RED WINGS VS. KINGS / NOTES

Bowman said Monday that Steve Yzerman, who has an injured left ankle and missed the last two games, is not likely to return in Game 4 on Wednesday at Staples Center.

Yzerman, the Red Wing captain, remained in Detroit and didn’t accompany the team to Southern California. Club officials initially left open the possibility he would meet the team here, but Bowman sounded doubtful that will happen.

“I don’t think he’s going to come,” Bowman said. “I think we’re going to leave him there. I think John [Wharton, the team’s trainer] has to call and make sure.”

Winger Darren McCarty, who injured his ankle Sunday but returned soon after, is expected to play Wednesday. Bowman said he will know more today, after the Red Wings practice.

Only a few players skated Monday; most rested after Sunday’s game, which ended after 11:30 p.m. Pacific time and completed a bizarre, back-to-back sequence across three time zones. “The worst part of the schedule was the weekend, and I thought both teams handled it pretty well,” he said.

Bowman also said he’s not sure yet if he will make any lineup changes. “[Monday] was just a day we decided players would have treatments,” he said. “By the time we went to bed it was 4 a.m. [Monday was] just a day for rest and recuperation.”

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The Red Wings’ 0-for-7 power-play performance did not dismay Bowman. He instead credited the Kings’ penalty killers and the goaltending of Felix Potvin.

“I think their goaltender made a few good saves,” Bowman said. “We had a lot of chances, but there were no rebounds and stuff like that. I thought both goalies’ save percentages were real high. . . . I thought our penalty killing was terrific. It takes a lot of energy.”