Goalie Choice Is a Secret

Coach Andy Murray was coy about his choice for goaltender in tonight’s game against the St. Louis Blues.

Asked whether Mathieu Garon or Jason LaBarbera would be in net, Murray said, “I’m just not going to say anything right now. There are some reasons to make St. Louis think we might make a switch.”

Desperate measures for desperate times? With the Kings having lost three straight and four of their last five games, their coach is pulling out all his tricks, playing mind games with a team tied for last place in the Western Conference.

How well the King goaltender plays and how well the team plays in front of him will go a long way in determining whether they make the playoffs. It will also grow more important because of uncertainty surrounding two of the team’s top scorers, Pavol Demitra (concussion) and Alexander Frolov (separated shoulder).

“With the guys we have out, we have to tighten up and win some 2-1 games,” said center Craig Conroy, who will return to the lineup tonight after sitting out two games because of an eye injury. “This is the playoffs right now for us.”

Garon, who was pulled after two periods in a 4-1 loss to the Dallas Stars on Thursday, has given up 14 goals in the last three games, although he could not be faulted for many of them.

“We’re all frustrated,” Garon said. ‘You’re always frustrated when you’re losing.”

LaBarbera, meanwhile, has played sparingly since early November, when he left the team briefly to attend to an undisclosed family matter. He has won only one of nine starts since and gave up six goals in that lone victory. LaBarbera has not started a game since Jan. 24.

“It felt weird to be out there,” LaBarbera said. “Things you never think about, like blinking. I watched a game [from the bench] and I blink all the time. You can’t blink when you’re in the game, you’ll lose the puck.”

The Kings have given up more goals (228) than they have scored (223), though defensive breakdowns have led to many of late.

“The only thing we focus on is the game that is coming up, not the one we just played,” Garon said. “There is no finger pointing. We make mistakes as a team.”

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Frolov underwent a strength test Friday and was cleared to resume practice, but only in noncontract drills. Demitra was unable to practice Friday. Forward Jeff Cowan is also out because of what Murray said were back spasms.

Conroy, who was struck in the eye by the puck Monday against the San Jose Sharks, will wear a tinted visor today to cut down on glare and protect his eye.

“My wife said to me, ‘So, are you finally going to wear a visor?’ ” Conroy said. “I told her that we’d see how it goes.”

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TONIGHT

vs. St. Louis, 7:30, FSN West

Site -- Staples Center.

Radio -- 710.

Records -- Kings 36-27-5, Blues 20-33-11.

Record vs. Blues -- 3-0-0.

Update -- The Blues lost No. 1 goaltender Curtis Sander for the season because of a knee injury.