KING-DUCK REPORT

With King rookie defenseman Lubomir Visnovsky sidelined because of back spasms, Andreas Lilja’s second trip across the country since the season began yielded his NHL debut.

Usually paired with Aki Berg, Lilja skated 22 shifts for 13:06 in the Kings’ 4-0 loss to the Mighty Ducks.

It was a revelation.

“It was a bad game,” said Lilja, who finished with one shot and two hits. “I played awful.”

A penalty for interference midway through the first period and another for elbowing near the end of the second inhibited his play.

Lilja was selected second in the June entry draft, two rounds ahead of Visnovsky, who has been one of the real finds in the NHL this season.

The two came to training camp essentially competing for one job and Visnovsky won on the basis of his puck-handling and maturity. He has three goals and 14 assists, and leads NHL rookies with a plus-15 on the plus/minus scale.

Lilja was the final defenseman cut. He was recalled in October when Rob Blake injured his back, but did not play. Lilja’s second recall came when Jere Karalahti suffered a bruised foot last Tuesday night on a shot by the Rangers’ Theoren Fleury in the Kings’ 7-6 loss at New York.

He came in Saturday after playing Friday night at Lowell, Mass., where he has a goal and seven assists in 20 games.