LOS ANGELES (AP) Luc Robitaille scored twice and John Tripp
had a goal and an assist as the Los Angeles Kings beat the
defending Western Conference champion Anaheim Mighty Ducks 4-2
Thursday night in the exhibition opener for both teams.
Alexei Smirnov and Chris Armstrong scored power-play goals for
the Ducks, who came within one victory of winning the Stanley Cup
last June after missing the playoffs the year before. Goalie
Jean-Sebastien Giguere, who won the Conn Smythe Trophy as playoff
MVP and signed a four-year, $19.5 million contract on Sept. 10, did
not dress.
Rookie Duston Brown also scored for the Kings, who finished 14
points out of a playoff spot last year. The Kings and Ducks don't
meet during the regular season until Jan. 7 at the Anaheim Pond.
Robitaille, beginning his third stint with the Kings after
scoring a career-worst 11 goals with Detroit, scored the winner
from his knees as he swatted a rebound of defenseman Tim Gleason's
shot past Martin Gerber for a 3-2 lead with 6:56 left in the third
period.
Six-time All-Star Sergei Fedorov, who signed a five-year, $40
million deal with Anaheim as a free agent in July after 13 seasons
and three Stanley Cup titles in Detroit, committed a turnover that
set up the game's first goal.
Roman Cechmanek, making his Kings debut after getting traded
from Philadelphia, stopped eight of nine shots and was replaced by
Cristobal Huet after Smirnov's goal.
(Copyright 2003 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)