Los Angeles Kings know they don’t have to be world beaters

Are the Kings panicking after losing the first two games of their opening-round playoff series to the St. Louis Blues? Are they shocked to be in such a precarious spot?

Coach Darryl Sutter listened to reporters’ inquiries Friday and smiled.

“You guys are asking questions that are sort of like end-of-the-world questions,” he said. “It’s really not that.”

No, but if they lose Saturday, when the series shifts to Staples Center, they might be able to see the end of their reign as Stanley Cup champions.

Each of the first two games was a 2-1 victory for the Blues. That scoring pace isn’t going to bring the Kings anything but early tee times. “That won’t cut it. That won’t win you a series, that’s for sure,” center Jarret Stoll said.

The other common thread is that goaltender Jonathan Quick blamed himself for both defeats, and both times teammates insisted otherwise.

“Although he might feel a total sense of responsibility, we all share it as a group,” said defenseman Rob Scuderi, who cited his own bad clearing pass that led to a goal in Game 1. “Mistakes happen.”

Quick almost always blames himself when he gives up a goal. His competitive drive is admirable, but it can also become a burden.

“We all know that’s not his fault,” Stoll said. “The scores could have been a lot worse if it wasn’t for him. He’s a first-class teammate and he’ll say those things but we all know he’s a great goaltender and he’s played really well in this series so far. We’re going to need him. We’re going to need everybody to win the next game.”

In addition to goals, they need more faceoff wins. They’ve won only 40.2% of the draws so far, well below their regular-season success rate of 52%.

“That’s where it starts, with puck possession,” center Mike Richards said, “and when we have that puck possession I think we’re a better hockey team. And hopefully [Saturday] night we can start with the faceoffs and go from there.”

Sutter said it’s possible that defenseman Matt Greene might play after being scratched in the first two games. Greene was among the dozen players who skated Friday.

“Everybody that’s out skating today is possible playing. We’ve got some guys banged up that aren’t,” Sutter said. “We’ll see how it is in the morning and go from there.”

TV mishap again

Fans already irate over Prime Ticket’s split-screen telecast of the Kings and Clippers games Tuesday had another beef Thursday, when some viewers missed part of Game 2. CNBC aired an early game and was supposed to switch Los Angeles viewers to the Kings-Blues game for the opening faceoff. Cable subscribers were able to see the game from the start but DirecTV put it on an alternate channel without publicizing the switch, leaving many viewers without the first eight minutes.

“What occurred was unfortunate and we’re sorry that our fans had to miss a portion of a very important game,” said Mike Altieri, the Kings’ vice president of communications and broadcasting.

It’s unlikely to happen again soon. Games 3 and 4 and, if necessary, Game 5 are scheduled to air on FS West. Games 6 and 7, if necessary, would be on Prime Ticket.

helene.elliott@latimes.com

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