Kings Seeking Respect in Playoff Series With High-Scoring Oilers

A newspaper writer who covers the Kings was stopped at Canadian immigration in the airport here this week and questioned closely by the officer: “Do you think the Oilers can beat the Flames? Will they have the advantage of being more rested? Can Edmonton win it all?”

So it goes for the Kings. So little is thought of their chances of even winning a game from the Oilers in the first round of the Stanley Cup playoffs, beginning here tonight, that anticipation is already building for a possible Edmonton-Calgary meeting in the second round.

The Flames will play the Winnipeg Jets in the first round.

Of course, the Kings are well used to being lightly regarded. They’ve learned to use that as a motivational tool.

“A lot of people don’t even give us credit for being here in the first place,” said King goaltender Rollie Melanson. “We’re not the doormats of the league, as people have labeled us.”

What of the Oilers, whose 50-24-6 record is the best in the league? Are they thinking that the Kings were just kidding when they absorbed a 7-3 loss at the hands of the Oilers in the Forum last week? Do they believe that horrendous effort against a half-strength Oiler team was just a set-up, a ruse?

“Our guys played great, but L.A. didn’t do much,” Edmonton defenseman Paul Coffey said. “I don’t know if they were playing possum or what. It doesn’t mean anything. If anything, I don’t like games like that. Sometimes when you beat a team that convincingly, you can be overconfident . . . although I don’t think our team will be.”

Even if the Oilers are overconfident, they have good reason to be. Before last Saturday’s blowout, Edmonton trounced the Kings 9-3 and 8-1 on the way to a 4-2-2 advantage in the regular season.

The series will open with games here tonight and Thursday, then will continue with day games Saturday and Sunday at the Forum.

“I don’t believe in a home advantage in the playoffs,” King Coach Mike Murphy said.

What Murphy does believe in, and suggests that his team will need, is a strong effort from each player. Unlike the Oilers, the Kings don’t have a handful of superstars.

“You can’t go toe to toe with the Oilers,” Murphy said. “They’ll beat any team in the league that way. You have to play hard defensively.

“When they get their (scoring) chances, they give up a lot. If you are alert, you will be able to turn some of their chances into chances of your own.”

The Oilers, of course, are a constant offensive threat. Three of their players finished with more than 100 points--Wayne Gretzky with 183, Jari Kurri with 108 and Mark Messier with 107.

The Kings’ top scorer is rookie Luc Robitaille, who finished the season with 84 points.

The Kings hope to counter with greater line depth. “We’ve got three of the best lines going,” King center Bernie Nicholls said. “You can’t key on any one line with us.”

The Oilers have the Gretzky and Messier lines, then not much.

“They are a team that relies on their first two lines,” Murphy said. “If you get a team like that, flying back and forth to L.A., and you play physically against them, you are going to have some tired players.”

As usual in the playoffs, goaltending figures to be crucial. The Kings are going with Melanson, who has a 3.69 goals-against average. The team average of 4.21 is 20th in the league. Edmonton will go with Grant Fuhr, who has a 3.44 GAA.

The Rest of the League The other Smythe Division series pits the Flames and the Jets in a rematch of last season’s first round. Then, the Flames won, went on to beat the Oilers and reached the Stanley Cup final, where the lost to Montreal.

The Norris Division has been more of a demolition derby than a race to the playoffs. Those pairings came down to the final games, and the results put the St. Louis Blues up against the Toronto Maple Leafs in one series and the Detroit Red Wings up against the Chicago Blackhawks in another.

The winner of the Smythe and Norris divisional playoffs will play for the championship of the Campbell Conference.

The rest of the match-ups are identical to last season’s. In the Patrick Division, the Washington Capitals will play the New York Islanders for the fourth straight time, and the New York Rangers will play the first-place Philadelphia Flyers, whom they upset last spring.

In the Adams Division, the Montreal Canadiens will meet the Boston Bruins, whom they beat last spring on their way to the Stanley Cup, and the Hartford Whalers will play the Quebec Nordiques.

The winners of the Patrick and Adams Division playoffs will play for the championship of the Wales Conference.