Kings Get Rookie Treatment

His name was nowhere on the board listing opposing players in King Coach Andy Murray’s office over at the team’s training facility in El Segundo.

In fact, someone in the group joked about how Murray had just one goalie listed from Dallas, the Stars’ workhorse, Marty Turco, who had played in 57 of the Stars’ 59 games this season. Turco and the words starting goaltender are synonymous.

But the Stars planted Dan Ellis -- who had played no minutes in the NHL, fewer than 10 games in the American Hockey League and has roots emanating from that vaunted hockey factory, the University of Nebraska Omaha -- in the starting lineup and he emerged with a victory in his NHL debut, making 25 saves to beat the Kings, 4-3, on Wednesday night in front of a sellout crowd of 18,118 at Staples Center.

“The kid is a real mature kid,” said Dallas Coach Dave Tippett. “He’s real poised. I knew if we threw him in that our guys felt good about him.”

The other end, the offense, was handled by Stars center Mike Modano, who scored twice, his 10th and 11th goals of the season. It was his first multi-goal game this season. Right wing Jere Lehtinen added a goal (No. 9) and an assist.

“We helped him,” Murray said of Modano. “We put the puck on his stick on the first one and on the second we had a defenseman who made a poor read and they got a two-on-one.”

The Stars jumped over the Kings in the Western Conference standings and into sixth place with 66 points. The Kings are tied for seventh with Nashville at 65 points, but the Predators hold the edge with six more wins.

The game turned in about a 10-minute stretch in the second period,as the Stars scored three unanswered goals on seven shots. And Murray pulled starter Roman Cechmanek after Dallas made it 3-1 on Lehtinen’s power-play goal at 13:00. In all, Cechmanek allowed three goals on 17 shots.

It is the second time that Cechmanek has been pulled in his last three starts. Little about this game came easy for him and the goalie appeared to be briefly shook up by a shot with 2:46 left in the opening period. Murray also said that the goalie was hampered by soreness in his groin.

“We thought he looked solid, but it looked like he tweaked it on the third goal, so we took him out,” Murray said.

In relief, Cristobal Huet faced 14 shots and allowed one goal, which turned out to be the game-winner as Brenden Morrow scored on the power play, at 7:58 of the third for his 17th of the season. The Kings’ Sean Avery had been sent off at 6:58 for closing his hand on the puck.

The goal, which made it 4-2, came a minute into the power play. Stars defenseman Teppo Numminen kept the puck in at the point and Morrow took a couple of whacks at it, his second attempt going off King defenseman Mattias Norstrom’s stick and past Huet.

It is only the second time in 12 games the Kings have failed to pick up at least one point, a product of hard work and steady progress which kept them in the race despite an avalanche of injuries.

Also, the result overshadowed a fine showing from King left wing Luc Robitaille, who celebrated his 38th birthday on Tuesday with a day off and punctuated the celebration with a goal (his 15th) and an assist on Wednesday. The other King goals came from Derek Armstrong at 16:34 of the second period and Avery at 14:42 of the third.

“The kid played a great game,” Robitaille said of Ellis. “He saved them a few times.”

*

Among the many doctors -- it seems like dozens now -- that the Kings’ Jason Allison has visited in his search for treatment was Montreal-based, world-renowned neurosurgeon Karen Johnston.

Allison, who is suffering from post-concussion migraine symptoms, went to see her about a year ago, and more recently, went back about a month ago for another battery of tests.

“He’s trying to put together a series of good days,” said King Senior Vice President and General Manager Dave Taylor on Wednesday. “She’s very conservative in her approach.”