Poor Start Led to an Early Playoff Stop

There was nothing wrong with the Kings this season that a calendar couldn’t have helped fix. The season started in October, not December.

Two months into the season the Kings had dug themselves so deep that they weren’t able to nail down a playoff berth until less than 48 hours remained in the regular season, even though their 32-13-7-2 record over the final four months was the league’s best.

It should not have been necessary for the Kings to unseat the defending Stanley Cup champion in order to advance beyond the first round of the playoffs.

They were better than that.

If they’d won only two more games in the season’s first two months--over, say, the Tampa Bay Lightning, Florida Panthers, Washington Capitals, Dallas Stars or Minnesota Wild, all of whom missed the playoffs but were a combined 6-0 against the Kings in October--they would have won the Pacific Division and earned home-ice advantage in the opening round.

Instead, they had to play the Colorado Avalanche, which enjoyed enough of an edge over the Kings (Patrick Roy, the return of Peter Forsberg, etc.) without the added benefit of playing Game 7 in Denver, where it won Monday night, 4-0.

Another King season ended in disappointment as much because of the way it started as the way it finished.

It was asking an awful lot of the Kings to defeat the Avalanche on the road in Game 7, especially with Adam Deadmarsh and Philippe Boucher sidelined because of injuries and Jason Allison severely limited because of a charley horse. But was even one goal in two October games against the Lightning too much to ask?

All in all, though, it was an encouraging season for the Kings.

Their special teams were brilliant, leading the league in power-play efficiency and ranking third in penalty killing, and their defensive corps solid. Their 2.29 goals-against average was the best in club history. Goaltender Felix Potvin set a club record by playing in 71 games, matched a career high with six shutouts and posted a 2.31 goals-against average, the lowest of his career.

It undoubtedly hurt worse to get bumped from the playoffs after one round than to have reached the Western Conference semifinals last season, but the Kings probably have a more talented nucleus in place than they did a year ago.

Allison, acquired in an October trade with the Boston Bruins, was billed as a franchise player, and the rugged center more than delivered.

The only problem, in the short term anyway, was that the Kings had to give up two top-six forwards, Glen Murray and Jozef Stumpel, to obtain Allison, and they never really filled the void.

With Bryan Smolinski and Steve Heinze slumping through the second half of the season and trading-deadline acquisition Cliff Ronning never heating up, the Kings’ only consistent threats were Allison, Deadmarsh and Ziggy Palffy.

Still, “I’d say the big picture overall for our organization is better,” General Manager Dave Taylor said Tuesday, citing the Kings’ improved defensive play and the tremendous upside of the 26-year-old Allison. “I think we’ve got a solid core of guys that will be returning next year and we have a number of what we think are quality prospects in an area where we need help--offensive-minded forwards.”

Several unrestricted free-agent forwards are expected to be on the market July 1, among them Bill Guerin of the Boston Bruins and Teemu Selanne of the San Jose Sharks, but the Kings seem more interested in building from within.

“I think we’ll look at every option,” Taylor said, “but we’ll have to work within our budget. People shouldn’t expect that our payroll is going to jump to $60 million [from about $42 million], but I don’t anticipate it will go backwards.”

Four Kings--Boucher, Potvin, Ronning and Kelly Buchberger--are potential unrestricted free agents, with the club holding options on Potvin and Ronning that must be picked up by June 30.

The Kings, of course, will pick up the $3.3-million option on Potvin, unless they can reach agreement on a longer-term deal. But Taylor said they have not yet determined whether they will pick up the $1.85-million option on Ronning, who will turn 37 Oct. 1, or try to re-sign Buchberger, who will be 36 Dec. 2.

Boucher, 29, will be eligible for unrestricted free agency because he has played in the NHL for 10 seasons and, at $582,038 this season, is paid less than the league average, which this season was about $1.5 million.

“We haven’t talked with his agent yet, but we would like to bring Bouch back,” Taylor said. “He had a very good year for us, but he’s really in the driver’s seat. If he says that he wants to wait until July 1 to see what the market will bear, that’s his option. But if there’s a deal that makes sense, we’d like to bring him back.”

Said Boucher: “I’ve still got to sit down with my agent and look at all the possibilities. I’ve loved L.A., had a good time playing here....

“But obviously you might want to see what’s out there.”

Among the Kings’ potential Group II, or restricted, free agents are backup goaltender Jamie Storr and forwards Brad Chartrand, Mikko Eloranta, Eric Belanger, Jaroslav Bednar, Adam Mair and Steve Kelly. The Kings would have the right to match any offer made to a restricted free agent or accept draft picks as compensation.