Kings’ Spirits Lifted Again

Hold the autopsy, there’s a pulse.

Pavol Demitra returned to the lineup, scoring the game’s only goal, goaltender Mathieu Garon made one stand up for a second consecutive game, and the Kings’ position, and disposition, were a bit sunnier after a 1-0 victory over the Vancouver Canucks at Staples Center on Monday.

“That was a great feeling,” said Demitra, who missed the last eight games and scored his first goal since Feb. 12 against Dallas. “That was a huge win. Everyone competed. Everyone worked hard.”

The victory left the Kings two points behind the Canucks, who hold the eighth and final playoff spot in the Western Conference, as they try to delay a painful postseason postmortem.

“We know what we have to do and now we just have to go do it,” Craig Conroy said. “At some point, we’re going to need some help from others. But right now what we need to do is help ourselves. We have [six] games left. We can’t lose any more games.”

The Kings returned from a disastrous three-game trip to Canada -- where they lost to Vancouver, Calgary and Edmonton -- in 10th place, five points out of a playoff position. The Kings remain in 10th and still need to climb over two teams, but things could have been much worse.

Vancouver, Edmonton and San Jose wobbled over the weekend, while the Kings were beating Dallas, leaving them on the back edge of the playoff race. The Canucks came into the game looking particularly vulnerable, after being stomped, 6-2, by the Mighty Ducks on Sunday.

“Last week, we put ourselves in a tough spot,” interim Coach John Torchetti said. “Then, boom, we were right back in it again. This is the challenge we’re faced with and we’re going to have to support each other.”

Support came from someone Torchetti had yet to see on the ice -- at least as the team’s interim coach. Demitra, who was out with a concussion, returned to the lineup after passing a baseline test Monday morning. He had failed the same test Saturday.

“I answered the questions a lot faster” Monday, Demitra said. “I got my brain back. I had lost it two days ago.”

He also brought a little heart back into the lineup. Demitra was the Kings’ leader in goals and points before the Olympic break but had played in only eight of the team’s previous 32 games before Monday because of injuries.

Even with the injuries, Demitra is second on the team with 23 goals and third with 58 points.

“Obviously we have missed him,” Conroy said. “You don’t replace 90 points in your offense. Tonight, he did what he has done for us all season. He scored a big goal.”

Demitra flung a shot from the blue line that snaked past teammate Mark Parrish, who was goal hanging at the crease. The puck grazed goaltender Alexander Auld, then trickled into the net. The goal ended a string of 19 scoreless power plays and gave the Kings the lead 13:13 into the second period.

The rest was a gritty defensive effort the Kings, who shut out a Canuck team that beat them, 7-4, in Vancouver on March 27. The Canucks had only 11 shots in the last two periods Monday.

“The commitment to play hard was there from everybody,” Torchetti said.

Garon kept the game scoreless in the first period with a handful of quality saves, including a deflection of a shot by Jarkko Ruutu on a rush. The King defense improved and Garon needed to make only 23 saves in extending his goal-less streak to 126 minutes 57 seconds.

“Guys were blocking shots and getting in passing lanes,” said Garon, who had consecutive shutouts for the first time in his career. “It’s been awhile since we have played that kind of defense. Everyone was involved.

“I knew if I made the first save, someone would be there to clear the puck.”