Kings’ Jhonas Enroth says he’ll start in goal against Islanders

Jhonas Enroth said he will be starting Thursday night against the New York Islanders.

Really.

Last week, the Kings’ No. 2 goalie, Enroth, came off the ice first after the morning skate, a traditional sign he would be getting the start. If Enroth was puzzled by the group of reporters around him, well, he hid it well.

Finally, Rich Hammond of the Orange County Register asked a direct question about getting starts in consecutive games. Enroth said he wasn’t getting the start against Columbus, adding that he simply had to come off the ice early.

A week later, Enroth is set to get his third start of the season. He’s allowed one goal in two starts and recorded his sixth career shutout in his last appearance, at St. Louis on Nov. 3. It takes a special goalie to maintain focus during such long gaps between games.

“I don’t think I’ve always been decent at it,” Enroth said. “But it’s up to myself. I’ve been around here for a couple of years, and it’s really up to myself to keep myself in shape, to stay sharp in practice.

“I only have myself to blame if I’m not sharp enough.”

Kings goalie coach Bill Ranford knows from his own playing days that the long stretches of game inactivity can be a difficult proposition.

“Oh, it’s brutal; that’s why I retired,” Ranford said, drawing chuckles. “That’s exactly the reason why I retired. I didn’t like it. It’s not that you don’t want to be a No. 1 because you always do.

“When you get into that role where you’re a proven No. 2 in the league, it’s a thankless job. You’ve got to practice every day. You’re at the mercy of people like me and the other coaches.

“But he’s worked very hard,” Ranford said of Enroth. “He’s worked at his game. I thought there was some tweaks that we could help his game. He had the trust in me to apply it. It’s all on him. He’s put the work in, and we’ve been fortunate here. We’ve always had guys with that ability to come in and win games for us.”