More opportunities knock for Kings’ Jack Johnson

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Kings defenseman Jack Johnson is hoping to pad his stats during his second season in the NHL.

Johnson played a team-high 29 minutes 6 seconds Wednesday night in a 4-3 shootout victory at Colorado.

With the late-season trade of Brad Stuart and the off-season departures of fellow defenseman Rob Blake and Lubomir Visnovsky, Johnson’s spending time on the power-play unit for the first time in his NHL career, a move he hopes will increase his offensive productivity.

‘It’s hard to score if all you play is five-on-five,’ Johnson said.

Johnson isn’t completely new to the man-advantage. He was on the power play during his college days at Michigan.

‘It’s nothing out of the ordinary,’ he said. ‘Like riding a bike.’

On skates, of course.

-- Dan Arritt