AVALANCHE BURIES KINGS MISSING 10 PLAYERS, L.A. ALLOWS FORSBERG HAT TRICK COLORADO 6, KINGS 1.

Byline: Matt McHale Staff Writer

DENVER - Mathieu Schneider, meet Jerrod Smithson, Steve Kelly and Jared Aulin. You might need them someday to help you win a game.

For now, though, the newest Kings have been thrown into an injury crisis that reached 10 players Sunday night before the club took the ice for a 6-1 beating by the Colorado Avalanche at Pepsi Center.

Defenseman Lubomir Visnovsky was the latest player to join the list, coming down with the flu just before game time. Visnovsky posted his name in the trainer's room alongside Jason Allison (sprained right knee), Adam Deadmarsh (concussion), Bryan Smolinski (eye), Alexander Frolov (cut cheek), Erik Rasmussen (back), Eric Belanger (back), Ken Belanger (concussion), Steve Heinze (concussion) and Aaron Miller (broken foot).

Try replacing those guys with rookies like Smithson - who made his NHL debut - Aulin and Kip Brennan. Add a three-goal night by the Avs' Peter Forsberg, and the results were predictable.

After winning five of six, the Kings (16-13-4-3) have dropped three of four and have been outscored 14-2 in the three losses.

``Every team goes through this, although maybe not this much,'' Schneider said. ``We have to hang in there and stay positive until we get our guys back. The people in this room can win games.''

But Kings coach Andy Murray said he doesn't expect any of his injured players back for tonight's game against the Chicago Blackhawks at Staples Center.

Allison's sprained right knee has shown some improvement, but it now is clear he rushed his rehabilitation by returning in five weeks instead of the prescribed two-to-three months.

Deadmarsh is anyone's guess. He gets better, then gets dizzy again. Though he has missed 16 of the Kings' 36 games, he still leads the club with 13 goals.

Against the Avs, who moved into sixth in the West after a slow start, those losses could not be overcome.

Of the Kings' top six forwards, only Ziggy Palffy was in uniform Sunday night. He scored the Kings' only goal, giving the club an early 1-0 lead. But the Avs scored the next six, including three on the power play.

If anyone knows about injuries, it is Forsberg, who missed the regular season last year with bad feet and a ruptured spleen.

He took advantage of a 5-on-3 penalty by the Kings to score his first goal with 25 seconds remaining in the first period.

To that point, the Kings had played well. The first penalty was called on Mikko Eloranta for hooking. The second was a delay-of-game penalty when the Kings failed to line up for a faceoff within the five-second limit imposed on visiting teams.

They already had been warned once, and referee Jay Sharrers wasted no time in calling the penalty.

``I don't know if it made a difference in the game, but it sure changed the momentum,'' Ian Laperriere said. ``We were never the same after that.''

The Avs also got goals from Radim Vrbata, Dean McAmmond and Alex Tanguay.

But the night belonged to Forsberg. Playing without leading scorer Joe Sakic (sprained ankle), Forsberg scored his next two goals during a 3:16 stretch early in the third period.

Forsberg also had two goals and an assist Oct. 17 during a 4-1 Avs victory over the Kings at Staples Center.

His second goal Sunday was testament to his strength, as Forsberg carried two Kings defensemen into the slot before poking the puck past goaltender Felix Potvin.

Minutes later, Forsberg fired a 20-footer past Potvin to the stick side.

``The first one was the 5-on-3, and I think (Potvin) kicked it in,'' said Forsberg, who last had a hat trick in 1999 against Florida. ``On the third one, I was just trying to shoot it and it went in.''

When Forsberg last recorded a three-goal game, Deadmarsh was one of his linemates. Almost two years after his trade to the Kings, Deadmarsh's return remains a mystery.

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Photo:

Colorado's Peter Forsberg (21) slides the puck past Kings goalie Felix Potvin in the third period.

David Zalubowski/Associated Press