What we learned from the Kings’ 4-1 loss at Colorado

Reporting from Denver —  What we learned from the Kings’ 4-1 loss to the Colorado Avalanche on Tuesday:

The Kings’ power play must produce

They were one-for-four with the man advantage against Colorado, which is in the bottom third of the NHL in penalty-killing efficiency, and they’re two for 34 in their last 10 games. With the long-term absence of winger Marian Gaborik (broken foot) and the team missing Anze Kopitar (apparent arm or hand injury) for the last two games, they’re not going to score a lot of goals. The power play must take some of the burden and connect more often. Defenseman Drew Doughty, he of the fine shot and great skills, has only one power-play point this season. That makes no sense.

Fear not, Coach Darryl Sutter has a plan

“Hey, I’m challenging every goal,” said Sutter, who unsuccessfully challenged Colorado’s third goal on the basis of goaltender interference by Avalanche forward Jarome Iginla against Kings goalie Peter Budaj. “When you’re having trouble scoring, if you have 15 challenges, I’m challenging every one of them. I’ve got the big screen right there.”

The screen on the electronic device used by the team probably is bigger than the screens used by the officials to examine replays on these challenges. But that’s another rant for another time.

Dustin Brown continues to revive

Brown, who had the captaincy taken from him last summer after he had another low-scoring season, has been more assertive and effective lately. His goal Tuesday was his third this season, in his 17th game; he didn’t score his third goal last season until Dec. 26, his 34th game. Hey, for the Kings, who ranked 25th in goals per game through Tuesday’s games with an average of 2.29, every goal helps.

They might have to consider upgrading in goal — if they can

After the morning skate on Tuesday, Sutter said Budaj had been “solid” but hadn’t stolen a game for the team in a while. Nor did Budaj steal Tuesday’s game. Jeff Zatkoff, slated to be Jonathan Quick’s backup before Quick suffered a long-term groin injury, has had his own groin problems, though he has resumed skating. But he was 0-3 with a 3.39 goals-against average and .875 save percentage in four games, and that’s not good enough. Salary cap restrictions and a reluctance to give up young talent for short-term gain have held the Kings back from making a trade for an established goalie, but they might have to look again at what they might be able to do — and how creative they can be — if Budaj and Zatkoff can’t keep this low-scoring team afloat.

helene.elliott@latimes.com

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