McSorley Steals Gretzky’s Glory : Hockey: Late goal in 4-1 win moves defenseman within 718 of Howe’s record.

The empty net, ready and waiting, beckoned to Wayne Gretzky with less than 30 seconds remaining.

One more empty-netter and he could have arrived at the hallowed Boston Garden tonight within two goals of Gordie Howe’s all-time record of 801.

Instead, teammate Marty McSorley whirled and made an improbable 150-footer with 24.7 seconds remaining to seal the Kings’ 4-1 victory over the Hartford Whalers here Wednesday night.

So, Gretzky is a hat trick away from matching the legendary Howe. He scored once and added an assist in front of a crowd of 10,607 at the Civic Center to reach No. 798, pulling to within three of Howe. This was where Howe scored his final goal--on April 6, 1980--to punctuate his 26-year NHL career.

Gretzky’s goal against the Whalers--his 33rd of the season--came at 11:54 of the first period when he finished off a two-on-none with a shot from below the base of the right circle, taking the pass from Dixon Ward. Gretzky beat goaltender Sean Burke on the glove side.

“It’s hard not to think about it (the record) because I’m constantly asked about it,” said Gretzky, who had four shots on goal. “I had some good chances. But we’ll have to wait for another game.”

In any event, the mood was lighthearted afterward, especially since it was the Kings’ first victory in almost three weeks. They had been mired in nine-game winless streak (0-6-3), with their most recent victory coming on Feb. 11 against the Mighty Ducks.

The win brought the Kings (22-33-9) within three points of the idle San Jose Sharks for the eighth and final playoff spot in the Western Conference.

“One thing we had to do was get through this mentally and play with a lead,” King goaltender Kelly Hrudey said. “Obviously, it’s important we win every game and sometimes it’s the way you win. We had been giving up leads. Tonight, we were never on our heels.”

It all added up for the Kings on Wednesday. There was Hrudey’s 30-save performance, the penalty-killing unit allowed the Whalers only one goal in eight opportunities, Gretzky had two points . . . and there was the empty-netter.

McSorley was appropriately sheepish. Gretzky joked that he would have to have arms like Kareem Abdul-Jabbar’s to cut off McSorley’s shot. And the Kings took turns teasing McSorley.

“That was great,” assistant coach Cap Raeder said to McSorley. “I could see you looking at Gretz. But it would have been a two-line (pass).”

King Coach Barry Melrose had his own theory. Maybe it had something to do with McSorley’s goals, now totaling 83. He has five this season.

“He looked for Gretz,” Melrose said, laughing. “Hey, Marty probably thought, ‘If I’m going to catch Gretz and Gordie, I better get this myself.’ ”

The often unpredictable McSorley kept his teammates loose again.

“I looked at the bench and the guys were shaking their heads and laughing,” McSorley said.

“Charlie (Huddy) and Jari (Kurri) have played with him all these years, and I’m the one going for the empty net.”

So, did Gretzky say anything?

“No, he’s too team oriented,” McSorley said.

In hindsight, McSorley realized he had more room to move up after the Whalers backed up a bit. “I should have fought to work it to the blue line and shot it into the far corner,” he said. “Because there’s no bounce off the near corner. And he (Gretzky) could chase it down.

“After I let it go, I thought, ‘Oh boy.’ ”

King Notes

As expected, the entourage following Wayne Gretzky during his record quest does not include Gordie Howe. Months ago, Howe indicated he would not be around but said he would show up for any ceremony honoring Gretzky in Los Angeles afterward. Wednesday, Howe was playing in an event in Saskatoon, saying he was going to be busy this week. “I have to work for a living,” Howe told the Hartford Courant. “We’ve donated 180 days of the year for charity with that 65-city tour. We have to hustle our buns because we’re no longer employed by a club. There’s a tremendous amount of things that have got to be done. I would say I would go, but basically time does not permit me to. . . . (Maurice) Richard, he never followed me around. When I broke his record for points, everybody was totally unaware of the fact and then somebody came up and told me.”