NHL LABOR DISPUTE : Duck, King Players Back the Decision Not to Skate

The Kings packed their equipment at their training facility in North Hills, held a one-hour team meeting and went home.

And the Mighty Ducks? Bob Corkum cleaned his pool. Coach Ron Wilson cleaned off his desk.

Welcome to life in limbo--the NHL.

Some of the Kings and Ducks expected to skate Monday, but in an apparent escalation of the labor dispute, both teams scrapped plans to practice during the owner-imposed work stoppage, hanging up their skates on the advice of union chief Bob Goodenow.

“We’re not going to skate at all,” Duck forward Todd Ewen said. “We showed we were ready to play. We played last year without an agreement. We showed up in camp ready to go this year. I think we’ve done pretty much all we need to do.”

Said King right wing Rick Tocchet: “It’s either going to be the whole union skating or not skating. If one guy starts, everyone starts. I think (NHL Commissioner) Gary Bettman thinks we’ll crack, come crawling back. I don’t think he thinks we’ll stay out.

“At least (not skating) is something that unifies us, a steppingstone.”

Corkum said the intention was to get a message across to the owners that “we’re no longer under their control.” The Kings seemed to have a grim, almost militant edge as they packed their equipment before being briefed by defenseman Marty McSorley, who attended an NHL players meeting Saturday in Toronto.

Said McSorley, who is on the NHLPA’s negotiating committee: “The players told us exactly what direction they wanted to go into it. There were some players who were very, very upset. The players told us, ‘No skating. Let’s drive it home.’ We’re not just going to wait around to let them decide when to let us play.’ ”

Many NHL players have said they might explore other options if the work stoppage lasts beyond Oct. 15. The International Hockey League might be a viable one.

King goaltender Kelly Hrudey would not comment on any specific choices.

“We want to open up all our doors and see what’s out there,” he said. “We’re not going to publicly state what we are thinking about and considering. There’s a lot of legal ramifications and decisions as well. We want every decision to be well thought out. We’re not just going to jump into something. Nothing is going to happen until the 15th.”

Corkum expressed frustration that Bettman has not accepted the NHLPA’s recent proposals, saying, “It’s a bit like hitting a moving target. They tell us what they want, now they tell us they want something different.”

Players have begun to scatter--among them Duck center Patrik Carnback, whom Corkum said has returned to Sweden, seeking to play there this season. Attempts to confirm Carnback’s plans were unsuccessful. Left wing Tim Sweeney, another player whose future is uncertain, is returning home to Massachusetts, Corkum said. Sweeney, the team’s fourth-leading scorer last season with 43 points, was exposed to the waiver draft, which was canceled.

The Kings and Ducks staying in Southern California said they will probably stay in shape by working out at local fitness centers, but will not use club facilities--with the exception of injured Ducks Steven King, Jim Thomson and Oleg Tverdovsky, who are rehabilitating injuries and are still being paid under league rules. Most of the Kings plan to stay in the area at least for the immediate future.

Wilson and King Coach Barry Melrose were disappointed to learn that the players will not skate, but believe they could recover quickly from a two-week layoff.

“The time when guys are in the best shape is right about now,” Wilson said. “It takes about two weeks to lose that. I think because everybody’s in the same boat, three or four days of practice would do it, maybe less. But then if you’re out three or four weeks, you’d have to practice at least a week to get anything back.”

Melrose will go to Phoenix to watch the Kings’ minor league team play against Las Vegas and Cleveland this weekend and might take a swing through Western Canada to watch the club’s junior prospects. King assistant Cap Raeder is being sent to Phoenix today to work with goaltenders Pauli Jaks and Andre Racicot for the next week.

Wilson doesn’t see much for him to do but sit and wait.

” . . . There’s really nothing for us to do except play Ping-Pong,” Wilson said. “We’re going to be very good.”

King-Duck Notes

King rookie goaltender Jamie Storr’s three-year contract is worth $2.6 million. Storr will receive an $800,000 signing bonus, which breaks down to $200,000 this season and $300,000 in each of the final two years. His base salary will be $500,000 this season, $600,000 in 1995-96 and $700,000 in 1996-97. King rookie forward Matt Johnson, who had arthroscopic surgery to remove a cyst in his right knee Monday, agreed to a four-year deal worth $1.5 million. His signing bonus is $300,000 and his base salary starts at $200,000 and escalates to $400,000 by the final year.

The Kings completed a trade with Toronto, sending forwards Dixon Ward, Guy Leveque, Kelly Fairchild and Shayne Toporowski to the Maple Leafs for forward Eric Lacroix, defenseman Chris Snell and a draft choice. . . . Kevin Gilmore was promoted from director of hockey operations to vice president of hockey operations by the Ducks. . . . Despite the labor dispute, Bob Corkum said the Duck players will participate in a charity golf tournament Oct. 10 that will benefit Disney GOALS, a hockey and academic program for underprivileged youth.