KINGS TAKE IT TO THE LEAFS L.A. HAS SOLID PLAY AGAINST A SOLID TEAM KINGS 3, TORONTO 1.

Byline: Matt McHale Staff Writer

TORONTO - Andy Murray usually talks down the really big wins, plays up the missed opportunities and the other team's character.

Tuesday night, he pumped his fist.

Murray knew the Kings' convincing 3-1 victory over the Toronto Maple Leafs was one of the biggest regular-season wins during his three years coaching the team.

The Maple Leafs have the best record in the Eastern Conference and came in with five consecutive victories. There is Stanley Cup talk in the chilly air up here and the Kings played it like a Santa Ana wind.

This wasn't like that 7-1 rout of Columbus in October. The Kings were playing a real team this time and played them into the ice.

``You could see everyone was on their game,'' said goaltender Felix Potvin, the former Leaf who stopped 22 of 23 shots to extend the Kings' unbeaten streak to six games. ``And when they started to come back we shut the door.''

It helped that the Maple Leafs (20-9-2-3) were playing without Canada's Olympic goaltender Curtis Joseph, who was down with the flu.

But more important was the confidence that has been building the past three weeks. This time, the Kings put away Toronto with a goal they never would have scored even 10 days ago.

Just a minute after Darcy Tucker cut the Kings lead to 2-1 with a goal midway through the third, Adam Deadmarsh scored on an impossible shot from the corner that hit a defenseman and goaltender Corey Schwab before going in.

``For any kid watching who always hears, `Just shoot the puck and good things happen,' that was it,'' said Jason Allison, who had two assists and now has 25 points in 25 games with the Kings. ``I think it went in off the goaltender's bum.''

For Deadmarsh, who still has a shot for a spot on the U.S. Olympic team, it was his 11th goal of the year. But it was more than that, too.

``I think it deflated them,'' said Ian Laperriere, who scored the Kings' second goal. ``They were coming on, and we got that goal right back. We grabbed the momentum again.''

And that was enough for Potvin, who was nine minutes from the 20th shutout of his career.

He'll be in goal again Thursday when the Kings continue their three-game Canadian swing in Ottawa. The Senators aren't as hot as the Maple Leafs, but they are the third-best scoring team in the East.

But Ottawa is expected to play without captain and leading scorer Daniel Alfredsson, who has missed the past month with a hip injury.

``Maybe some of the breaks have gone in our favor, but I don't know if (Joseph) would have made a difference tonight,'' Murray said. ``I tend to not look beyond the next shift,'' Murray said.

``My life is spent 40 seconds at a time. Then the next line comes on and plays another 40 seconds. This was a great game, but we need to keep it going.''

The game was scoreless after the first period with the Kings heading into traditionally their toughest period this season. Instead, they scored twice in the second and pushed the action against one of the league's hottest teams.

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Photo:

The Kings' Lidomar Visnovsky, right, moves past Toronto winger Alexander Mogilny in the second period Tuesday night in Toronto.

Frank Gunn/Associated Press