It’s Time to Take Stock

The arithmetic doesn’t work, but neither do the Kings lately, so Coach Andy Murray was prompted to do a midseason assessment, six games short of midseason.

“We’ve played 30 good games,” he said Tuesday, leaving five clunkers among their 13 losses.

The Hall of Pain:

* A 5-3 loss to Philadelphia on Nov. 6, which was preceded by the announcement that Luc Robitaille and Jozef Stumpel were going on injured reserve.

* A 5-3 loss to Montreal on Nov. 20, one game after the Canadiens had been hammered by Nashville in what longtime Montreal observers called the worst game in the franchise’s storied history.

* Consecutive routs by New Jersey (7-1), the New York Rangers (8-3) and Chicago (8-4), which began a slump that has reached five games, and in which the Kings are still mired.

With that assessment, comes another--a look at players Murray figures have bought into his program, and a look at those who haven’t. Looming over the second group could be an adjustment in playing time or a moving van.

“We have given everybody an opportunity,” Murray said. “We have some players back 1/8after injuries 3/8 now, so we have some options.”

*

The Kings signed center Bob Corkum, who skated Tuesday at Iceoplex before the team took off for Denver.

“He looked tired,” said Murray, who added that Corkum--who flew all night from his suburban Boston home to join the Kings--probably will not play tonight against Colorado.

Corkum is on this trip and will skate hard today before the game in an attempt to accelerate his conditioning.

*

Also probably among the missing tonight will be Jason Blake, who has sufficiently recovered from a concussion and practiced Tuesday. Defenseman Aki Berg, who has a rib problem but who practiced Tuesday, probably will not play.

Winger Brad Chartrand, who has a strained groin, is expected to be taken off injured reserve and play tonight.

Still among the missing are defenseman Garry Galley and goalie Jamie Storr.

TONIGHT

at Colorado, 6 PST

* Site--Pepsi Center, Denver.

* Radio--KRLA (1110).

* Records--Kings 16-13-6-2, Avalanche 17-16-4-1.

* Record vs. Avalanche--2-0.

* Update--Colorado has been on a win-one, lose-one run all season, but still leads the Northwest Division by a point over Edmonton, and things figure to get better. The line of Adam Deadmarsh, Peter Forsberg and Joe Sakic, which accounted for 93 goals and 242 points in 1998-99, skated together for the first time all season in a 5-1 win over St. Louis on Monday night. Their problems have been injuries that cost Forsberg the first two months of the season and Sakic his last 13 games and 19 of his last 21.