The Name Games Fuel a Brisk Pace at Camp : Pro hockey: While the stars sign autographs, the fringe players monitor the bulletin board for word on their fates.

They came early in the morning and hung out all day at the Plaza de la Chaudiere in Hull, Quebec, wearing their Wayne Gretzky jerseys, garish rally caps and silver and black sweat pants.

Some camped out by the lobby elevators, waiting for a precious autograph. Others dug in outside the hotel coffee shop.

With 83 players on hand for the first week of the Kings’ training camp, there was no shortage of hands to do the signing.

But the autograph hounds were mostly interested in the varsity. They swarmed whenever Gretzky, Luc Robitaille or Larry Robinson emerged from the elevator. But when an unfamiliar face came down, the frantic fans whispered among themselves.

Was this guy bound for glory in Los Angeles? Or was he merely another minor leaguer, headed for New Haven, Phoenix and then, perhaps, oblivion?

The easiest answer would have been to stake out the bulletin board in the center of the lobby. There, every day, a typewritten sheet appeared, listing the various teams for the daily intrasquad games at Robert Guertin Arena, along with a list, later in the week, of those players who would not be accompanying the big club on its nine-game exhibition tour.

The veterans, of course, marched right past that second list without so much as a glance, on their way to the golf course or out to dinner after practice.

The rookies and minor leaguers, on the other hand, checked it nightly, anxiously searching for their names.

Tough week, whether you were trying to get someone else’s name on your autograph pad or your own on the list for the traveling squad.

Defenseman Marty McSorley missed the first day of practice, citing a “personal matter.”

It turned out to have been a matter of money.

McSorley, who made $220,000 last season, had his best offensive year with 15 goals.

During the off-season, another defenseman, Scott Stevens, signed a four-year, $5.1-million contract with the St. Louis Blues. And last week, Al MacInnis signed a four-year, $4-million contract with the Calgary Flames.

McSorley decided to hold out. But after getting an angry reaction from the Kings, he relented and showed up in Hull 24 hours later, determined to reopen negotiations later.

Asked about the difference between Edmonton and Los Angeles, Gretzky replied, “You don’t see Madonna walking down the streets of Edmonton.”

King Notes

The No. 16 sweater of Marcel Dionne, the top scorer in King history with 1,307 points, will be retired at the Forum Nov. 8, before the game against the Detroit Red Wings. . . . The first Kings Day luncheon, co-sponsored by the Chamber of Commerce and the L.A. Sports Council, will be held Oct. 2 at the Biltmore Hotel.