For Kings, It’s Oh-Oh--Seven!

The Kings have had more than their share of bad starts this season, but they dropped to a new low Monday night against the Vancouver Canucks.

The Kings, who have not won in December, gave up three first-period goals and then completed their dismal effort by giving up four more in the final two periods in a 7-0 loss to the Canucks before 15,401 at General Motors Place.

In easily their worst game of the season, the Kings were horrible against Vancouver, which had lost its previous five games. The Canucks, who outshot the Kings, 37-23, were led by Pavel Bure, who scored three goals for the third time this season.

In extending their winless streak to six games (0-5-1), the Kings played like a team looking ahead to the holiday season or maybe even February’s 17-day Olympic break.

“It’s probably the most disappointed that I’ve been,” said King Coach Larry Robinson, who had a closed-door meeting with the team that lasted at least 10 minutes after the game. “The one thing that I had been proud of the guys since training camp was their work ethic. It looked like to me that they all just quit and didn’t care.

“We gave the puck away 11 times in the first period in the neutral zone. It looked like [the King players] didn’t have skates on but cement boots.”

Vancouver, which lost to the Kings, 8-2, last month at the Forum, also received goals from Martin Gelinas, Trevor Linden, Dave Scatchard and Gino Odjick. Mark Messier was the Canucks’ top assist man with three and Alex Mogilny added two.

The Kings, who have scored only seven goals in their last six games, were zero for three on power plays and have only one goal in their last 40 man-advantage situations.

After watching Monday night’s debacle, it’s difficult to imagine that this is the same King team that owns road victories over Detroit, New Jersey and Colorado.

With one giveaway after another, the Kings gave the Canucks too many odd-man rushes and that’s not a good idea against a team that has skilled players such Bure, Mogilny and Messier.

Goaltender Stephane Fiset struggled in giving up four goals before being replaced by Frederic Chabot at 9:09 of the second period.

“We just have to start over, we can’t keep preaching that we’re not working hard . . . we have to start with the basics,” King right wing Glen Murray said. “We were just awful from the get-go. We should have been ready for these guys. We have to play way better against teams below us.”

Bure, who has 21 goals and 41 points, scored his first goal 3:45 into the game and it probably was his easiest this season. Mogilny created the score when he lured King defenseman Rob Blake and Fiset to the right side of the crease before passing to a wide-open Bure outside the right post.

The Kings’ only offensive threat against Arturs Irbe, who made his first start in goal under Vancouver Coach Mike Keenan, came midway in the first period.

Murray, who hasn’t scored since Nov. 20, knocked in an apparent goal at 11:25 but it was disallowed because Ian Laperriere was called for goaltender interference.

The Canucks then took a 2-0 lead at 13:02 on a four-on-four situation when King defenseman Philippe Boucher gave up the puck in the neutral zone and Bure scored on a breakaway.

Trailing by two goals, the Kings started to press, and a hard shot by Jozef Stumpel carried around the backboards past the King defense to a streaking Messier. He passed to Gelinas, who scored from the left circle to give Vancouver a 3-0 lead at 14:30.

Linden, who had been criticized recently by Keenan for his lack of effort, scored on a rebound of a shot by Gelinas at 9:09 of the second period, which ended up being the last shot Fiset faced.