clarinews@clarinet.com (01/12/90)
INGLEWOOD, Calif. (UPI) -- Luc Robitaille netted his 32nd goal of the season and assisted on Wayne Gretzky's tying score for the only goals of the third period Thursday night, enabling the Los Angeles Kings to salvage a 3-3 with the Edmonton Oilers. Gretzky, sent sprawling by a Craig Muni punch during a second-period melee, scored his 24th goal of the season to tie it with 5:04 remaining in regulation. Robitaille slipped the puck from the behind the net to the center, who beat goalie Bill Ranford on the stick side. Robitaille had pulled the Kings to within 3-2 with 13:06 to play in regulation. Tom Laidlaw passed him puck across the crese, and the winger jammed in a five-foot shot. The Kings, winless in their last five games, took the only three shots of overtime. Ranford preserved the tie with 24 seconds left when he stopped a 25-foot slapshot by Mikko Makela, then covered up after stopping a rebound shot by Mike Krushelnyski. Jari Kurri stole the puck from defenseman Laidlaw just inside the red line and beat goalie Kelly Hrudey for an unassisted goal and a 1-0 Edmonton lead 3:01 into the game. It was Kurri's 22nd goal of the season. The Oilers made it 2-0 at 4:19 of the second period with some precision passing. Mark Lamb dropped the puck to Steve Smith, who fed ahead to Craig Simpson, who found Lamb wide open to the left of Hrudey, and he rammed in his ninth goal. Just 20 seconds later, Steve Kasper blasted a shot under the glove of Ranford to bring the Kings to within 2-1, but Edmonton got that goal back with 9:03 left in the period. With ex-teammate Krushelnyski in the penalty box for holding, Smith passed to Simpson, who capitalized on a three-on-one breakaway for his 16th goal of the year.