Taylor Receives Three-Year Extension

After negotiations of nearly a year that could best be termed as passive during most of that time, Dave Taylor received an early birthday present Friday when he signed a contract extension Friday covering three seasons, plus an option year.

Taylor, the Kings’ senior vice president and general manager, is 44 today.

He is completing a three-year deal and had an option season left, one that team President Tim Leiweke didn’t want to invoke.

“When we have people we want to keep, we don’t want the contract to go into an option year,” Leiweke said recently. “Dave has done a great job, and we want him always to be a King.”

Taylor never wanted to leave.

“It’s nice that the organization has confidence in me,” he said. “I’ve been a King since 1975, and I like the direction in which the organization is going.”

The reasons for the drawn-out negotiations are plentiful. They began during last season, when the Kings were struggling, went on occasionally through the summer and were put on hold until Staples Center was opened.

An agreement in principle came two weeks ago, but again there was a delay because Leiweke was out of town with the Galaxy soccer team and Taylor was in Canada scouting.

On Tuesday, Taylor said only a review by his lawyer was needed to complete the process.

“We just had a couple of small things in the language,” Taylor said.

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Center Jozef Stumpel, out since Nov. 6 because of a sports hernia that required surgery, is extending his skating time by five minutes a day, going 20 minutes during a Friday morning workout in which he was supervised by Robert Zolg, the team’s rehabilitation trainer.

“At this rate, he’ll be up to five hours 25 minutes by the end of the season,” team trainer Pete Demers cracked.

The Kings are beginning to talk optimistically about a December return, perhaps for a game Dec. 22 against San Jose or Dec. 26 against Phoenix, though it remains more likely that he will be back in the lineup in early January.

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Jim McKenzie, the Ducks’ ham-handed left wing, played his first game Friday since breaking his left hand Nov. 9 against the Toronto Maple Leafs.

“If I come back and my hands are better than before I’m going to break this one [the right one] in the off-season,” joked McKenzie, who has only 34 goals since breaking into the NHL with the Hartford Whalers in 1989-90.

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Defenseman Jason Marshall needed several stitches to close a gash under his right eye. Marshall was cut while checking Steve Martins into the Tampa Bay bench Wednesday.

Martins’ stick struck Marshall in the face and he crumpled to the ice, but later returned after receiving treatment.

Marshall was in the lineup Friday, joining Ruslan Salei to form a physical pairing.

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The Ducks’ self-examination continued in the wake of their 4-2 loss Wednesday to Tampa Bay that evened their record at 12-12-2-1.

“Last year when we were .500 everybody was ecstatic--fans, the media, everybody,” Coach Craig Hartsburg said. “Now, we’re trying to push it to another level. We’ve got to stay with the program. Sometimes you get mad [at the players]. Sometimes you pat them on the butt and say, ‘Let’s keep going.’ This week, it was time to get mad.”

DUCKS TONIGHT

at Phoenix

6 PST, Channel 9

* Site--America West Arena.

* Radio--XTRA (690).

* Records--Ducks 12-12-3-1, Coyotes 17-6-3-0.

* Record vs. Coyotes--0-2.

* Update--The Ducks were blanked by scores of 4-0 and 3-0 in their first two games against the Coyotes. Mikhail Shtalenkov, a former Duck goalie, shut them out twice. But Shtalenkov has since been traded to the Florida Panthers. The Ducks are expected to face Bob Essensa, who is 8-0-1 with a 2.20 goals-against average. The Coyotes have won eight in a row, the longest winning streak in the NHL this season. Center Jeremy Roenick leads Phoenix with 15 goals and 35 points.

KINGS TONIGHT

vs. Tampa Bay, 8

Fox Sports Net

* Site--Staples Center

* Radio--KRLA (1110).

* Records--Kings 14-7-5-1, Lightning 9-14-2-2.

* Record vs. Lightning--1-0.

* Update--Tampa Bay will be playing its third game in four nights in the West, having followed a 4-2 win over the Mighty Ducks on Wednesday with a 3-1 loss at Phoenix on Thursday. The Lightning dropped a 5-2 decision to the Kings at Tampa, Fla., on Oct. 7 in a game in which Luc Robitaille scored a hat trick.