Kings’ Camp Is Less Crowded This Year : With Only 54 Players, Quinn Has More Room to Look at Defense

A pared-down training camp is under way in Canada for the Kings, and Coach Pat Quinn is looking with special concern at his defense.

Camp opened Friday at Victoria, British Columbia, with 54 players, only about half the number who were on hand for last season’s opening. The smaller squad will allow Quinn and his staff to spend less time evaluating marginal players and more time with those players likely to make the roster.

The camp also has opened four days earlier than previously, as provided for in the newly signed collective bargaining agreement between the National Hockey League’s owners and players’ association. Another provision of the agreement, however, is that training those first four days must be limited to three hours daily, both on and off the ice.

“It’s difficult to make evaluations in that amount of time,” Quinn said by phone. “We have been on the ice 2 hours 15 minutes. It’s not much.”

Quinn will likely use the ice time to scrutinize defensive players, since the Kings showed a glaring weakness on defense last season. “Our goals-against has to get better,” Quinn said. “We have a young defense, which is a year older and, hopefully, will play better.”

He added, however, that the defensemen and goalies were not solely responsible for last season’s defensive collapse. “The poor defensive record of a year ago has to do with our forwards’ play,” he said. “Our offensive players weren’t helping on the transition. We’ve really got to improve the transition of the offense.

“It’s much harder to break in a young defensive player than it is a young forward. We think we are past the young stage in our defense.”

Returning defensemen are Dean Kennedy, Grant Ledyard, Larry Playfair, Craig Redmond, Jay Wells, Garry Galley and Mark Hardy.

Kennedy and Ledyard agreed to new contracts in July. Kennedy is a three-year veteran who scored 2 goals and had 10 assists in 78 games last season. Ledyard, who was acquired in a three-way trade with the New York Rangers last season, scored 7 goals and had 18 assists in 52 games with the Kings.

The defense could improve considerably, however, if the Kings acquire Barry Beck from the Rangers. King General Manager Rogie Vachon is interested in the 6-foot 3-inch, 215-pound Beck, who announced in August that he would not play for the Rangers because of “philosophical differences” with Ranger Coach Ted Sator.

A King spokesman said Friday that Vachon was waiting to hear from Ranger General Manager Phil Esposito about a possible trade.

Beck has yet to play a full season for the Rangers and had shoulder surgery in 1985.

“He’s not here, so I can’t allow myself to be affected in any way by him,” Quinn said. “From what I know about him, he’s a good player.”

If the outlook is questionable for the Kings on defense, there is a bright spot on offense--Jim Carson, the team’s No. 1 draft pick and the No. 2 choice overall in the draft. Carson, a 6-0, 185-pound center, led the Verdun Junior Canadiens in scoring last season with 70 goals and 83 assists.

Carson joins veterans Marcel Dionne, Glen Currie, Brian Wilks and Bernie Nicholls among the 10 centers in camp.

It may take more than just young blood, though, to help the Kings, whose 23-49-8 record last season was the second-worst in the NHL. They will start their 20th season having set team records last time around for most goals allowed (389), most consecutive losses (9) and most losses at home (27).

Of the 54 players in camp, 24 are veterans of the Kings or another NHL club, 20 are rookies with limited or no NHL play, 7 are players chosen by the Kings in the 1986 draft and 3 are free agents.

Quinn said he would evaluate the players in the first nine days and decide who would skate in the session with the Los Angeles group and who would practice with the Kings’ New Haven farm club.

“That way we’ll cut without sending anyone home,” he said.

The Kings will break camp after cutting the roster to 24 or 25, Quinn added.

There will be seven exhibition games, two fewer than a year ago. The first is scheduled for a week from today against the Vancouver Canucks in Victoria.

The Kings’ opener is Oct. 9 against the St. Louis Blues at the Forum.