STANLEY CUP PLAYOFFS: KINGS vs. OILERS : Kings Take Aim at Stanley Cup : Trades Have Given Gretzky an Experienced Supporting Cast

When Wayne Gretzky characterizes the Kings as having “new blood, new enthusiasm, new excitement,” he’s not thinking just about himself. The winning attitude that has the Kings talking seriously about a bid for the Stanley Cup does not begin and end with The Great One.

Although attention has been focused on Gretzky and the four Stanley Cup teams he played on, the Kings’ front office has been busy dealing for a veteran supporting cast that is surprisingly long on playoff experience.

The Kings as a franchise may not have had much playoff success, but the players who now constitute their roster have. Gretzky isn’t venturing into tonight’s opening game of the Kings’ seven-game playoff series against the Edmonton Oilers on his own.

What about John Tonelli? Tonelli, 32, who was signed as a free agent last June, even before the Gretzky trade was made, can match Gretzky’s Stanley Cup collection, having helped the New York Islanders win the trophy in 1980, ‘81, ’82 and ’83. And he played in the Stanley Cup finals with the Islanders in 1984 and with Calgary in 1986.

Mike Krushelnyski and Marty McSorley brought Stanley Cup experience with them, too, when they came to Los Angeles in the Gretzky trade. Krushelnyski, 29, helped the Oilers to three Stanley Cups, in 1985, ’87 and ‘88, and was in the finals in 1986. McSorley, 25, was also in the finals in 1986 and won Cups with the Oilers in ’87 and ’88.

Steve Kasper, 27, and Jay Miller, 28, who came to the Kings in a late-season trade for Bobby Carpenter, played for Boston in the Stanley Cup finals last season.

And Doug Crossman, 28, played in the Stanley Cup finals with Philadelphia in 1985 and 1987.

Kelly Hrudey, 28, was acquired from the Islanders just before the trading deadline specifically because of his playoff experience. Hrudey was on the Islander team that played in the Stanley Cup finals in 1984, even though Bill Smith was in goal.

Since then, though, Hrudey has played in 27 playoff games, including his memorable play for the Islanders in a 3-2 victory that went four overtimes against Washington in Game 7 of the Patrick Division semifinals in 1987.

Ron Duguay, 31, who was acquired from the Rangers in February of 1988, played in the Stanley Cup finals with the Rangers in 1979 and has been in 78 playoff games.

Over the last two years, the Kings have picked up players who have brought with them a total of 771 games of playoff experience. That’s in contrast with the total playoff experience of the players who had been with the Kings all along, 136 games.

“When you get into the playoffs, you get into big-time pressure, and there’s no substitute for having been there before,” Tonelli said. “The highs are higher and the lows are lower, and you have to know how to respond. . . . You have to be able to keep your composure and use all that nervous energy to your advantage.”

Tonelli says that with a smile, adding, “I really like playoff time.”

And Gretzky said: “This is what it’s all about.”

It’s time to come alive.

“You can feel it in the room,” Gretzky said. “Everyone is excited. . . . The attitude right now is positive, upbeat. There are guys like Steve Kasper and John Tonelli getting the guys to push themselves, to work harder.”

And there’s Duguay, too. He’s setting a good example for anyone who wants to notice. He’s at the rink early and late. He’s getting his rest, eating carefully, doing his stretching. He’s the picture of focus.

“I’ve been through this 11 times now,” Duguay said. “The first time, I was so young. We made it to the Stanley Cup finals, and I thought that was great. At the time, I thought that I was doing my best. I also thought that there would be a Stanley Cup in my future and I could just sit back and let everything fall into place. It would happen.

“Now that I have seen how hard it is to win the Stanley Cup, what it takes to win, I don’t take anything for granted. At this point in my career, I am craving the Stanley Cup. I am craving the satisfaction you feel as a team when 20 or 25 guys make it happen.

“I have such a respect for the guys like Wayne Gretzky who have been able to make it happen. I appreciate what they have accomplished. I think there are so many guys on this team that feel the same way that we’ll all be giving it our best and knowing that our efforts are not going to waste.”

And although Duguay has never won it all, he has been close enough to see what it takes.

“It’s amazing the way the intensity builds with every game,” Duguay said. “Everybody is playing his best. Everybody wants to win. When it gets down to the last five minutes of a game and the pressure is on, everything becomes instinct. It becomes a question of who really is best prepared, who really is most ready.”

It doesn’t just happen.

Tonelli has been watching the team prepare itself for the last couple of weeks, and likes what he sees.

“We haven’t begun yet, but right now I think we’re putting everything together the way we should be,” he said. “I think we have the right attitude to be successful.

“We are a mature team, but we’re having fun. I’m having fun. For the last few years, everyone else was treating me like I was washed up. This team has given me new life. I’ve never had so much fun playing hockey. Everyone is working hard, but we’re enjoying it. And I think we’re all thinking the same way. We’re coming together as a team.”

Gretzky, too, has been stressing the importance of teamwork, saying: “What happens in losing situations is that people start worrying about their own jobs and start thinking about their own, individual accomplishments. More things fall into place when you’re playing well as a team. When the team is winning, individual accomplishments take care of themselves.

“Bernie (Nicholls) is a perfect example of that. He played with a better team this season and he ended up with 70 goals.

“The nicest thing that has happened all year is that the individual attitude has disappeared. That’s a big step forward for the team. . . . There was a lot of talent here to start with. We’ve added some people with winning experience. It has all mixed in well.”

Added McSorley: “You don’t want everybody to be an old vet. You want that eagerness and excitement. But at the same time, it’s reassuring to have a guy like Tonelli, who can say something and guys will react to him and trust him that he knows what he’s talking about. And guys like Timmy Watters who was on the Winnipeg teams that upset some people.

“You also need guys who have won the Stanley Cup, who know that winning the Stanley Cup is something that is attainable. It makes the others believe it can be done.

“Winning the Stanley Cup is not just a dream, something that’s out of the everybody’s reach. We can say, ‘Look at us. We’ve done it. We can do it.’ You have to play every game like it’s your last, but if you do all the things you’re supposed to do, the Cup is there, within reach.”

King Notes

The Kings will open their playoff series against the Oilers tonight at 7:30 at the Forum in a game that will be televised by Prime Ticket and broadcast by KLAC (570). . . . Goalie Glenn Healy, who missed the final game at Vancouver because of a fever of 102 degrees, practiced Tuesday and is expected to be ready for tonight’s game. . . . The Kings split their regular-season series against the Oilers, 4-4. The teams were so evenly matched that even the total goals were equal at 36 each.

Wayne Gretzky, trying to minimize the emotional factor involved in this series because it was Edmonton that traded him away, said: “I’m looking at this series as a steppingstone toward winning the Cup. Just like when we used to have rivalry-type series with Calgary. We always wanted to beat Calgary as a steppingstone to the Cup. I know those (Oiler) players. Just to beat L.A. doesn’t mean anything except that it puts them a step closer.” . . . Marty McSorley, acknowledging that a lot of the emotion of this series is “a spinoff of what happened on Aug. 9,” noted: “Wayne doesn’t show a lot of excitement, but he is into it. It’s not a question of pressure. For him, it’s a strong focus. He is determined--as they will be. You can tell when he’s ready.”

The first two games will be played at the Forum, tonight and Thursday night--and the Kings are asking fans to wear silver and black, the King colors, to the games--and the next two games will be in Edmonton, Saturday and Sunday. As needed, the next games will be at the Forum Tuesday, at Edmonton April 13 and at the Forum April 15.

1988-89 RESULTS Scores of regular-season games between the Oilers and Kings:

Date Site Score Goalies Oct. 19 Edmonton Oilers 8, Kings 6 Healy (LA)-Fuhr (E) Oct. 25 Forum Oilers 5, Kings 4 Healy (LA)-Fuhr (E) Jan. 10 Forum Kings 5, Oilers 4 Healy (LA)-Ranford (E) Jan. 28 Forum Oilers 7, Kings 6 Healy (LA)-Fuhr (E) Feb. 24 Edmonton Oilers 4, Kings 1 Hrudey (LA)-Fuhr (E) March 12 Edmonton Kings 6, Oilers 3 Hrudey (LA)-Fuhr (E) March 21 Edmonton Kings 4, Oilers 3 Hrudey (LA)-Fuhr (E) March 25 Forum Kings 4, Oilers 2 Hrudey (LA)-Fuhr (E)

1988-89 REGULAR SEASON RECAP Individual leaders for the Edmonton Oilers and the Los Angeles Kings:

Leaders Oilers Kings Goals Jimmy Carson (49) Bernie Nicholls (70) Assists Mark Messier (61) Wayne Gretzky (114) Points Jari Kurri (102) Wayne Gretzky (168) Game-winning goals Jari Kurri (8) Mike Krushelnyski (8) Power-play goals Jimmy Carson (19) Bernie Nicholls (21) Shorthanded goals Esa Tikkanen (8) Bernie Nicholls (8)