ASYLUM ON ICE: For the true believers...

ASYLUM ON ICE: For the true believers at the Iceoplex in North Hills, where the Kings practice when they aren’t battling for the Stanley Cup, it was torture prolonged. As their heroes fought it out in overtime, only to lose 3-2 to the Canadiens in Montreal, the Iceoplex hockey asylum crowd yelled, cried, stamped their feet and gnawed their nails (B1). . . . Said one: “This place is for die-hards.”

SPRAY AIN’T: Mike Woo’s mayoral campaign hit a shortage of graffiti. At least convenient and photogenic graffiti. A Woo advance team found graffiti in Van Nuys that the candidate could personally obliterate for news cameras to demonstrate support for a Valleywide cleanup drive. . . . The problem: Somebody else painted over it first (B1). The cleanup campaign chief, a Riordan supporter, said it was hard to reserve politically prime scrawls for Woo.

WE GOT IT: Verdugo Hills High fielder Crystal Martinez, right, made the catch despite colliding with Sheila Welda as Verdugo Hills defeated South Gate, 4-3, in the City Section 3-A softball championship Thursday. It was Verdugo’s first city title in any sport (C12).

TIME TO REAP: The “U-Pick ‘Em” signs are cropping up along nearby roadsides, beckoning those who want to harvest their own supply of locally grown fruit. Local ranchers grow a variety of produce, ranging from cherries and peaches to the more exotic persimmons or Asian pears. . . . The cherry-picking season officially opens Saturday in Leona Valley. See Valley Life, Page 12

FAMILY FARE: Since 1947, Glendale Centre Theatre has staged classic fairy tales. The family-operated theater concentrates on one play annually--currently a lush presentation of “Sleeping Beauty.” See Valley Life, Page 3