Smyth Impresses Amid Brawls

At the start of training camp, King right wing Brad Smyth was considered a player on the “bubble” to make the team. He shouldn’t anymore.

Smyth capped off an impressive September on Saturday with two goals and an assist to lead the Kings to a 5-2 victory over the Mighty Ducks before a crowd of 10,722 at the Forum.

Forward Dan Bylsma, left unprotected for today’s waiver draft, also had a solid game with a power-play goal and an assist as the Kings completed the exhibition season with a 6-1 record, their best since 1980 when they finished 5-0-1.

In defeating the Mighty Ducks for the second consecutive night to sweep the Freeway Series on Ice, the Kings also received goals from defenseman Doug Zmolek and center Jozef Stumpel while outshooting Anaheim, 34-16.

Former King Tomas Sandstrom was the lone bright spot for the Ducks, scoring two goals, including an unassisted score in the second period. The Ducks finished the exhibition season 2-4-1.

The fight-marred game had 51 combined penalties for 280 minutes.

“I told my guys to be careful because when I looked at their lineup, I didn’t see too many hockey players,” King Coach Larry Robinson said.

Stephane Fiset started in goal for the Kings and won his second game of the preseason with 14 saves. Mikhail Shtalenkov started for the Ducks and gave up three goals before being replaced by Guy Hebert at 13:02 of the second period.

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The Kings cut their active roster to 28 players when they sent right wing Pavel Rosa and center Eric Belanger to the Fredericton Canadiens of the American Hockey League. Center Chris Schmidt, who has not played during the preseason because of off-season shoulder surgery, was also assigned to the Mississippi Sea Wolves of the East Coast Hockey League.

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King forward Matt Johnson has been suspended by the league indefinitely because of a slashing incident against San Jose’s Todd Ewen last Wednesday in Boise, Idaho. On Monday, the NHL will hold a hearing to decide how many games Johnson will be suspended for an incident in which he was assessed a major penalty for slashing and a game misconduct.

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Duck tough guy Jeremy Stevenson suffered a concussion and is expected to be sidelined two weeks after King forward Roman Vopat ambushed him from behind with a forearm shot to the face. The team is expected to send the tape to the league for review.

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The Kings will have open practice for season ticket-holders at 5 p.m. today at the Forum.