Ferraro Reaches 1,000 Mark

He was getting $7 an hour, good money for a 16-year-old. But he had to lift 3,200 concrete blocks a day for his father’s business in Trail, British Columbia, to earn it.

Skating for a living looked pretty good.

It still does, 1,000 NHL games later for Ray Ferraro, who joined the 1,000 club Sunday at Dallas. He is the fourth King to do so this season, joining Doug Bodger, Garry Galley and Russ Courtnall.

It’s a long time to keep a chip on your shoulder.

Ferraro, 34, is advertised as 5 feet 9, 193 pounds, both a bit generous.

“Hell, I’d like to be 6-3,” he said, laughing. “But I think I’m out of growth years.”

The laughter fades when he talks of being undersized in a sport that is increasingly moving toward big guys. He thinks about it “every single day,” he said, eyes narrowing.

It’s why he earned the nickname “Little Ball of Hate” while playing in New York.

Ferraro, who began the season as a healthy scratch who talked about retirement, has played his way back into the lineup. Both his knees have been injured in the last 1 1/2 years, and he is in the final season of a contract that pays him $1.75 million this season. Duplicating that wage is going to be difficult.

Right now, he’s playing with Luc Robitaille and Sandy Moger on a line that generates offense. Ferraro has 10 goals and 10 assists and is plus-6, though he has not had a shot in the last three games.

“There are days when I think, ‘God, I don’t want to do this,’ but days when I want to do this,” he said. “If I can still play, I want to play. But if I’m a five-goal scorer, then I’m not going to play anymore. If I can’t contribute, I don’t want to play.”

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The Kings are 9-10-1 in games with two referees, a concept that is finished this season until the playoffs. . . . Donald Audette led the Kings in scoring in February with seven goals and 11 points. . . . Robitaille has five overtime goals as a King.