Eliot King of the Hill After 3-0 Shutout

Darren Eliot is making the Kings’ three-goaltender rotation spin on a single axis.

He keeps playing and keeps helping the Kings win, and that keeps the other two goalies from showing Coach Pat Quinn what they can do. At this rate, their turns in the rotation will spin around by the next solar eclipse.

It’s a happy problem for Quinn. He’ll worry about it after he finishes savoring the Kings’ 3-0 win over the Pittsburgh Penguins Wednesday night before a crowd of 9,020 at the Forum.

“Well, the real difference tonight was Darren Eliot,” Quinn said. “He was outstanding the whole game.”

Eliot, a third-year goalie who has started eight of the Kings’ last nine games, got the first shutout of his National Hockey League career. The last time the Kings had a shutout at home was also against Pittsburgh--a 6-0 win on March 5, 1985, with Bob Janecyk in goal.

The Kings (14-17-2) made strides on another front, moving within two points of the third-place Winnipeg Jets in the Smythe division. The Penguins (15-12-4) remained in third place in the Patrick Division.

The Kings did their damage in the first period, scoring all of their goals, and then protected the lead. While Eliot played solidly, he did not face many shots (26), and he faced even fewer quality ones. In the interim, he said he was concentrating on concentrating, not thinking about the shutout.

“With a 3-0 game, it’s harder than a 7-0 game, when they don’t have a chance to win,” Eliot said. “It’s not out of range. You’re concentrating on not giving one up. It’s great to win. But to throw a zero on the board, it’s great not just for me. It’s a little more special when you’re not known as a defensive team.”

The Kings have not known much defense. They are last in the league in goals-against. But there were no defensive leaks Wednesday night.

The Kings took advantage of their superior speed and the Penguins’ tendency to send all five men into the attacking zone. In this way, when the Kings stole the puck, they were able to jump-start their breakouts and attack a defenseless Pittsburgh goaltender, Roberto Romano.

Quinn had alerted his team to expect aggressive forechecking and to create opportunities to get the puck.

Terry Ruskowski, Pittsburgh’s captain and a former King said: “It was very depressing--we had two days of rest, and they came out so fast and scored three goals. They were moving a lot, breaking into the open. They wanted the puck. What they did better than us was skating. They skated into the openings.”

Youth and experience meshed for the first two King goals. On the first, registered at 3:08, rookie Jimmy Carson skated along the right side, drawing Penguin defensemen to him, and dropped a timely pass to Dave Taylor, who scored.

Defenseman Steve Duchesne, another King rookie, scored his fourth goal of the season, this one on a pass from Marcel Dionne at the nine-minute mark. McKenna got an assist.

Duchesne has been “a pleasant surprise,” according to Quinn.

“I had him in the mold of an offensive defenseman,” the coach said. “He’s shown he can play a strong defensive game. He’s just a baby, just learning the game, but he’s out there playing like a veteran.”

Duchesne certainly showed little respect for Mario Lemieux, Pittsburgh’s scoring machine. Checking hard and playing Lemieux tight, Duchesne neutralized the big center.

“I have more confidence in my ability to carry the puck,” Duchesne said. “At the start of the season, they wanted me to be more defensive.”

Asked if he has felt left out in the publicity blitz accorded the two high-scoring King rookies, Luc Robitaille and Carson, Duchesne smiled.

“That’s the way it has always been for me--I’m used to it,” he said. “I’m going to be playing much better and going to be in the paper more often.”

Sean McKenna scored the final King goal, tipping in Bernie Nicholls’ shot at 12:14.

McKenna, who also assisted on Duchesne’s goal, is improving with each game, gaining both confidence and ice time.

“Confidence is a part of it,” he said. “Pat is showing more confidence in me, and that boosts my confidence.”

It was the seventh time this season that the Kings have scored three goals in the first period.

By the end of the period, the Kings had outshot the Penguins, 19-9. Eliot simply wasn’t busy the first two periods, and the 5-foot 6-inch Romano didn’t get any help.

The only bone the Kings threw Pittsburgh’s way came in the form of five power-play chances in the first two periods. On paper, that should have been a good indication for the visitors: The Kings are ranked 19th in penalty-killing, and the Penguins are seventh in the power play.

That’s on paper. On the ice, Bob Bourne, Phil Sykes and Duchesne limited Pittsburgh’s power play to little more than an exercise in chasing the puck.

The Kings killed a five-on-three, which the Penguins had for 1 minute 3 seconds, to close out the second period.

It was a telling moment. Would the Kings, who have trouble holding leads, collapse? Or would they fight?

“Our guys were really sharp,” Quinn said. “Darren, on the five-on-three, made a spectacular save that should have been a goal.”