I gotta say it. Kings coach Andy Murray has got pucks. Brass pucks. In the heat of battle, with the series on the line in Game 4 of his team's first-round series with the heavily-favored Red Wings (let's face it -- if the Kings lost, they weren't coming back from 1-3 against the Wings), Murray took a chance. A risk. He gave the second-guessers on press row an opening wider than anything in the Ottawa Senators penalty-killing unit.

Down 3-1 with just 3:22 left in regulation time, with the Kings preparing for a power play chance, Murray signaled goalie Felix Potvin to the bench.

Despite the fact that his team had scored a power play goal just 3:40 earlier, Murray didn't envision a repeat performance. In his gut, he knew the Wings' savvy penalty killers would be tough to beat in this spot. So Murray took a deep breath, rolled the dice and pulled Potvin, giving the Kings a 6-on-4 man advantage.

Six-on-four ... what's the gamble?

Down a man, the Wings could clear the puck without the fear of an icing call. In other words, Detroit's snipers could take free shots at the empty cage. If one of those salvos hits the target, the game is over. And so is the series.

The killing shot, though, was never fired.

Suddenly revved up, the Kings battled feverishly in the Wings' zone. The extra extra man seemed to overwhelm the usually-poised Wings. Murray's gamble and the team's hard work paid off. With just 2:27 left on the clock, Josef Stumpel slid a puck from the side of the net that somehow ended up just over the goal line. Then, 94 seconds later, Bryan Smolinski netted the tying goal. Hey baby, overtime!

After the ice was Zambonied, the Kings completed the Miracle off Manchester (hey, L.A. fans know what I'm saying) just 2:36 into the extra session when rookie center Eric Belanger lifted a loose puck past a stunned Chris Osgood. The Staples Center crowd went bonkers. Fans were jumping and screaming and hugging in the aisles. Suddenly, their team was alive!

For that, they can thank Andy Murray, the coach with the brass pucks.

E.J. Hradek covers hockey for ESPN The Magazine. E-mail him at ej.hradek@espnmag.com.