Kings Get Some Help Before Beating Canucks

The Kings got everything they wanted Monday night.

A disputed goal from Jozef Stumpel at 3:53 of overtime gave them a 3-2 victory over Vancouver at Staples Center, and the two points it earned pushed them past Phoenix and into fifth place in the Western Conference playoff race.

Perhaps more important, the Kings got the gritty, experienced forward they were looking for.

And a bonus.

The Kings traded Donald Audette and Fran Kaberle to Atlanta for wingers Kelly Buchberger and Nelson Emerson, who offer offensive firepower and an extra physical presence the Kings have been seeking since they broke training camp in October.

Both have ties with King Coach Andy Murray from his days as coach of the Canadian national team, and Emerson also played for the old Winnipeg Jets when Murray was an assistant there.

Buchberger, 33, was particularly coveted by several teams around the NHL, in part because of his playoff experience. He has two Stanley Cup rings, earned with Edmonton, and has two seasons remaining on a three-year, $2.85-million contract that he signed in August. Buchberger has five goals and 12 assists and has logged 139 penalty minutes in 67 games and is expected to play on the Kings’ third line.

“They’re two good players for us,” said King captain Rob Blake, whose first-period power-play goal gave the Kings a 1-1 tie.

“They’re both big character-type guys, Kelly Buchberger in particular.”

Emerson, 32, has 14 goals and 19 assists in 58 games, is earning $1.7 million this season and has three more on his contract at $1.8 million, $1.9 million and $2 million, with a team option for a fourth season at $2.2 million.

He is also a probable addition to the King power play.

Their addition is a commitment by King management to this season and beyond and is the result of some long-term planning.

“We’ve actually talked with Atlanta about both of them for some time,” said Dave Taylor, senior vice president and general manager.

“Everything came together at about 6 o’clock tonight [Monday]. We had Donald Audette scheduled to play and scratched him because we didn’t want to take a chance on his getting hurt.”

Moving Audette was expected after he went to Taylor last week and asked for a trade because he wasn’t getting the playing time he wanted.

Audette had 12 goals and 20 assists in 49 games after missing four because of healthy scratches and 15 because of a sprained ankle.

“I had heard rumors,” said Audette, who had been mentioned in deals involving Montreal and the New York Rangers. “It’s been a tough year. It’s not a year I had anticipated after last season. I gave the best I had every time I was on the ice.

“This is easier than last time.”

Audette had been a King for slightly more than a season, moving over in a trade with Buffalo in December of 1998 after spending nine seasons with the Sabres. He is on the final season of a contract that pays him $2.2 million.

Kaberle, who started the season with the Kings before the rigors of travel caught up with him, had nine assists as a rookie before being sent to Long Beach and thence to Lowell of the American Hockey League.

While the trade was being consummated, the Kings were dealing with Vancouver, which picked up a 1-0 lead on a goal by Trent Klatt that was matched by Blake. The Kings took a 2-1 lead on a highlight-film goal by Ziggy Palffy that was matched by Alexander Mogilny.

Stumpel’s game-winner came when a shot by defenseman Sean O’Donnell glanced off a Vancouver stick and Stumpel’s skate before skidding into the Canuck goal. It prompted an anxious moment or two while it was reviewed by video goal-judge John Pemberton, who relayed his thoughts to referee Mike Leggo. When Leggo signaled it was good, it sent 17,309 into the night happy.

“I didn’t know [if it was good],” Stumpel said. “I only saw [O’Donnell’s] shot and tried to get to it, and my stick was tied up. I don’t know what it hit.”

Though Stumpel seemed to kick the puck, his feet actually were being pushed out from under him by Vancouver’s Andrew Cassels around the net.

The Kings finished off a seven-game home stand with a 4-2-1 record and have a 10-point playoff cushion on ninth-place Calgary and the Mighty Ducks.

And, they figure, better times are ahead.

“I think [Buchberger and Emerson] are going to give us a big lift,” Stumpel said after he already had given the Kings a big lift Monday night.