interim coach Willie Desjardins praises the play of Fantenberg, who has a ratio of minus-2 for the season. Considering he’s on a team that has struggled and has only a few players in the plus column, that’s respectable.

“I think a little bit of confidence, maybe a little bit more,” Desjardins said, when asked what he’s seeing from Fantenberg. “I think we lost Muzz and then he knew he had to step up and play a little bit more.

“But we had confidence in him right from the start.”

THIS AND THAT

Forward Jeff Carter has missed the past four games with a lower-body injury. He is practicing, and Desjardins said he could be ready for Saturday night’s game against visiting Boston. … The Kings have assigned forward Jonny Brodzinski to Ontario on a conditioning assignment. Brodzinski, 24, sustained a shoulder injury during training camp and has not played a game this season. He got into six games in 2016-17 and 35 this past season. … The Kings entered play Thursday in last place in the Western Conference, eight points out of a postseason berth. … After Saturday, the Kings will finish their three-game homestand by hosting defending Stanley Cup champion Washington on Monday at 7:30 p.m.

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