Like Babe, Kings’ Tonelli Delivers for a Young Fan

This one should have been played under the bright lights of Hollywood rather than a snowy night in Toronto.

It was material better suited for Bruce McNall’s movie company than his hockey team.

It was one of those magical moments usually created by scriptwriters, one of those nights when real life looks more like reel life.

Call it a remake of The Babe Ruth Story. Starring John Tonelli. Written and directed by McNall.

It overshadowed everything else that happened Saturday night when the Kings beat the Toronto Maple Leafs, 4-2, in front of a sellout crowd of 16,382 at Maple Leafs Garden.

It all began Saturday morning when Tonelli, born in nearby Milton, Ontario, brought his 7-year-old cousin by marriage, R.J. Waddle, to meet the Kings after the morning skate.

Waddle has been suffering from leukemia for about a year, but is in remission.

As the young fan collected autographs, McNall came over to Tonelli, a 13-year veteran, with a suggestion.

“Why don’t you pop a goal for him?” McNall said. “Just like Babe Ruth.”

According to legend, Ruth once told a severely ill young fan he would hit a home run for him, and then did it.

Tonelli hesitated, then said, “I’ll try and put it in (Wayne Gretzky’s) corner, top right-hand shelf.”

The upper right-hand corner of the net is one of Gretzky’s favorite scoring spots.

Having made the promise, Tonelli sweated it.

“I thought about it all afternoon,” he said. “It put pressure on me, good pressure.”

Waddle was too tired to come to the game, but listened at home on the radio.

Just like in the movie.

The Kings moved into a 2-1 lead in the second period on goals by Luc Robitaille, his 21st, and Bob Kudelski (13th), countering Aaron Broten’s 11th goal.

Then, with just under 10 minutes gone in the period, Steve Duchesne passed the puck to Tonelli in the middle of the left circle.

He’d never get a better chance.

His thoughts were on Waddle the whole game, but with the moment at hand, he later admitted he wasn’t concerned with location.

“I can’t be like the Babe,” Tonelli said. “I was just shooting at the net.”

No room for modesty at this moment. Tonelli’s shot whistled off goalie Peter Ing’s glove into the upper-right corner.

No lightning bolts a la “The Natural.” No stirring rendition from the studio orchestra.

Just a knowing smile from Tonelli to McNall, seated near the ice.

And a big smile somewhere in Toronto from a 7-year-old.

That wasn’t only the play Saturday night to be filed under the heading Strange But True.

It was also the first time Gretzky, who has encountered just about every obstacle the opposition could muster, ever had a stick shot at him.

It happened early in the second period. A stick dropped in front of Ing just before Gretzky received the puck for a potential breakaway.

Toronto defenseman Rob Ramage took off in pursuit, but realized he couldn’t reach Gretzky.

So, he did the first thing that came to mind, shoving the stick already on the ice in Gretzky’s path.

Referee Mark Faucette awarded a penalty shot, not a Gretzky specialty. He made only two of four previously in regular-season play.

Gretzky skated over to the Kings’ bench and started laughing, because, he said, he didn’t want to take the shot at first.

“I asked if I could have a choice,” Gretzky later said, “take the penalty or take the shot.”

No choice.

And no goal as Ing blocked it with his left pad.

No matter. After Dave Hannan scored his third goal, the Kings went on to add one more of their own, Tomas Sandstrom’s 19th, to wrap up their third victory in four games on this trip.

Kelly Hrudey was tough in goal, stopping 36 of 38 shots by Toronto. The Maple Leafs, 6-3-2 in their previous 11 games, made a charge at the end, outshooting the Kings, 14-5, in the final period.

But it wasn’t enough to stop the Kings from remaining four points behind the Smythe Division-leading Calgary Flames with a victory than enabled them to finish the first half of the season at 21-14-5.

Nor was anything enough to take the spotlight away from Tonelli.

“Something like that is very special,” he said. “I feel lucky to be able to do something like that. He knows that goal was for him.”

King Notes

Toronto fell to 12-27-3. . . . King center Steve Kasper, who suffered a ruptured sinus cavity Wednesday night, is expected to be out seven to 10 days.