ELIMINATING ERRORS THAT'LL BE NO. 1 PRIORITY FOR KINGS TONIGHT.

Byline: Rich Hammond Staff Writer

It's easy to look at the nine goals the Kings have allowed in their past two games, and the 2-0 deficit they face in their first-round series against the Colorado Avalanche, and assume that goaltender Felix Potvin deserves a seat at the end of the bench for tonight's Game 3 at Staples Center.

But Kings coach Andy Murray doesn't make knee-jerk decisions, and furthermore, it's obvious to him Potvin isn't the problem. The Kings are in this hole largely because of poor decisions they made with the puck that left Potvin facing high-percentage scoring opportunities against a Colorado team that doesn't waste many chances.

If the Kings are to get back in the series tonight, they will need to play smarter with the puck, not turn it over nearly as much in their own defensive zone, and not allow the Avalanche and its more talented top-line forwards to set the pace of the game at a level the Kings cannot match.

And of course, the Kings need Potvin to remain strong and not get rattled mentally by his 4.50 goals-against average. Through two games, he essentially has been the equal of Colorado's all-world goaltender, Patrick Roy, and that's more than the Kings could have reasonably expected at the beginning of the series.

Potvin hasn't been spectacular, he hasn't dominated a game the way he did several times during last season's playoff series against the Avalanche, but it's not as though he's allowing 30-foot slap shots to sail between his pads, either. He's been solid, but the victim of some shaky play in front of his net.

Colorado scored three goals on Potvin in Game 3. One came on a 5-on-3 Avalanche power play, another after a failed clearing attempt by Kings defenseman Lubomir Visnovsky and a third when Steven Reinprecht won a one-on-one battle with Kings defenseman Aaron Miller in front of the net and tipped a pass past the unsuspecting Potvin.

Part of the problem seems to be the Kings' inability to adjust to the return of Colorado forward Peter Forsberg. At the start of the series, Murray knew the Kings would have a tough time matching up against the Avalanche's top scoring line, led by leading scorer Joe Sakic.

The Kings didn't count on Forsberg, who didn't play a game in the regular season, playing this well. Forsberg scored a rebound goal from a tough angle in Game 2, and although none of his four assists have been highlight caliber, his presence on the ice seems to have given the Avalanche a lift.

With Forsberg, the Avalanche has two dangerous scoring lines for the Kings to contend with, and Colorado has succeeded in forcing a more frenetic pace, which means less time for decision making and an increased chance for mistakes.

Another problem is the Kings' depth at forward. Murray reunited Jason Allison, Adam Deadmarsh and Ziggy Palffy on the team's top scoring line, a combination that worked well midway through the season, but the move has made the Kings a team with only one line capable of keeping up with the Avalanche's quickness.

The Kings' second line of Jaroslav Bednar, Cliff Ronning and Bryan Smolinski showed some spark in Game 1 but seemed to regress in Game 2, and the Kings' two ``energy'' lines, as Murray calls them, often gave the Kings a boost in the regular season but haven't been up to the task in the playoffs.

The Kings stayed close in the first two games because of their ability to score on Roy, but they know they can't count on scoring three goals against Roy in every game. After allowing the third goal in Game 3, Roy performed brilliantly from the middle of the second period on, and the Avalanche backed him up with three consecutive goals.

In both games, the Kings have scored three goals against Roy and lost. If Roy should elevate the level of his play, the worst might be ahead for the Kings.

KINGS vs. COLORADO

Faceoff: 7 p.m., Staples Center.

TV/Radio: Fox Sports Net; 1110-AM.

Matchup: The Kings are happy to be home after going winless in their past eight road games going back to the regular season. The Kings like their defensemen to get involved in the offensive attack, but Aaron Miller has a plus-minus rating of minus-4, the worst of any player in the series. Only 32 teams have trailed 2-0 and come back to win a best-of-seven NHL playoff series.

- Rich Hammond

CAPTION(S):

photo, 2 boxes

Photo:

Colorado's Peter Forsberg, scoring against Felix Potvin in Game 2 for his first goal this season, has given the Avs a spark.

Jack Forsberg/Associated Press

Box:

(1) KINGS vs. COLORADO (see text)

(2) KINGS vs. COLORADO: Colorado leads best-of-seven series 2-0