Mighty Kings Rule Ducks

By ELLIOTT TEAFORD

Feb. 8, 1998 12 AM PT

TIMES STAFF WRITER

The Kings were consistent, methodical, patient and, ultimately, three goals better than the Mighty Ducks on Saturday at the Arrowhead Pond of Anaheim.

Their 5-2 victory before a sellout crowd of 17,174 underscored the vast differences between a team determined to make the playoffs and a team hopeful of getting there.

The Kings rattled Duck molars with checks against the boards, swiped errant passes and made the most of their few scoring chances to improve to 9-1-1 in the last 11 games before the 17-day Olympic break.

The Ducks, meanwhile, continued to struggle to find their identity, but this time they probably had a valid excuse. Newly acquired players Travis Green and Doug Houda flew all morning from New York to get to the Pond in time for the noon opening faceoff.

Of course, there is still time for the Ducks to begin a late-season rally toward a playoff berth by taking advantage of Friday’s six-player deal with the New York Islanders. After all, it’s February.

The hard-charging Kings (26-20-9) are a solid second-place team in the Pacific Division and are fifth overall in the Western Conference. The inconsistent Ducks (19-28-9) are fifth in the division and 10th in the conference.

About all the teams had in common Saturday was a firm belief that the Olympic break will provide a good opportunity for the players not headed to Nagano, Japan, to rest and recover for the stretch run.

“This is a good time for a break because you usually can’t keep this kind of run going for too long, so maybe this break is coming at the right time,” King defenseman Sean O’Donnell said.

Added Coach Larry Robinson: “It’s about that time when guys get physically and mentally run down. I think it’s actually a blessing for most of the guys.”

Down the hallway in the Duck dressing room, right wing Teemu Selanne agreed without hesitation.

“The guys who aren’t going for the Olympics need a break right now, then they can concentrate on the last 26 games,” Selanne said. “No question, you can tell this team is tired. I hope this is a good break for us.”

To be sure, the trade that sent Green and Houda cross-country for J.J. Daigneault, Mark Janssens and Joe Sacco left the Ducks feeling out of sorts Saturday against the Kings.

“It was a surprise,” Selanne said of the deal, which was completed less than two hours before the Olympic trading freeze went into effect at 9 p.m. Friday. “I heard about it this morning when I got here. I haven’t thought about it much, but I think it’s probably a pretty even trade. I think we got some good players.”

Green scored a second-period goal and Houda played solid defense as the two newest Ducks made successful Anaheim debuts. Selanne assisted on both Duck goals to extend his consecutive points streak to nine games. He also has either scored or assisted on the last nine Duck goals.

Russ Courtnall had two goals and Vladimir Tsyplakov, Rob Blake and Yanic Perreault also scored for the Kings. A sixth goal was there for the taking, but Glen Murray couldn’t squeeze a backhander past Duck goaltender Guy Hebert on a penalty shot at 11:33 of the third period.

It was the second penalty shot Hebert stopped in three games. He also denied Tony Amonte of the Chicago Blackhawks in the Ducks’ 4-3 overtime victory Feb. 1.

Hebert stopped Amonte by kicking out his right leg and he did the same with Murray. This time, however, he had to do the splits to keep Murray from lifting his shot into the net.

The Kings seemed to have the game under control by then with a 4-2 lead, but each team squandered a two-goal lead in the first two games.

The Ducks led, 2-0, Jan. 12, but the Kings rallied with two third-period goals and one in overtime to win, 3-2. The Kings led, 3-1, Jan. 24, but the Ducks scored twice in the third period to tie, 3-3.

(BEGIN TEXT OF INFOBOX / INFOGRAPHIC)

STANDING PAT

King Coach Larry Robinson says his team isn’t looking to make any personnel changes in near future. C11

GAME REPORT: C11

NHL STANDINGS: C11

NHL SUMMARIES: C10

THE SERIES:

Year by Year

1993-94: Kings, 4-2

1994-95: Ducks, 2-1-1

1995-96: Kings, 3-2-1

1996-97: Ducks, 3-1-1