Like Old Times for Hrudey : Hockey: He blanks Blackhawks, 2-0, for first shutout of season. Kurri scores on a power play and Gretzky has empty-net goal.

It’s been a tough season for King goalie Kelly Hrudey.

He hasn’t had the defense in front of him that he had a year ago.

He hasn’t had the reliable backup behind him that he had a year ago.

And he hasn’t had the consistency that he displayed a year ago.

But for one night, he had all he needed Saturday at the Forum, shutting out the Chicago Blackhawks, 2-0, before a sellout crowd of 16,005.

Hrudey, who won 26 games last season, had the benefit of a strong defensive effort from his teammates, the kind they displayed often last season but rarely in this up-and-down year.

Hrudey stopped the Blackhawks on 25 shots but didn’t have a lot pressure on him most of the night.

“You shouldn’t be talking to me,” Hrudey told reporters afterward. “You should be talking to the other guys. I did nothing.

“They (his teammates) were real tenacious tonight. We had a real fire in our eyes. We were a little more hungry. When the game started, we were hungrier and more focused than we’ve been all year.”

The shutout was Hrudey’s first of the season, his seventh as a King and the 13th of his career. The victory improved his record to 12-9-10.

The victory, Coach Tom Webster’s 100th, moved the Kings back to .500 at 20-20-11, and broke a tie for third place in the Smythe Division, leaving the Kings one point back of the idle Winnipeg Jets.

Chicago, 6-2-1 in its last nine, is 24-20-10 overall, second in the Norris Division.

With inconsistent backup goalie Daniel Berthiaume traded to the Boston Bruins and untested Darryl Gilmour now the No. 2 goalie, the Kings will go as far as Hrudey can take them.

He took them to victory Saturday on the strength of Jari Kurri’s second-period goal. Wayne Gretzky added an open net goal, his 20th goal of the season, with a fraction over three seconds to play.

Neither side could gain an advantage until the second period was nearly three-quarters over.

The Blackhawks had three power plays, but the Kings killed them all, giving them 23 consecutive power plays denied over seven games.

When the Kings, who had scored on five of their previous 15 power plays, finally got one Saturday, they were able to cash it in to break the scoreless tie.

But just barely.

When Chicago was called for too many men on the ice, the Kings converted after Gretzky got the puck to Luc Robitaille on the left side. Robitaille passed through the crease to Kurri on the right.

The instant the puck hit his stick, Kurri flipped it into the air, appearing to catch it on the shaft. “I just kind of tipped it in,” Kurri said. “I’m lucky it went in. I’m not sure what it hit.”

Chicago goalie Ed Belfour reached back for it, glove held high like an outfielder chasing a fly ball to the wall. Belfour’s reach was a bit short, the puck clearing his glove for Kurri’s 19th goal at the 14:06 mark.

Just one second remained on the power play.

Hrudey did the rest.

Along with a rare 60-minute defensive performance by his teammates.

King Notes

Defenseman Jeff Chychrun’s mother died of a heart attack Saturday night in Ottawa, Canada. Chychrun learned that his 53-year-old mother had been stricken before the opening faceoff. He departed for the airport to catch a late-night flight. Tim Watters replaced him. . . . Defenseman Charlie Huddy suffered a rib injury late in the game and was taken to a nearby hospital for precautionary X-rays. . . . Defenseman Peter Ahola was recalled from the Kings’ Phoenix Roadrunner farm team Saturday. Before he was sent down Jan. 20, Ahola appeared in 42 games for the Kings, getting three goals, seven assists and 57 penalty minutes. . . . Wing Tomas Sandstrom, who has missed 16 games with a partially dislocated shoulder, has been practicing with the team, but stopped several days ago because of continued tightness in the shoulder. The timetable for his return is on hold until Monday when the shoulder will again be examined.