Notes on a Scorecard - June 10, 1993

The Kings are No. 2 and ought to be mighty proud of it. . . .

It was worth the 26-year wait to see them perform with such skill, fire and resiliency throughout a Stanley Cup tournament and capture the imagination of the megalopolis. . . .

However, facing Montreal Canadien goaltender Patrick Roy every night in the finals was like facing Sandy Koufax five consecutive times in the World Series. . . .

Now the Kings know how the New York Rangers felt in 1979 when they won the first game, 4-1, at the Montreal Forum and then lost the last four, including another 4-1 decision the night the Canadiens drank from the Cup. . . .

This series again proved that the best hockey is the brand without fights. . . .

The Kings seemed tired in the third period Wednesday, and perhaps only one thing could have saved them--a prevent defense by the Canadiens, who were too smart for that. . . .

It was a shame that a bad shoulder didn’t allow Dave Taylor to dress on what could have been the final night of a distinguished 16-season career with Los Angeles. . . .

I don’t buy the notion that this was Wayne Gretzky’s last chance to win a fifth Stanley Cup. . . .

Gretzky, 32, isn’t ready for the pipe and slippers yet, and this is a team that should be better next year. The firepower still will be there. So will the best young coach in the NHL, Barry Melrose. And three of the finest young defensemen--Rob Blake, Alexei Zhitnik and Darryl Sydor--will be a year more experienced and wiser. . . .

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I might have been giving the Phoenix Suns the benefit of the doubt when I picked the Chicago Bulls to win the NBA finals in five games. . . .

Only when the San Diego Padres change ownership, not general managers, will they regain respectability. . . .

It really isn’t Peter O’Malley’s style, but I’m still surprised that luxury boxes haven’t been installed on the club level at Dodger Stadium. . . .

Pedro Martinez--who can throw hard but might not be strong enough to maintain the pace for more than a few innings--has been perfectly cast by Tom Lasorda as a set-up man. . . .

Pedro Astacio is developing one of the better sinkerballs in the National League. . . .

Mike Piazza won’t be voted onto the NL All-Star team by the fans for the July 13 game at Baltimore but is a cinch to be selected as a reserve. . . .

The Angels’ next 20 games are against AL West teams. . . .

Consider yourself a knowledgeable baseball fan if you can recognize as many as two-thirds of the names in the major league box scores every morning. . . .

Cal State Long Beach’s 10-8 victory over Louisiana State that saved the 49ers from elimination was the latest in a string of eighth-inning comebacks that have made the College World Series terrific viewing on ESPN. . . .

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Marcus Allen will enjoy catching passes from Joe Montana at Arrowhead Stadium in Kansas City, but the artificial turf won’t be easy on his knees. . . .

Jim Otto, the Hall of Fame center who played 15 years for the Raiders, will be presented the Tom Harmon Memorial Award by the Boy Scouts of America on June 21 at the Riviera Country Club. . . .

The management of San Fernando heavyweight Alex Garcia has turned deaf ears to big-money offers to fight for a title or against George Foreman. The idea was to line up a succession of weak opponents, keep the once-beaten Garcia’s winning streak alive and eventually increase his asking price by making him the No. 1 contender. . . .

Nice plan, but it backfired Tuesday night in Las Vegas when Garcia was stopped by Mike Dixon of Atlanta, who had lost five of his last seven fights, in the second round. . . .

Now it is back to the drawing board, although the defeat makes Garcia a likely foe for the Brooklyn Dodger, Riddick Bowe. . . .

Bowe is scheduled to give Evander Holyfield a rematch at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas on Nov. 5 or 12, providing that the former champion disposes of Alex Stewart on June 26 at Atlantic City. . . .

I wonder if left-hander Roberto Duran of the Dodgers’ Vero Beach farm club has a knockdown pitch.