A BAD DEAL ALL AROUND.

Byline: ROGER PHILLIPS The NHL 

Looking back, Steve Duchesne never fit in with this Kings team, not for a moment, and didn't seem to recognize how dire his situation had become.

He was strongly disappointed that the team he had signed with just last summer had so quickly given up on him, and appeared to work harder in practice in the past week in a belated effort to salvage what could not be salvaged.

When the Kings signed Duchesne to a three-year, $11.25-million contract last summer (with a fourth-year players option at $3.75 million), the move was widely acclaimed. The reasoning went that Duchesne, an offensive defenseman, would elevate the Kings' power play from ordinary to excellent, and that by addressing the power play, the Kings would improve from a playoff team to a contender.

But with his previous team, the St. Louis Blues, Duchesne had been a supporting player behind Al McInnis and Chris Pronger. With the Kings, he would be on the forefront of a team with much less offensive talent. The pressure to perform was on and it was daunting.

Compounding this, the Kings quickly soured on Duchesne's tendency to skirt physical contact. They wanted him to be something he had never been. Though Duchesne had never been known as a physical player, the Kings wanted Duchesne to adjust, at least marginally. Duchesne didn't and his lack of power-play production magnified his defensive deficiencies.

Additionally, Duchesne seemed reluctant to shoulder responsibility when things didn't go well; for instance, a month into the season he lost his balance during overtime, allowing Calgary's Andrew Cassells to score a game-winning goal.

``I fell down,'' Duchesne said that night. ``I worked hard. You make mistakes. I feel really bad about losing the game like that, but it happens.''

Presumably, he felt much worse than that, and if he did, he should have said so. When he didn't, his response was perceived as nonchalance, and unfortunately, perception becomes reality.

Along with the team's poor record and projected $15-million deficit, Duchesne's disappointing performance has prompted the Kings to reevaluate how they want to build their team.

If they spend big money on a free agent in the future, it probably will be on an elite offensive player who can score goals, attract fans and win with a young, hard-working (and lower-paid) supporting cast. It has not escaped the Kings' notice that the Ottawa Senators sit atop the Eastern Conference despite a payroll of $21 million, less than half that of the Kings.

As for Duchesne's situation, it might be resolved today, an expensive lesson for all.

Rumor central: The NHL trading deadline is noon Tuesday. Some teams are content with what they have heading into next month's playoffs. Others will gear up by adding another piece to their roster. And teams that will miss the playoffs are looking to dump players and build for the NHL of Y2K. Here's a look at some of what might and might not happen today:

Kings: Realizing they won't win the Stanley Cup this year, they could (and should) eye the future. The most attractive veterans on the roster for teams seeking a short-term playoff fix are defenseman Doug Bodger and winger Russ Courtnall.

Mighty Ducks: They aren't expected to do anything major. ``Sometimes the best thing to do is nothing,'' general manager Pierre Gautheir said.

Buffalo: The Sabres are interested in a defenseman, possibly 30-year-old Rich Pilon of the New York Islanders.

Calgary: When the Flames unloaded prospective free agent Theoren Fleury three weeks ago, they were expected to drop out of the playoff race. They haven't, and as a result, they probably won't conduct the fire sale that had been anticipated. Instead, the Flames might look to add players, possibly Pilon or Islanders center Bryan Smolinski.

Carolina: The Hurricanes are looking for a winger to play on their top line with Keith Primeau and Ray Sheppard, and also might be interested in a rushing defenseman, such as Duchesne, if he is available at a vast markdown.

Detroit: The Red Wings are struggling as they bid for their third consecutive Stanley Cup. The Wings would like to add a defenseman and a forward. On defense, they have interest in Ulf Samuelsson of the New York Rangers (although Samuelsson will miss several weeks after breaking a bone in his foot Sunday) or possibly, Bob Boughner of Nashville. At forward, players who might be Hockeytown-bound include Washington's Joe Juneau, Tampa Bay's Wendel Clark and the Islanders' Trevor Linden.

Tampa Bay: The bottom-feeding Lightning sent Benoit Hogue to Dallas on Sunday and will try to unload such veterans as Clark, Stephane Richer and Petr Svoboda.

Justice files: The NHL continues to mete out discipline in odd doses. Early in the season, Kings defenseman Rob Blake received a three-game suspension for a slash to the arm that did not seriously injure Vancouver's Harry York. Blake and York were chasing a loose puck.

But last week, Detroit's Kirk Maltby slashed Colorado's Valeri Kamensky, breaking the forward's arm and probably ending his season. The play happened away from the puck, making Maltby's act much less defensible than Blake's. Yet Maltby's punishment was just one game longer than the one handed Blake earlier in the year.

BLUE LINES By Roger Phillips

SWAP MEET

The NHL trading deadline is today, and most years, numerous teams are active and numerous players change uniforms. There were 19 trades involving 38 players at last year's deadline. Since 1979-80, there have been 188 deadline deals involving 350 players.

NOT IMPRESSED

Philadelphia's Mark Recchi is expected to be one of the top free agents on the market this summer. San Jose right wing Joe Murphy, however, is not a fan.

Murphy told the San Jose Mercury News, ``I'll put my game up against his game, any time, any situation, any day. . . . Mark Recchi this, Mark Recchi that. Everybody is chirping that and I'm tired of hearing it. He's definitely got better (career statistics) than I do, but that goes back to him playing with Mario Lemieux and Eric Lindros.''

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BOX: BLUE LINES By Roger Phillips (see text)