Kings’ Scorers Remain Frigid

Once goals rang out with regularity, and the red light behind the crease threatened to burn out.

Now, the Kings’ offense is as dry as this month in Southern California, and Wednesday night, when Colorado got first-period goals from Brian Rolston and Alexei Gusarov, then added a second-period score from Sandis Ozolinsh, you knew it was over.

A final-period goal by Adam Deadmarsh was mere padding.

The Kings’ December futility stretched a length further in a 4-2 loss, their sixth in a row, and the month’s ledger fell to 2-7-2-1.

That’s the sort of thing you can expect when you score only 26 goals in 11 games.

“When you have the number of power-play opportunities we had tonight, and the kind of people that we have on the power play . . . we didn’t do the job,” King Coach Andy Murray said.

The Kings were one for eight on the power play and spent 13:08 with a man advantage, more than twice as long as the Avalanche, which matched them with a power-play goal by Ozolinsh.

But that wasn’t all.

To win, “you have to have your key players coming through for you, and we’re giving them an opportunity,” Murray said. “We’re showing a lot of confidence in them and we’ll continue to, because they are the ones who will ultimately deliver us from our problem.”

Deliverance remained elusive Wednesday night.

Luc Robitaille scored both of the Kings’ goals, his third and fourth in the last 11 games. Both goals came when he redirected shots by rookie defenseman Jere Karalahti.

Ziggy Palffy had two assists, his first since Nov. 24.

Bryan Smolinski, Glen Murray and Donald Audette, who form the second line, had a shot apiece.

As for defenseman Rob Blake . . .

“I was terrible,” he said flatly.

Blake was on the ice for all four Avalanche goals, and the first, scored by Rolston, deflected into the net off Blake’s leg while he was backing toward goalie Stephane Fiset, who probably deserved a better fate.

“Rob usually plays at a higher level,” Andy Murray offered.

When the defense struggles--two Colorado goals were scored directly off faceoffs, plus there was the power-play score--the Kings struggle. Wednesday night, they might have had the excuse of youth, because when Sean O’Donnell left town to deal with a family medical emergency, they were left with three rookies, seldom-used Jaroslav Modry and the tandem of Blake and Mattias Norstrom.

But the kids ended up even in the plus/minus column. The veterans were in Negative Land.

With their scoring drought, the Kings can’t afford that sort of thing.

Remember October? The Kings were 8-3-2 and had NHL tongues wagging with talk of a coach-of-the-year award for Murray and a Norris Trophy for Blake, both the product of a team-wide renaissance.

Forty-four goals will do that sort of thing.

Remember November? The Kings were 6-4-2-1, and people began talking about their being for real.

Thirty-eight goals will do that sort of thing.

And now it’s December, with only one game remaining, tonight against Edmonton.

This is how far they have fallen.

Four weeks ago, the Kings had the best record in the NHL. If they lose to the Oilers tonight, Edmonton ties them for eighth place in the Western Conference, the line of demarcation for teams that continue play when the regular season ends.

Sure, midseason has yet to arrive, but nobody can find a parachute to arrest the Kings’ free fall.

“We have no problem,” insisted Andy Murray. “We just have to win. Guys are paid in this league to win, and that’s the bottom line. The only problem is not winning.”

Such a statement begs analysis, so Murray offered this of the loss to the Avalanche: “We played hard in certain areas. We just didn’t deliver in certain key situations, and the key players didn’t get it done for us.”

They are the keys to unlock the box the Kings have put themselves in, and for a month now, none of the keys fit.

And the lock remains unturned.

*

CALGARY: 3

DUCKS: 1

Flames’ goalie is hot in first start of season.

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