This Time, Jets Sneak Up on Kings With a 4-4 Tie

Success was bound to create something of a problem for the Kings. No longer can they skate in the back door, sneaking up on unsuspecting opponents.

Word doesn’t take long to travel in the NHL. The Kings, taken for granted at the beginning of the season, are being given a newfound respect.

That was evident here Tuesday night. The Winnipeg Jets, a team that has not won since Oct. 26, scrapped until the end, gaining a come-from-behind 4-4 tie before 12,831 at Winnipeg Arena.

The Jets (4-11-1) scored twice in the final 5:38, completing the comeback with Ed Olczyk’s goal with 6.8 seconds left in regulation after goaltender Bob Essensa had been pulled for an extra attacker.

Olczyk, all alone in front, redirected defenseman Phil Housley’s slap shot from the left point. The play had started when Luciano Borsato and Jari Kurri scrambled after the draw in the left circle.

“I should have had it,” said King goaltender Kelly Hrudey, who faced 49 shots. “I’m much more disappointed in myself in not stopping it. I’ve stopped far harder deflections earlier in the game.”

Earlier, Hrudey had no chance on the goal that brought the Jets within one. Teemu Selanne, a Finnish rookie right winger, scored at 14:22, making it 4-3. Selanne, unassisted, cruised around King defenseman Rob Blake in the right circle. Hrudey made the initial save, but King center Corey Millen tried to poke it away from him, instead putting it past the goaltender.

The Kings (10-4-2), who are undefeated in their last five games, looked fatigued in overtime, managing only one shot on goal to the Jets’ four.

The Jets, losers of five in a row, were playing out of a collective desperation. Winnipeg General Manager Mike Smith made a rare visit to the team’s dressing room Monday to issue some encouraging words.

The Jets certainly aren’t looking past any team, let alone the Kings. In all likelihood, no team is doing that against the Kings anymore.

And the Kings concurred.

“At the start of the season, they all read what you guys wrote,” King Coach Barry Melrose said. “But teams aren’t taking us for granted. Buffalo and New Jersey didn’t.”

Said Hrudey: “I don’t think anybody’s going to be surprised by us anymore.”

Now, they must rely on their talents.

“Teams are working harder against us now,” said left wing Tony Granato, whose first-period goal was his first since the season opener Oct. 6.

“We’ve got respect, which is fine and dandy. We’re getting better and one of those areas is in the power play.”

Slowly, the Kings’ power-play is picking up. Against Winnipeg, they were two-for-four, with Paul Coffey and Blake scoring consecutive power-play goals in the second period to make it, 4-2, heading into the third.

It’s some measure of the Kings’ new attitude that the tie was greeted with relative disgust. It also didn’t help that the Kings had blown a two-goal lead against the Jets on Oct. 23, and lost at Winnipeg, 4-2.

This time, Melrose suggested fatigue might have been a problem. The Kings played four games in six days. But his players weren’t even willing to lean on the busy schedule for an excuse.

“You could look for excuses all year,” Granato said. “That excuse just doesn’t work.”