KINGS-DUCKS REPORT

The Ducks raised a few eyebrows when they kept eight defensemen on the roster to start the season. Fitting eight players into six spots can be a difficult chore for any NHL coach.

But Coach Craig Hartsburg wanted depth on the blue line and now it’s paying off.

With Ruslan Salei sidelined because of a bruised left foot for Monday’s game against the Kings and Pavel Trnka out for two more weeks because of a sprained right ankle, the Ducks had just enough defensemen to fill out the lineup.

“Everybody has bumps and bruises [over the course of the season],” Hartsburg said. “You’ve got to have depth on defense.”

Salei, who took a slap shot off the boot in the first period of Saturday’s game against the Philadelphia Flyers, hoped to skate Monday morning.

“I tried to put my skate on, and I wasn’t really able to walk with my skate on,” Salei said. “I put it on and it’s painful.”

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Center German Titov continues to recover from a bruised chest, but he isn’t quite ready to return to the lineup. Titov, who filled in between Paul Kariya and Teemu Selanne while Rucchin was out for a month because of a broken left hand, was injured Oct. 17 against the New York Islanders.

“He’s close, but we want to make sure he doesn’t re-injure himself,” Hartsburg said. “Probably another day or two and he might be ready. We don’t want it to turn into a serious thing.”