A BLUES MONDAY\Gretzky hurts old team\ST. LOUIS 3, KINGS 1.

Byline: Tim Trepany Daily News Staff Writer

Wayne Gretzky left his home at Sherwood Country Club and followed a familiar path to the Forum on Monday.

Former Kings owner and admitted felon Bruce McNall had a front-row seat and an enthusiastic sellout crowd of 16,005 was on hand.

It wasn't exactly like his days as a King, however, as he used the visiting locker room for the first time in more than eight years, and heard steady boos from many during the game.

But one thing remained constant: In a big contest, Gretzky will come through in a big way.

Gretzky got a goal and an assist as his new team, the St. Louis Blues, beat his old team 3-1, in his first visit back to the Forum since the Feb. 27 trade.

"He seemed a little hesitant at first," Kings coach Larry Robinson said. "That's a typical Gretzky night. He's always in the right place at the right time."

It couldn't have been a more fitting homecoming for the man who brought respectability to a moribund franchise when he came over before the 1988-89 season from the Edmonton Oilers.

Playing his first game in Inglewood as a visitor since Feb. 6, 1988, his goal at seven minutes of the second period gave the Blues a 1-0 lead, and he assisted on a goal by Stephane Matteau eight minutes, 10 seconds later.

Gretzky, the league's all-time scoring leader, acted like a player who had just gotten his first NHL points. He raised both arms in triumph and smiled broadly after each point, even skipping back to the Blues bench after his goal.

Gretzky just missed adding another goal in the third period, when he hit the left post at 4:28.

"It was emotional, intense and jittery," Gretzky said. "It was a tough day. It was like a playoff game."

It was also a relief to get his two-day Southern California swing over with. Blues teammate Brett Hull said Gretzky appeared almost sullen on this trip, something attributable to not only the pressure of his homecoming, but grief over the death of a close friend and concern about his 7-year-old daughter's laser eye surgery today.

"I don't know what the word is, but he seemed unusually quiet," said Hull. "You would have to ask him to repeat what he said, he was that quiet."

Gretzky now has 13 points as a Blue, who are 5-3-1 with him. The Kings, who again failed to gain ground in the Western Conference playoff race, are 3-5-0 since the deal, including four straight losses, and are 15 games below .500.

"Just watch him," Kings left wing Eric Lacroix said. "The guy is unbelievable. I've never seen a guy anticipate so much."

Gretzky drew a constant response from the crowd. The boos weren't as rampant as the ones he heard in Anaheim the night before; many in the crowd even cheered to try to drown out the negative response with cheers.

Gretzky joked, "Bruce (McNall) was here, so they were saying 'Bruuuce.' "

The signals remained mixed throughout the evening. One banner read, "First the Rams, now The Great One" while another one made a rude remark denigrating the Blues' Stanley Cup chances.

"There were a lot of cheers as well," said Kings goalie Kelly Hrudey. "That's nice to know that fans appreciate his contribution to the game of hockey. The game wouldn't be where it is now without his contributions."

Said Robinson, "Fans forget very easily, like we all do. You have to go onward and upward . . . hopefully upward."

Hrudey, making his first start in seven games, kept the Kings in the game with several impressive saves, but he was bumped by Hull on Gretzky's goal and let a shot by Matteau trickle off his glove and into the net.

As Gretzky shot from the base of the left circle, Hull tripped over Kings defenseman Sean O'Donnell and slid into Hrudey. After the goal, all six Kings on the ice huddled around referee Bill McCreary in the right corner, but to no avail.

Hrudey was also angry after the Blues' second goal, but at himself for allowing Matteau's shot to bounce off his glove slide and into the net for a 2-1 Blues lead.

After Gretzky's goal, Kings defenseman Doug Zmolek answered just 1:33 later with a slap shot from the left circle that beat Grant Fuhr, who was screened by Gary Shuchuk.

It was Zmolek's first goal as a King.

Fuhr, who failed miserably last season for the Kings after coming over in a trade from Buffalo, also gained a measure of revenge. He stopped 35 shots to get his second win at the Forum in as many games this season.

Gretzky was the first Blues player to hug Fuhr after the game.

Hull capped the scoring with an empty-net goal with six seconds left.

Notes: Gretzky is going to stay in Los Angeles while his daughter undergoes surgery. If all goes well, as expected, he'll take a 10 o'clock flight tonight to Dallas, where the Blues play the Stars on Wednesday. . . . Center Robert Lang and defenseman Rob Cowie were the healthy scratches for the Kings. . . . The list of injured scratches included three players the Kings obtained during the season in trades: left wing Kevin Stevens (fractured bone in left leg), forward Craig Johnson (left shoulder sprain) and center Ian Laperriere (left shoulder sprain). . . . Tony Granato, who underwent brain surgery on Feb. 14, watched the game from behind the glass and received a standing ovation when his picture was shown on the video scoreboard during the third period.

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Photo (1--color) Wayne Gretzky tries to get the puck past the Kings' Kevin Todd during his return to the Forum. (2) Clint Walker from Santa Monica shows how he feels about Wayne Gretzky as he displays a friend's license plate at the Forum. Michael Owen Baker/Daily News Box BIG DEAL?