Taylor Honored With King-Sized Victory, 7-2 Over Oilers : Hockey: Former right wing from days of the Triple Crown Line is lauded by team, fans and opponents at the Forum.

His ears heard the warm cheers from the faithful Forum fans and accolades from the former teammates and associates. His hands were full of gifts by the end of Monday night. And his eyes watched the dramatic unveiling and retirement of the white, black and silver No. 18 jersey along the north wall, alongside those of King goaltender and team president Rogie Vachon and Hall of Famer Marcel Dionne.

After former right wing Dave Taylor’s senses were properly dazzled, the Kings presented him with one more gift, something of a postscript for a special night, a 7-2 victory against the Edmonton Oilers as Tony Granato had his fourth career hat trick.

The Kings (12-15-7) punctuated Taylor’s accomplishments by winning only their fourth game at the Forum this season.

Taylor spent his entire 17-season career in Los Angeles, playing more games for them--1,111--than anyone in franchise history.

The highlight of his King career was playing in the 1993 Stanley Cup finals against Montreal, and Taylor on Monday remembered some advice he was given for that occasion.

“Early on, I was nervous,” Taylor told reporters after the first period. “And then I settled down. I was trying to take time to enjoy it. Before the Stanley Cup finals, people said to make sure you enjoy it. I took a minute then and tried to do the same tonight.”

For the 30-minute pregame ceremony, Taylor was joined by his wife Beth and daughters Jamie and Katie, his parents Andy and Margaret and several former King teammates, including Triple Crown linemate Charlie Simmer. About 20 other relatives were on hand for the festivities as was NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman, who was loudly booed by the crowd.

Taylor, 39, a 15th-round draft pick and 210th overall in 1975 from Clarkson University, addressed the crowd, which gave him a long standing ovation.

Vachon paid tribute to Taylor, who retired in April after suffering a series of concussions his last two seasons. “During this franchise, there’s been a lot of ups and downs,” he said. “But we could always count on No. 18 to play every night.”

The ceremony featured a video of highlights from Taylor’s career. The Oilers presented him with a plaque and the NHL made a contribution to the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation. The King players, coaches and trainers gave Taylor a Rolex watch and the organization presented Taylor and his family with a Toyota Land Cruiser, an Alaskan cruise as well as a handful of other gifts.

The announced crowd was a sellout of 16,005 but there were plenty of empty seats, in part due to the NCAA Championship basketball game.

Taylor, who is now the assistant to King General Manager Sam McMaster, even acknowledged the unfortunate scheduling conflict in his own classy way, thanking reporters for coming to the game instead of watching UCLA.

King Notes

Right wing Rick Tocchet, who wrenched his back on Saturday, visited a back specialist on Monday but the condition appears to be unrelated to his disk problems, which forced him to have surgery last summer. . . . NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman met with King owner Joe Cohen on Monday and addressed rumors of the team’s financial problems, denying that the league has helped the organization meet payroll. “I was brought up to date and I think the franchise is well on its way to getting itself (going),” he said. “Joe (Cohen) is very optimistic. . . . I believe on what I was told today they are in the process--hopefully toward the end of the process--of getting their house in order and they’re optimistic about the future.”

Bettman was asked whether Laker owner Jerry Buss had stepped in to help the Kings meet their payroll obligations. “If he is, I’m not aware of it,” Bettman said.