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Sutter on Greene: ‘I’m not going to put him in just to put him in’

Chicago Blackhawks v Los Angeles Kings

LOS ANGELES, CA - JANUARY 19: Matt Greene #2 of the Los Angeles Kings watches as the 2001-12 Stanley Cup banner is raised during a ceremony before the NHL season opening game against the Chicago Blackhawks at Staples Center on January 19, 2013 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Harry How/Getty Images)

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Matt Greene is healthy, activated from injured reserve and apparently ready to play.

But that won’t get him back in the lineup.

On Friday, Kings head coach Darryl Sutter was decidedly non-committal about getting Greene back in the mix, meaning the veteran defenseman could miss a third game since coming off IR on Saturday when the Kings take on the Sens in Ottawa.

“I’m not going to put [Greene] in just to put him in,” Sutter told LA Kings Insider.

Greene, 30, hasn’t played since a 4-3 loss to Nashville on Nov. 2.

It’s very possible that Sutter isn’t comfortable in throwing Greene back into the lineup, given how much time the physical rearguard has missed in the last calendar year.

Greene missed 43 of 48 games last year with a back injury not believed to be related to his upper-body issue. The sturdy, stay-at-home blueliner rebounded to appear in 15 games to start this season — averaging nearly 17 minutes while notching three points -- overcoming offseason elbow surgery in the process.

But all told, he’s only appeared in 20 regular season games since the lockout ended.

In other Kings lineup news, Colin Fraser will sit on Saturday after taking a hard hit from Toronto’s Frazer McLaren on Wednesday.