Battered Kings Beat Jets, Lose Two Players : Hockey: Injuries to Blake and Kurri dampen celebration of first consecutive victories in more than a year.

Two more players limped off the ice during the Kings’ 4-2 victory over the Jets on Saturday night at Winnipeg Arena, and it doesn’t take a genius to see what this recent pattern means.

Two victories, and two players fell by the wayside in each game, yet the Kings have won consecutive games for the first time in 52 games, dating back to February 1994. So, can they keep winning at this injured pace?

“It can’t last,” Coach Barry Melrose said. “It’ll be about 10 more games until we’re out of players.”

The post-lockout syndrome--also known as strained groin muscles--hit defenseman Rob Blake and forward Jari Kurri. Blake was injured near the end of the first period and did not return. Kurri left at 3:26 of the third.

For now, it appears as though Blake’s injury is more serious and he could be out for at least a month, according to Blake. The same injury, to his left groin muscle, earlier forced him to miss 11 consecutive games. He had returned to action Feb. 25. Then Thursday he hurt his knee in the victory over Chicago and missed practice the next day.

Saturday, the knee was fine but the disruptive groin injury returned.

“It’s worse than before,” Blake said, looking dismayed. “Every five games I seem to get hurt. It’ll be a couple of weeks before I can skate at all. I re-injured it a couple of times last season and it set me back.

“When I took a shot near the end of the first period, I pulled it. The next shift, I felt it pop and I knew right away it was exactly the same thing. It’s tougher for me now because there are only two months left.”

Kurri had been suffering in silence for the last month. But he was optimistic it would not be a long-term injury, saying: “It’s been getting worse and worse.”

The Kings (7-11-4) were able to contain the explosive line of Keith Tkachuk-Alexei Zmamnov-Teemu Selanne, holding them to a combined three points as King goaltender Kelly Hrudey had something of a slow night, facing only 24 shots. The Kings shut Winnipeg down with defense and an inspired performance by the newly created line of left wing Randy Burridge, center Yanic Perreault and right wing John Druce.

Perreault, who was called up from Phoenix on Friday, had one assist in his King debut and showed his considerable offensive talent could translate from the minors to the NHL after he said he fought off some early nerves.

Druce, who scored twice, seems to excel against his former team. He has seven goals this season and four have come in two games against the Jets.

“He (Perreault) created opportunities for us,” said Druce, who hadn’t scored in nine games. “The kid has so much confidence from tearing up the I (IHL). He didn’t even hesitate out there.”

Burridge, playing his best game since the Kings acquired him from Washington on Feb. 10, had three assists, setting up Druce’s two goals and Rick Tocchet’s second-period goal.

Tocchet’s goal, which came at 10:56, broke a scoreless tie and was his team-leading 12th of the season. The other King goal was scored by Dan Quinn at 3:51 of the third, making it 3-1. It was his sixth and it helped make up for his giveaway on the Jets’ first goal.

The Kings were fully aware of not having won consecutive games in more than a year.

“We’re aware of everything,” Melrose said. “You’d have to be Sigmund Freud to block that one out.”