Ducks and Kings Get Off to Cold Start : Hockey: Kurri is in mid-season form with two goals and an assist as Los Angeles salvages a 3-3 tie against Toronto.

When the NHL’s doors swung shut, King forward Jari Kurri was practically on the first plane to Finland. He knew the team would call him once the locks were taken off.

While some Kings sweated, skated and sulked, Kurri played for his old Finnish club, Jokerit, in Helsinki and got in about half a season. And it showed as Kurri demonstrated he was in mid-season form for the long-awaited, lockout-delayed Kings’ season opener on Friday night, a 3-3 tie against the Toronto Maple Leafs at the Forum before a sellout crowd of 16,005.

Kurri did it all. He scored twice, added one assist, killed penalties and played on the power play. And he played his customarily sound defensive game. Kurri’s second goal of the game, from the left crease after a scramble in front on the power play, pulled the Kings to a 3-3 tie at 6:02 of the third period and provided a mental lift, if that’s possible in a tie game.

Wayne Gretzky showed few signs of rust, too. He scored a power-play goal in the first period and assisted on Kurri’s game-tying goal. Kurri and Gretzky were among the Kings’ few bright spots last season and they looked like they are picking up from where they left off. So what if they hadn’t played together in a regular-season game since April?

It had been assumed Kurri would be ahead of the others. He competed at a high level since the beginning of October and was pushed by an informal competition with new teammate and friend Teemu Selanne of the Winnipeg Jets. After all, they competed all summer on the tennis court, why not see who could score more for Jokerit in Helsinki.

Kurri helped awaken the Kings offense in a surprisingly quick-paced game. Both teams slowed a bit after an explosive first period. The offense dwindled in the second with the Maple Leafs taking the lead for the second time.

Defenseman Jamie Macoun, not exactly known for his offensive skills, scored from the left point just 54 seconds into the period. King goaltender Kelly Hrudey, screened by traffic in front, didn’t get a good look at the puck and was beaten down low. Last season, Macoun scored three goals in 82 games.

Hrudey faced 32 shots.

Previously, there hadn’t been much emphasis on defense by either team in the first period with it tied, 2-2. The Kings, trailing 2-0, came back with goals by Kurri and Gretzky midway through the first period.

Kurri scored the team’s first goal of the season at 10:29, converting a nifty centering pass from defenseman Alexei Zhitnik, who carried the puck in deep down the left wing before flicking it out front. All Kurri needed was time to get his stick free for a second to put it past Toronto goaltender Felix Potvin. With the goal, Kurri is tied for ninth on the NHL’s all-time goal-scoring list with John Bucyk at 556.

Less than three minutes later, Gretzky scored his first of the season, on the power play, at 13:12. One of the newest Kings, rugged right wing Rick Tocchet, acquired in the summer from Pittsburgh in the Luc Robitaille trade, used his muscle to create chaos in front of the net and picked up his first point as a King.

Earlier, the Kings had been forced to regroup after an inauspicious beginning, giving up two goals in the opening 8:26. Despite their continual pledge to cut down on unnecessary penalties, the Kings were stung on the Maple Leafs first power play.

Defenseman Marty McSorley went off at 1:20 of the first period for roughing center Mike Eastwood, and Toronto needed only four seconds to capitalize. Maple Leaf center Doug Gilmour won the draw from Pat Conacher in the right circle and Mats Sundin fed the puck to defenseman Dave Ellett at the blue line.

Ellett slid it across to power-play specialist Dmitri Mironov, who beat Hrudey down low on the stick side with a one-timer from about 40 feet out.

Toronto’s second goal was at even strength but came on an outnumbered attack.