Knickle Gets No Help, 7-2 : Hockey: King goalie, making NHL debut at 32, is worn down by Blackhawks’ barrage in third period.

David Goverde was the unwitting victim on Saturday.

And only five days after Goverde went down in a blinding flash of red goal lights, it happened again to another Kings’ rookie goaltender, Rick Knickle.

For two periods, the 32-year-old Knickle played a solid game in goal as he made his NHL debut on Thursday night after a 14-year career in the minor leagues.

Then the Kings played the third period.

Or, more precisely, tried to play the third. They gave up four third-period goals in a 7-2 loss to the Blackhawks before 17,597 at Chicago Stadium.

It was the first loss for the Kings in five games against the Blackhawks this season.

Center Jeremy Roenick led the Blackhawks with two goals and two assists. The Kings’ goals came from Tony Granato (his 27th of the season) and Warren Rychel (fifth). In the Smythe Division, the third-place Kings (26-26-7) are seven points ahead of fifth-place Edmonton, which defeated Pittsburgh.

King Coach Barry Melrose claimed that his team was weary, having played three games in four days.

Knickle kept the Kings within range during the first two periods. It was tied, 1-1, after one period and Chicago led, 3-1, after two before the Kings caved in.

The Blackhawks had 46 shots on goal to the Kings’ 27. In the third, the Kings went without a shot on goal for the first 5:47. And Knickle was starting to wear down, feeling weak after a recent bout of food poisoning after eating some bad chicken in Phoenix.

“Ever since then, I really haven’t felt like myself,” said Knickle, who was briefly hospitalized. “But getting a lot of shots like that wears on you.

“I’m running out of breath talking right now.”

The reviews from his new coaches and teammates were positive, despite the final score.

“I thought he played well,” Melrose said. “We didn’t give him much help in the third period. I thought he was very solid, very confident in the net.”

Said assistant coach Cap Raeder: “He kept us in there the first two periods. None of them were his fault. He’ll be fine. I liked his composure. He had a presence out there. He’s a fundamental goalie and plays a smart game.”

That Knickle actually made it to the NHL after all these years is nothing short of amazing. He played in almost every minor league outpost imaginable, was told he was too old for the last seven years and even retired for five months at age 27. The Kings made his hockey dream come true when they signed him on Monday, making a deal with the San Diego Gulls of the International Hockey League.

Maybe that’s why playing in venerable Chicago Stadium didn’t seem to faze him after all those years in the minors.

“It was pretty loud,” he said of the crowd noise during the national anthem. “It wasn’t as loud as I thought it’d be.”

And how about the deafening foghorn going off?

“I tried not to let that happen too often,” he said, smiling. “But I heard that horn seven times.”

Knickle has survived after all these years by continuing to look at the positives, trying to block out the negatives.

Those qualities should serve him well with the Kings’ defense playing in front of him.

“I can’t look at the seven goals,” he said. “I looked at the saves I made, the overall play and I think I have to be happy with that. I did the best I could. I know next time I play, I’ll be better.”

And, unlike Goverde, he won’t be on the next plane back to the minor leagues after this game.

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King Notes

Forward Gary Shuchuk left the game in the second period and did not return, suffering a bruised right forearm. He was taken to the hospital for precautionary X-rays. . . . Marc Potvin suffered a broken nose in the third period. . . . The Kings are still faring poorly in back-to-back games this season. They are 1-5-1 in the second of the two games. The losses have come against San Jose, Toronto, Calgary, Montreal and now Chicago. The lone victory was against the Sharks on Nov. 8 and the tie came against Minnesota on Oct. 24.