Murray a Strong Supporter of Potvin

A group of reporters scratched their heads the other day when Andy Murray, asked to identify the best goaltender he’d seen this season, named Felix Potvin.

Loyalty, apparently, is more than just a concept to the King coach.

Though Potvin is not to blame for the Kings’ poor start to the season, neither has he done much to prevent it. His 2.77 goals-against average before Saturday’s 4-1 victory over the Atlanta Thrashers ranked 34th in the league, and his .889 save percentage also was among the NHL’s worst. In all but a few of his 14 starts, he has not even been the best goaltender on the ice.

Said Murray, explaining himself: “I’m always going to say that [Potvin is the best]. I’m not going to talk about another team’s goalie because they’re getting enough credit when they play us. So it’s my way of saying I’ll back up my guy....

“Felix is accountable just like every one of our other players. And certainly every one of our players can play better than what they’re playing.”

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Murray is not panicking as he tries to pull the Kings out of their slump.

“I know exactly what we’re doing,” he said. “Sometimes you get coaches in these situations saying, ‘I don’t know what to do.’ Well, then they shouldn’t be coaching. We know what we have to do. We’ve got a plan and we’re working at it. We’re trying to stay consistent....

“As soon as you get to the point where you don’t have answers, you’re in trouble. We’ll always have the answers here for what we have to do.”

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Ziggy Palffy, sidelined because of back spasms, was eligible to come off the injured reserve list Saturday but sat out for the fourth consecutive game. The Kings hope to have him back for Thursday night’s game against the Calgary Flames at Staples Center.... Defenseman Aaron Miller, also suffering from back spasms, is “probably a few weeks away,” Murray said. Miller has not played since Oct. 20.