LOS ANGELES_This time, Rickard Rakell didn't need to fight.
On Tuesday night, the talented Anaheim Ducks forward stayed with what he does best: score and set up goals. He made his long-delayed season debut a memorable one, helping lead the Ducks to a 4-0 win against the Los Angeles Kings at Staples Center with a goal and two assists.
Rakell, who memorably fought then-Kings forward Kris Versteeg last season at Staples Center, had a season's worth of turmoil _ a contract standoff, surgery and visa concerns _ forcing him to miss preseason and the first nine games of the regular season. His return neatly coincided with the first game the season between the Kings and Ducks, the battle of Southern California.
On Tuesday morning, Rakell was teased about his previous big moment in the Kings-Ducks rivalry when he stunned nearly everyone, including himself, with a rare fight and a decisive showing against Versteeg.
He was asked: Would he be beating up anyone else now that Versteeg had moved on?
"I have myself to worry about tonight," said Rakell, who signed a six-year, $22.8 million contract extension last month. "I'm just going to go in and play hockey."
Mission accomplished.
He had plenty of assistance from this teammates. Ryan Kesler, dominant in the faceoff circle all night, added a power-play goal and an assist, as did Antoine Vermette. Joseph Cramarossa scored his first NHL goal, making it 4-0 in the second period as his wraparound attempt went off two Kings, Nic Dowd and Alec Martinez.
One down note for the Ducks was loss of youngster Nick Ritchie, who was shook up by a second-period hit from Kings defenseman Tom Gilbert, and did not return.
The struggling Kings, who fell apart defensively in the second period, have not scored in three consecutive games, matching a dubious franchise mark, dating back to the January 1969.
Yes, 1969.
In the 1968-69 season, they tied St. Louis, 0-0; tied Oakland, 0-0; and lost 5-0 to St. Louis. The last time they scored a goal this season was when Jeff Carter managed it in overtime against Nashville on Thursday.
This time it was goalies Jake Allen (St. Louis), Corey Crawford (Chicago) and John Gibson (Ducks) shutting out the Kings in the three games. Gibson made 30 saves, recording his first shutout of the season and the seventh of his career.
Speaking of goalies ... the Kings have used four in the first 10 games: Jonathan Quick, Jeff Zatkoff, Peter Budaj and Jack Campbell. Campbell, whose only other NHL appearance came against the Ducks in 2013 when he was with the Dallas Stars, came on in relief of Budaj after two periods. Budaj gave up four goals on 16 shots, enduring a rough stretch in the second period in which he allowed goals on the Ducks' 10th, 11th and 13th shots of the game.
Quick was hurt in the first period of the season opener at San Jose. Zatkoff injured his groin in a morning skate on Oct. 22 and was put on injured reserve. He skated on Tuesday morning for the first time since the injury, finally taking a step in the right direction.
Zatkoff said that the injury happened when he got "caught in an awkward spot," and that his hip popped too, saying: "It gave me kind of a panic attack."
