No Comeback for This Rocky

Around Calgary, rookie defenseman Rocky Thompson quickly has become a fan favorite with his tough talk and willingness to brawl with anyone. Against the Kings on Tuesday night, however, Thompson was put in his place by forward Matt Johnson.

Johnson easily handled Thompson, who was playing in his fourth NHL game, in a fight 3:10 into the game and later delivered a crunching shoulder check before the end of the first period after Thompson had roughed up the Kings’ Jozef Stumpel.

After Thompson went down, he did his best to avoid a second fight with Johnson and barely played the rest of the game.

“The way he was talking in the papers, I thought that he would be ready to battle all night,” Johnson said. “I looked for him the second time and couldn’t find him. . . . It’s not that he’s a bad fighter but he’s not what he was pumped out to be.”

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Goaltender Frederic Chabot played well for 20 minutes but struggled in the second period in the Kings’ 6-3 victory over the Flames. Chabot was replaced by Jamie Storr after giving up two goals and will be sent back to Houston of the International Hockey League today.

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Forward Yanic Perreault returned to the lineup after sitting out two games as a healthy scratch and finished with two assists. . . . Craig Johnson did not play because of a bruised side and Steve McKenna and Jan Vopat were healthy scratches.