The Av-Nots, Again

DENVER —  This King season ended where the last one did.

In the Pepsi Center.

In disappointment.

In a four-goal defeat.

The Colorado Avalanche sent the Kings unhappily into the off-season for the second consecutive year, closing out their first-round Stanley Cup playoff series Monday night with a 4-0 Game 7 victory in front of 18,007.

The Avalanche’s 340th consecutive sellout crowd roared its approval as the defending Stanley Cup champion scored three goals in the second period, matching its total from the previous four games, and stopped the Kings one victory short of completing an improbable comeback from a 3-1 series deficit.

At least last year, when they also erased a 3-1 series deficit to necessitate a Game 7 against the Avalanche in the second round, the Kings kept the game competitive into the third period before giving up four goals in a 5-1 loss.

This time, the Avalanche drained all suspense about the outcome by scoring two goals in a span of 54 seconds about six minutes into the second period, the first on an unforgettable individual effort by center Chris Drury.

If the Kings had any thought of getting back into the game after that, Avalanche goaltender Patrick Roy stripped them of it, stopping 23 shots for his second shutout of the series and league-record 21st in the playoffs.

“A lot of credit to the Avalanche,” King captain Mattias Norstrom said. “I thought they played probably their best game of the series. They came at us hard. They were the best team out there tonight, no question about it....

“They controlled the game from the drop of the puck.... It proves why they became champions last year--they really step up when it matters the most.”

Once again, though, the Kings did not.

“We’re obviously very disappointed,” Coach Andy Murray said. “I think our players are disappointed, I’m disappointed, we’re all disappointed. Certainly, we recognize the Avalanche is a tremendous team.

“We battled them hard, but we’re still one game short.”

They were fighting long odds.

Only 16 of the 190 teams that had lost three of the first four games of a best-of-seven NHL playoff series, or about 8%, had rallied to win the series. But the Kings were confident after winning Game 5 at Denver and Game 6 at Staples Center, putting some doubt, they hoped, into the minds of the Avalanche.

If the Kings were apprehensive about playing without injured regulars Adam Deadmarsh and Philippe Boucher, sidelined because of injuries and recuperating back home in Manhattan Beach, they weren’t about to let on.

And, besides, they’d won the last two games without them.

The Avalanche, meanwhile, was at full strength for the first time since May, Peter Forsberg returning to the lineup after sitting out Game 6 because of a leg injury and Milan Hejduk playing his second game after returning from an abdominal strain.

“First time in the entire season, for a big game, so this is a good day for us,” Avalanche Coach Bob Hartley said before the game. “It’s exciting....

“We’ve been there for Game 7s before, so once again I’ll put my trust in my players--their character, their skills, the experience, the leadership. I think it’s certainly a big boost for us.”

After giving up nine goals in the first two games of the series, 4-3 and 5-3 losses, the Kings had given up only three in winning three of the next four, their only loss a 1-0 setback in Game 4. They’d killed 16 consecutive penalties, last giving up a power-play goal in the first period of Game 2. Goaltender Felix Potvin’s goals-against average over the previous four games was 0.75, his save percentage .972.

But in the second period of Game 7, none of that mattered.

Only seconds after the Avalanche had killed a penalty, Drury carried the puck almost the length of the ice, slicing between defenders Brad Chartrand and Jaroslav Modry along the way, before lifting a shot into the net.

“What a great effort,” Hartley said. “The play of the game.”

The team that had scored first had won the last 13 playoff games between the Kings and Avalanche, so Colorado was in great shape.

It was in better shape 54 seconds later, when a shot by Hejduk deflected off Jason Allison and into the left faceoff circle, where Alex Tanguay pounced on it and slipped a shot past Potvin for a 2-0 lead. Potvin, bumped on the play by Joe Sakic, claimed goaltender interference, but after a brief review the goal stood.

Former King Steven Reinprecht made it 3-0 with his fourth goal of the series, scoring on a rebound with 2:28 remaining in the period.

Adam Foote added an empty-net goal with 3:13 to play.

Meanwhile, Roy stopped the Kings dead in their tracks.

“You saw it out there, how good he was tonight--the saves he was making, how he made everything look easy,” King center Bryan Smolinski said. “That’s Patrick at his best. He gave us a few games, and he took a few games away from us.”

Including the one that mattered most.

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Kings in Game 7

*--* With Monday’s loss to Colorado, the Kings are 3-4 in the seventh game of a playoff series: 1968: Minnesota 9, at Kings 4 (First round) 1969: Kings 5, at Oakland 3 (First round) 1976: at Boston 3, Kings 0 (Conf. quarterfinals) 1989: at Kings 6, Edmonton 3 (First round) 1993: Kings 5, at Toronto 4 (Conf. finals) 2001: at Colorado 5, Kings 1 (Conf. semifinals) 2002: at Colorado 4, Kings 0 (First round)

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