Rout Begins Early as L.A. Keeps Its Cool : Flames: Kings’ 4-0 first period leaves Calgary players searching for answers that never come.

When the horn sounded at the end of the first period Tuesday night at the Forum, the capacity crowd of 16,005 roared in approval.

But as they made their way slowly to the locker room through a tunnel beneath the stands, the Calgary Flames did not.

They looked dazed.

They looked confused.

Two nights earlier, the defending Stanley Cup champions had been victims of only the fourth short-handed overtime goal in the history of the NHL playoffs, Tony Granato’s game-winning shot Sunday night.

And now, the Kings led, 4-0.

And it had been 4-0 before the Flames put a shot on goal.

Wing Gary Roberts poked at the floor three times with his stick as he reached the locker room, and a teammate smashed his stick against a basket of towels, but mostly the Flames filed quietly--and politely--past a couple of security guards and a handful of curious onlookers.

The Flames’ game plan, it seemed, had failed them badly.

“They came out and tried to intimidate us,” defenseman Rob Blake of the Kings told a Prime Ticket audience before the second period. “They took a penalty early in the game and we capitalized on the power play.

“They kept running around and we kept our composure. We put three past (Mike) Vernon (the Flames’ starting goaltender) and one past (Rick) Wamsley (Vernon’s replacement), so we came out and did what we had to do.”

And more.

Only 26 seconds after defenseman Al MacInnis of the Flames had gone to the penalty box for holding Jay Miller at 3:46 of the first period, teammate and fellow defenseman Ric Nattress joined him, Nattress having been assessed a double minor for cross-checking and unsportsmanlike conduct.

“Our energy and emotion was directed in the wrong way,” Nattress said. “Instead of just being physical and ready, we were over aggressive. We had opportunities for the puck, but we went after the man. It’s always nice to get the hit, or the big play--but you’ve got to do the right thing at the right time.”

The Kings weren’t able to capitalize on the two-man advantage, but Dave Taylor, after taking a pass from behind the net by Todd Elik, lifted a power-play goal into the upper right corner of the net at 6:38 to start the Kings on their way to a 12-4 victory that gave them a 3-1 lead over the Flames in their best-of-seven Smythe Division semifinal playoff series.

Blake had a hand in the second goal, which undoubtedly will show up on highlight films long after this series has ended.

The rookie from Bowling Green University, who joined the Kings in the last week of the regular season, seemed to have been taken out of the play when checked by Doug Gilmour as he carried the puck into the Flames’ zone.

But Blake left the puck for Granato, who took it to his left before rifling a shot from the left circle that made its way through the legs of Gilmour, Blake and MacInnis and past Vernon.

“It started off as a four-on-two, but the guy caught me from behind, so I kind of just left it,” Blake said. “I didn’t know Tony was coming, but as it went, he put it through all three (pairs of) legs.

“Pretty good shot, I’d say.”

But, as it turned out, only the second in a long series.

Tomas Sandstrom and Dave Taylor scored for the Kings before the end of the period. The Flames managed to put their first shot on goal only 3:45 before the end of the period.

Finally, the period ended.

The rout would continue.

As the Flames emerged from the locker room after the first intermission, wing Tim Hunter tried to cheer them up.

But most exited the room as quietly as they had entered.

Their nightmare wasn’t over.

And, as they filed past, it seemed as if they sensed it.