Steady Kings Break Away From Canucks : Sluggish Vancouver Is Losing Touch in Turtle Derby for Playoff Spot

Victory in Vancouver was finally achieved Sunday night by the Kings, who are threatening to put an early end to what has come to be known as The Turtle Derby.

They ended an eight-game winless streak in British Columbia with a 2-0 victory over the Canucks before a crowd of 8,195 at the Pacific Coliseum.

The Kings’ first victory at Vancouver since Jan. 17, 1986, moved them six points ahead of the last-place Canucks in the race for fourth place and the final playoff berth in the Smythe Division.

It’s their biggest lead of the season over the Canucks, who have lost four straight games, five of six and have been shut out twice in their last three home games.

Inexplicably, the Canucks played with little emotion in what, for them, was an important game.

“The Vancouver Canucks, in my mind, hit the lowest point of the season,” Canuck Coach Bob McCammon said. “It was a bad effort on a lot of people’s parts.”

King goaltender Glenn Healy, tested as much for his patience as his physical skills as the Kings gave up a season-low 13 shots, ended a personal three-game losing streak in gaining his first career shutout.

“Not to criticize Vancouver,” King defenseman Tom Laidlaw said, “but they weren’t into the game.”

The Canucks stayed close, though, as goaltender Kirk McLean made 39 saves.

His brilliant play kept the pressure on Healy, who faced only three shots in the third period.

“It was a weird game,” Healy said. “At no point were they out of it. They were outplayed, outskated, outhit, outshot, and yet it was only 2-0, so I was a little apprehensive. I didn’t want to give up a weak one.”

He never did, but that may have had as much to do with Vancouver’s inefficiency as Healy’s effectiveness.

“Everything seemed to work pretty smoothly, but it was sort of a funny game,” Coach Robbie Ftorek said. “It wasn’t real intense . . .

“We tried to eliminate the slot area, and I thought we did a real good job of doing that.

“They didn’t get many shots, but by the same token, I don’t think they played with much intensity. It’s hard to get a real good feel for that game.”

The Kings led, 1-0, after a first period that was long on tedium and short on scoring opportunities until Vancouver penalties gave the Kings a manpower advantage for almost five minutes at the end of the period.

After losing a shoot-out, 8-6, Saturday night to the Philadelphia Flyers, the Kings came out much more conservatively against the Canucks.

In fact, they had only two shots on goal in the first 15 minutes.

But, a double-minor against Ronnie Stern, who was called for high-sticking and instigating a fight with Ken Baumgartner, and a cross-checking penalty on Larry Melnyk gave the Kings a two-man advantage.

Steve Duchesne scored the power-play goal for the Kings with 2:01 left in the period, threading a shot from the top of the slot through a screen provided by Luc Robitaille and Jimmy Carson.

Jim Fox made it 2-0 at 8:41 of the second period after Jim Sandlak of the Canucks took a clearing pass from Randy Boyd, turned to make a move and lost control of the puck in the Canucks’ defensive zone.

Fox jumped on it, firing a 40-foot shot past McLean.

The Kings then continued to put on the clamps defensively, limiting the Canucks to only two shots on goal in the second period during even-strength situations.

From that point, the impatient crowd reserved its loudest cheers for the announcements at the end of the second and third periods that one minute remained to be played.

“I thought we played an intelligent game,” Ftorek said.

King Notes

The Kings established a club record when they gave up only 12 shots on goal in a game against the Atlanta Flames on Oct. 28, 1976. The fewest they had given up this season was 19 in a 6-2 loss to the Edmonton Oilers on Oct. 21. . . . What’s-the-point? dept.: If the Canucks overtake the Kings and finish fourth in the Smythe Division, they would meet either the Edmonton Oilers or the Calgary Flames in the first round of the playoffs. They are 0-12-2 against those teams this season and haven’t beaten the Oilers in three years. . . . Paul Fenton, who hadn’t scored a goal in 10 straight games and has scored only 1 in his last 16, was scratched for the first time in 54 games. . . . Paul Guay, odd man out with the acquisition of Ron Duguay, was assigned to the Kings’ American Hockey League affiliate at New Haven, Conn. Guay had 4 goals and 4 assists in 32 games, and had been scratched from two of the Kings’ last three games. . . . The Kings end their two-game trip Tuesday night at Edmonton.