Blake Given Princely Sum

In the end, an apparent impasse that was three months in brewing was broken when the Kings made Rob Blake a customer.

And agreed that freedom isn’t free.

Blake, the Norris Trophy winner as the NHL’s top defenseman last season and the most valuable defenseman at the Nagano Olympics, signed a three-year, $15.8-million contract Friday, the richest in league history for a player at his position.

But the Kings will get $652,500 of that back.

The refund reflects three years’ rental of a luxury box at the new Staples Center, set to open for the 1999-2000 season. Blake said he will pay for the box and donate it to charity.

In the end, Blake signed for less money than his original demand, believed to be $19 million for three years or about $35 million for five years. On an annual basis, the final figure is slightly above the King offer in June of $25 million for five years.

“I was never going to miss any regular-season games,” Blake said.

“I’m happy with my contract now.”

The logjam in negotiations was broken Thursday after an exchange of letters between Dave Taylor, the King vice president and general manager, and Ron Salcer, Blake’s agent.

“We wanted to avoid a long, protracted holdout,” Salcer said. “This is a three-year contract, and at the end of three years, Rob will be 31 and an unrestricted free agent. We didn’t want to give away those first two free-agent years, but if Rob did sign for those two years of free agency, it wasn’t going to be for what was on the table.”

So the Kings got much of what they wanted, which was Blake under contract within the confines of a team salary budget that has passed $30 million for the coming season; and Blake got what he wanted, which was an opportunity to play now, with the Kings perhaps paying even more later.

“It’s been a very long five days,” Blake said of missing a camp that began Sunday and moves to Las Vegas tonight for the Kings’ first exhibition game, against Colorado. “I’ve been skating, but it isn’t the same thing as with teammates, hitting.”

And he acknowledged the pressure from outside forces on both sides of the negotiations.

“I know the NHL owners didn’t want the Kings signing me to a huge contract,” said Blake, who led all defensemen with 23 goals last season and added 27 assists. “And I think I owed it to the players around the league to get as much as I could for my position. I think the contract has defined the pay for the position . . . for a year, at least.”

The standard before Friday was set by St. Louis’ Al MacInnis, who signed a three-year, $15-million deal; and Boston’s Ray Bourque, who recently signed a contract extension of two years, worth $10 million.

Blake acknowledged that “I hope they’ll sign me after [the three years] to a contract that will keep me here for the rest of my career.”

Salcer’s other holdout client, Matt Johnson, also came to terms on a three-year contract, believed worth $2.4 million. Johnson, a left winger, is also the team’s enforcer.

The two signings reduced the Kings’ holdout list to two: goalie Jamie Storr and defenseman Aki Berg.

“I think there is a mutual understanding between the two of us that probably helped get this done,” Taylor said. “I understand what they are doing. I used to be a player, so I’ve seen it from their side.”

(BEGIN TEXT OF INFOBOX / INFOGRAPHIC)

Blake’s Deal

Rob Blake’s new contract numbers. He is renting a Staples Center luxury box and donating it to charity as part of the deal:

THE MONEY

* 1998-99: $5,267,000

* 1999-2000: $5,267,000

* 2000-2001: $5,267,000

* TOTAL: $15,801,000

****

BOX RENTAL

* 1999-2000: $217,500

* 2000-2001: $217,500

* 2001-2002: $217,500

* TOTAL: $652,500

NET VALUE: $15,148,500