Kings’ Backs to the Boards : Hockey: Oilers overcome a 3-1 deficit for 5-4 victory and 3-0 lead in series. Gretzky is shaken up again, and Scott is blasted out of goal in his first playoff game.

With goalie Kelly Hrudey injured, King Coach Tom Webster had to flip a coin between rookie Ron Scott and inconsistent Mario Gosselin.

It came up Oilers.

Scott got the start, but Edmonton got the victory, blasting him for four goals en route to a 5-4 victory at the Forum Sunday night in Game 3 of the best-of-seven Smythe Division finals.

Edmonton has a commanding 3-0 lead with Game 4 Tuesday at the Forum.

“He’s played really well,” Webster said of Scott. “He deserved a chance. I made the decision. You can’t blame him. He got caught on a lot of two-on-ones.”

While Webster awaits word on the availability of Hrudey, suffering from stretched ribs and doubtful for Tuesday, he now has another big concern--Wayne Gretzky.

Gretzky took a shot in the back from Geoff Smith Sunday in the first period. Gretzky is still not completely over the back injury that caused him to miss the first two games of the Calgary series.

“It was the same spot, same hit,” Gretzky said. “We’ll put heat on it and will see what happens tomorrow. I didn’t do a lot of good staying in there after that, but it’s not career-threatening, just painful. The back is as sore as it’s been since I got hurt.”

Gretzky conceded his club was hurt by not having Hrudey.

“Anytime you lose a guy of Kelly’s caliber, it hurts,” Gretzky said. “His absence may have been a factor.”

Scott gave up the four goals on 10 shots before giving way to Gosselin. In all, the Oilers were outshot, 39-18, the third game in a row they’ve been outshot.

That might have made a difference in this series had it not been for Edmonton goalie Bill Ranford, a backup himself until Grant Fuhr got hurt.

Ranford has been a human wall, allowing just two goals in his last three games before Sunday, and just one to the Kings in the first two games of the series.

Included in his hot streak was a club record scoreless streak of 154 minutes 24 seconds over parts of three games.

But even the Berlin Wall eventually crumbled.

Ranford didn’t take nearly as long, giving up a goal to the Kings on their first shot, just 1:06 into the game to the delight of the sellout crowd of 16,005.

After Larry Robinson got the puck on a turnover along the boards on the right side, he passed to Tony Granato, who left a drop pass for Todd Elik.

Elik did the same for Tomas Sandstrom, who took the evening’s first shot from the edge of the right circle. The puck found all net after sailing over Ranford’s glove.

It was Sandstrom’s fifth goal of the playoffs, but only the first point in this series for Sandstrom, Granato or Gretzky, the line that was so dominant in the series against Calgary.

On Sunday, however, every line was Gretzky’s.

In an effort to get him away from his tormentor, Edmonton’s Esa Tikkanen, Webster used Gretzky on all four lines at times--with Granato and Sandstrom, with Elik and Luc Robitaille, with John Tonelli and Keith Crowder, and with Chris Kontos and Mikko Makela, who was making his first appearance of the playoffs.

But the Oilers were not as concerned with getting Gretzky as they were with getting a goal.

Or even a shot.

Scott had never before been in an NHL playoff game, but the Oilers went through the entire first period with only one shot on goal, setting a team record for futility.

It appeared that Jari Kurri had scored when he fired a shot past Scott at the 6:39 mark, but it was disallowed because of an offsides call.

The Oilers didn’t get a shot on goal that counted until 15:26 had elapsed, but they made the most of it.

Craig Simpson, off a pass from Mark Messier, backhanded one past Scott to tie the score at 1-1.

The Kings struck back quickly.

With just 40 seconds to play in the period, King defenseman Robinson, much maligned at times this season for costly turnovers, got one of his own, taking the puck away from Simpson along the right boards.

Sandwiched between defenders, Robinson eluded them both, skated down the slot and scored over Ranford’s glove to push the Kings back into the lead.

Just 11 seconds later, Elik, racing through the slot, took a pass from Mike Krushelnyski and hit a shot that appeared to graze Ranford’s glove before continuing past him into the net.

The two goals in 11 seconds is a playoff record for the Kings.

So Scott, in his first playoff period, gave up two goals on two shots.

But only one counted and Scott emerged with a 3-1 lead.

In the second period, however, the Oilers zeroed in on their target and blew Scott out of the net.

Simpson scored his second goal of the night and seventh of the playoffs at 5:34.

Petr Klima tied the score 1:16 later with his third goal of the postseason.

And Reijo Ruotsalainen sent Edmonton into the lead and Scott to the bench at 12:13 when he bounced the puck off one of Steve Duchesne’s skates into an open net.

Scott, protecting the opposite side, was too far out to get back in position.

Gosselin came on in relief, but surrendered the Oilers’ fifth goal to Adam Graves at 15:33.

Gretzky scored with 1:09 to go to make it close, but the Kings couldn’t get the tying goal.

King Notes

The old Kings’ playoff record for the shortest span between goals was set in the first game of the playoffs this season. Tony Granato and Luc Robitaille scored 18 seconds apart in the Kings’ 5-3 victory in Calgary.