FOR 10 YEARS, DEFENSEMAN NORSTROM HAS PROVIDED THE KINGS A ... ROCK-SOLID FOUNDATION.

Byline: Rich Hammond  Staff Writer

Mattias Norstrom figured it might be time to move on, that his career with the Kings was ending.

With his contract set to expire after this season, Norstrom thought the Kings would bid him farewell.

``I've been here 10 years and we have no Stanley Cup rings to show for it, and no real (playoff) success that I brought to the team,'' Norstrom said. ``I take responsibility for what happens here, and I thought they would say, `We had Matty here for 10 years and we didn't win.''

``As the captain, a lot of that responsibility falls on me.''

If there is one player the Kings haven't worried about during an up- and-down decade, it has been Norstrom - not 10 years ago today, when they acquired the 24-year-old defenseman from the New York Rangers - and not last week, when they gave him a two-year, $8.5 million extension.

His blend of quiet leadership and rugged determination have made him a cornerstone on a team that often has had some rough edges.

``He's a Viking warrior,'' teammate Luc Robitaille said. ``He means everything to this team. ... He's a born leader and he has that respect. When Matty talks, people listen.''

Throw out a bunch of adjectives, and they will all stick to Norstrom. Responsible, stoic, talented, respected, diligent, intelligent and humble. He wasn't sure if he deserved the extension. He was the only one.

``It doesn't surprise me that he would say that,'' team president and general manager Dave Taylor said. ``From day one, he's been a tremendous character player for us. He's the kind of person who never points fingers if we lose. He always looks at himself first and looks at what he could have done better.

``That was probably instilled in Matty when he was very young. He has that natural ability to lead. You can't teach that. From the way he plays, he demands respect from his teammates, and from the way he works out in the gym. He's 34 years old and by far our best-conditioned player.''

It has all worked out better than most NHL followers would have imagined 10 years ago.

At the time, the trade didn't look like much. It was the end of an era for the Kings, who 16 days earlier traded Wayne Gretzky to St. Louis and started a rebuilding phase that didn't look so bright.

Norstrom had barely gotten a sniff with the Rangers - 43 games during the previous three seasons. But he got his chance when the Kings sent Marty McSorley, Jari Kurri and Shane Churla to the New York Rangers for Ray Ferraro, Ian Laperriere, Nathan LaFayette, a draft pick and Norstrom.

He quickly played himself into a regular role, became an All-Star and a member of the Swedish Olympic team. Though never a scorer, he already has tied a career high this season with 22 points.

``I'll tell you my favorite Matty story,'' Robitaille said. ``It was the seven-game (playoff) series against Colorado in 2001 and Matty and (fellow Swede) Peter Forsberg played almost every shift against each other and they hit as hard as they could. Forsberg went to dinner with some of us (after Game 7) and he started feeling really bad, and then they found out he had ruptured his spleen.

``That was as hard as I've ever seen two guys play each other.''

Some leaders yell and try to fire up the troops, but that never has been Norstrom's style.

It's a cliche to say he leads by example, and maybe not entirely accurate either. Norstrom became a leader because he worked hard, the only way he knew how, and others followed. It's not fake, or calculated. It's who Norstrom is, who he's always been, and it works.

``I love people who can show that strong emotion,'' Norstrom said. ``If you're that kind of person, that's how you should lead. But if you're not that kind of person, it doesn't seem real, like it comes from the heart. I admire those people but I'm not going to be something that I'm not.

``You have to lead the way you are. It doesn't matter what you say, it's what you do. (Former Kings captain Rob Blake) taught me that. And also, he treated everybody - whether it was their first or 101st or 1,001st game - he treated them the same. He started off by being a super person, before a super hockey player.''

Norstrom has become the type of leader he once admired. Even though it might be a bit of a mystery to him, it's no secret why the Kings want to keep him around.

``L.A. is my home now,'' Norstrom said. ``I'm very honored that the Kings want to keep me around, and I want nothing more right now than to bring a Stanley Cup to the Kings.''

Rich Hammond, [phone]

rich.hammond(at)dailynews.com

CAPTION(S):

3 photos, 2 boxes

Photo:

(1 -- color) Kings defenseman Mattias Norstrom's is respected for his hard work and tough play on the ice - as San Jose's Joe Thornton finds out.

Noah Graham/Getty Images

(2 -- color) no caption (Mattias Norstrom)

Getty Images

(3) Mattias Norstrom has been a steady presence for the Kings during the past 10 years.

Box:

(1) KINGS vs. PHOENIX

(2) SHARK BIT