Thomas Hickey knows his chance is now to make roster

After developing some decent depth on defense — a process accelerated by Drew Doughty’s arrival in 2008 — the Kings could afford to take their time grooming Thomas Hickey, the fourth overall pick in the 2007 draft.

Injuries to his left shoulder and left ankle limited him to 19 regular-season games and four playoff games with Manchester (N.H.) of the American Hockey League last season, but it wasn’t a huge problem because the Kings had plenty of other bodies.

Suddenly there are fewer bodies between Hickey and the NHL, with Sean O’Donnell and Randy Jones departing as free agents and Matt Greene recovering from shoulder surgery that will idle him until November. Hickey, who spent the summer in Los Angeles to work on his strength and conditioning, is in prime position to claim a roster spot but isn’t putting undue pressure on himself.

“Going forward I want to make this team and that’s the only thing on my mind,” he said Sunday. “You’ve got to be realistic. I want to play in the NHL for a long time and I want to play professional hockey for as many years as I can.

“If there’s time it takes to get to the level where you can do that and be successful then you take it. Hopefully there’s no time for that and I can jump in, but it’s certainly not make or break.”

Hickey, 21, is known for his intelligence on the ice. He was the captain of his junior team, the Seattle Thunderbirds of the Western Hockey League, and can make up in smarts what he lacks in size at a generously stated 6 feet tall and 190 pounds.

He’s also smart enough to know the situation here is a good one for him.

“There’s a bunch of guys that would be in contention to take a spot and they’ve let us know there’s opportunities with injuries and just numbers,” Hickey said. “We all know there’s opportunity and I’m looking to jump up and snag one of those spots and then keep it from there.”

He said playing four playoff games for Manchester after his ankle healed last spring was a valuable experience.

“That was huge. You grow a lot as a player and as a team playing playoff hockey,” said Hickey, who had three assists in four games. “The regular season’s a lot different. You show yourself something and you show everyone else something too, that you’re going to be counted on at the most important time of the year. So for me that was huge confidence-wise to step in and contribute.”

Colten Teubert, chosen 13th by the Kings in the 2008 draft, also would have contended for a roster spot but he’s recovering from two operations on his right wrist and isn’t scheduled to see the doctor again until early October.

Teubert, who finished last season with the Ontario Reign of the ECHL, said doctors were slow to find the break in his scaphoid bone. He said he contributed to the problem by trying to ignore the discomfort.

“I’ve had bumps and bruises before,” he said. “Sometimes you don’t realize what your pain threshold is. Apparently mine is to have a broken hand for a while.”

The second procedure was done a few weeks ago to remove a screw and make sure the bone is healing properly. He’s still in a cast but hopes to get on the ice this week, after the other rookies leave for games at Phoenix Tuesday and Wednesday.

“It’s a positive thing coming out of the second surgery that everything looks good right now,” Teubert said, “and I’ve just got to wait and be patient with it and do all the right things to stay in shape at the same time.”

Another contender is Jake Muzzin, who signed with the Kings as a free agent last January and played 13 playoff games with Manchester. The 21-year-old has good size, at 6-2 and 216 pounds, and he could add a physical presence to a defense corps that has some exceptional puckhandlers.

“I’m very excited to show them what I have and what I can do,” said Muzzin, who has been paired with David Kolomatis in rookie practices. “As for expectations, I just want to play the best that I can play and hopefully if they like what they see maybe I’ll stick around. And if not I’ll head to Manchester and show them what I can do.”

Muzzin was drafted by Pittsburgh in the fifth round in 2007 but didn’t sign and wasn’t drafted again. He stayed in juniors for an over-age year — he turned 21 during the season — and was voted the top defenseman in the Ontario Hockey League. That brought him a number of offers.

“I picked the Kings because talking to them it just seemed that they really wanted me in their organization,” he said. “They showed the most interest in me. I knew they had a good AHL squad up in Manchester and just a good development program for the young guys in the team. Everything went smoothly and the decision was an easy one.”

Slap shots

Center Brayden Schenn, who tweaked his left knee last Tuesday and has been off the ice since then, will miss the entire rookie camp. That gives him time to prepare for the main camp, which begins with physicals Friday and on-ice sessions Saturday in El Segundo…. Doughty and Anze Kopitar will represent the Kings at the NHL’s media tour in New York this week. Players will be involved in photo shoots and studio sessions with Versus, NBC and TSN. Pittsburgh’s Sidney Crosby and Washington’s Alexander Ovechkin are among the headliners.

Sunday’s combinations were (left to right):

Kyle Clifford-Andrei Loktionov-Brandon Kozun

Ray Kaunisto-Jordan Weal-Linden Vey

Dwight King-Corey Elkins-Tyler Toffoli

Jordan Nolan-Robbie Czarnik-Michael Pelech

(Extra forwards were Riley Brace and Zach Hamden)

Defense pairs

Hickey-Samuel Groulx

Nicolas Deslauriers-Johan Fransson

Muzzin-Kolomatis

Dylan King-Patrick Mullen

helene.elliott@latimes.com

twitter.com/helenenothelen