Bad Boy Blake Forced to Sit

Defenseman Rob Blake learned Friday that retribution costs $128,475.60.

The night before it cost only two minutes in the penalty box.

The NHL suspended Blake for Sunday’s game at Dallas and Monday’s at Nashville after a review of his third-period cross-checking incident involving Alex Korolyuk of the San Jose Sharks in the Kings’ 3-2 victory at the Great Western Forum.

Larry Murphy scored the Sharks’ first goal on a power play while Blake was in the penalty box.

“There’s nothing I can do about it,” said Blake, the King captain. “I’ve been through it once before. You just sit your games and come back and play.”

Blake will be eligible to return Wednesday against the Mighty Ducks.

He wasn’t as fatalistic the last time he received league punishment. On Dec. 14, Blake was suspended for three games for slashing the Vancouver Canucks’ Harry York. That cost him $83,304.69, or three days’ pay, based on a 192-day season.

As a repeat offender, Blake’s fine for Thursday’s incident was two games’ pay, based on an 82-game season.

Blake admitted that the cross-check, which knocked Korolyuk’s helmet off, was retaliation for a first-period incident in which the two tangled near the side boards.

“We were going back and forth all night,” he said.

It didn’t end with the cross-check because Korolyuk continued to play, and the end of the game was punctuated by the two meeting near the King bench.

They did not say “nice game” to each other.

King Coach Larry Robinson, who faces two games without his best player in an outside bid at a playoff berth, said he didn’t believe the cross-check to the head was intentional.

“He was going to the body, but the other guy [Korolyuk] is so short that it went to the head,” Robinson said.

Blake is 6 feet 4, Korolyuk 5-9.

The loss of Blake--coupled with that of Garry Galley, who is sidelined because of an abdominal strain--leaves the Kings short of defenseman and probably will necessitate calling up a player from the Long Beach Ice Dogs. The prime candidate is probably Jaroslav Modry, who had six goals and 28 assists going into Friday’s game against the Detroit Vipers.

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King winger Sandy Moger faces surgery Monday on his left rotator cuff and is sidelined for the season.

Moger, who has three goals and two assists in 42 games, has sat out because of a back strain and also suffered a broken nose this season, but he has been taking cortisone injections and had been playing despite the shoulder problem until Thursday night.

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Center Jozef Stumpel suffered a sprained knee in Thursday night’s game and is sidelined indefinitely. That probably means the rest of the season and has necessitated a move of winger Russ Courtnall to center.