KINGS NOTEBOOK: COWAN A REAL FIND FOR L.A.

Byline: Matt McHale Staff Writer

CALGARY, Alberta - A day after acquiring Anson Carter from Washington to cement their playoff push, the Kings picked up Jeff Cowan from Atlanta in a deal that was largely overlooked.

After two weeks, Carter has done little. Meanwhile, Cowan has become the true find of the March 9 trading deadline.

In Saturday afternoon's 3-2 overtime loss to the Flames, Cowan scored his first goal with the Kings. He also assisted on a goal by Sean Avery and took on heavyweight Chris Simon.

In hockey, they call those three the ``Gordie Howe hat trick.''

``This guy has been incredible,'' Avery said. ``He is the kind of guy you want on your team. He took on one of the toughest guys in the league. In this game you stick up for your teammates. He is great.''

Cowan, who recorded a career-high 10th goal, scored even more points by avenging a first-period hit Simon made that flattened Kings defenseman Nathan Dempsey.

``It's not that big a deal, that's what we're supposed to do,'' Cowan said. ``We're still here to win games. That won't change until the season is over.''

Kings General Manager Dave Taylor got Cowan to add some size to his checking line. At 6-foot-2, 210 pounds, he also can score goals. The Kings gave up enforcer Kip Brennan, who played little this season. The team was looking for scorers after Jason Allison, Adam Deadmarsh and Ziggy Palffy were lost for the season.

Cowan, 27, originally was drafted by the Flames and scored his career high in goals (nine) during the 2000-2001 season. He was traded to Atlanta in December, 2001 and played 66 games for the Thrashers last season.

Atlanta faded this season after a quick start and did not have a true enforcer. Before the trade, Cowan appeared in 54 games with Atlanta despite missing 10 games with a concussion.

``I was really surprised when they made the deal,'' Cowan said. ``I thought I had a future there. Maybe the concussion had something to do with it. But this has turned out very well for me.''

--Stumpel hurt: Center Jozef Stumpel left the game midway through the second period with what the team was calling an upper body injury.

Stumpel, whose character has been questioned in the past because of his many injuries, has been one of the most durable players the Kings have had this season. He has appeared in 56 consecutive games since missing a month with torn rib cartilage.

Stumpel, an unrestricted free agent after the season, has eight goals and 37 points in 64 games. He was the only member of the Kings second line who wasn't benched Saturday. Alexander Frolov and Martin Straka did not play.

--Quick whistles: Appearing to end their power-play slump with five goals in 16 attempts on the last homestand, the Kings are scoreless in their last 10 chances during the past three games. Jarome Iginla recorded his 500th career point on Simon's goal at 1:26 of the second period. Iginla, the league's top scorer in 2001-2002, also assisted on Craig Conroy's goal later in the period.

Matt McHale, [phone]

matt.mchale(at)dailynews.com

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