New Look, Old Style for Kings : Hokey: They play like last season’s team in beating the Flyers, 4-1, and go five games above .500 with 9-3-1 streak.

Brian Benning had to be shaking his head.

Was this really his old team?

Could this really be the team he left through a trade two weeks ago, a club that could never really be sure which parts of its complicated machine would be working on any given night?

It was a team that couldn’t be sure its offense would be in gear, its defense would show up or that its power play would come equipped with any power.

It was a team that couldn’t even be sure it was going to make the playoffs.

But that was a few weeks ago.

Instead, what Benning saw Tuesday night during the Kings’ 4-1 victory at the Forum as a member of the Philadelphia Flyers was a sight more familiar to two of his new/old teammates, Steve Duchesne and Steve Kasper.

In getting their fifth victory in a row, the Kings looked more like the confident, efficient unit they were a year ago when Kasper and Duchesne were part of the team that swept to its first Smythe Division title.

After struggling at .500 for much of the season, the Kings have moved five games over at 29-24-13, going 9-3-1 in their last 13.

The Kings’ five-game winning streak began with the return of wing Tomas Sandstrom after a 26-game absence because of a partially dislocated shoulder.

And that is more than just a coincidence.

Sandstrom had a hand in two goals Tuesday. He scored his 14th of the season and fourth in the five games since his return. He also added an assist.

But he adds much more than that.

Sandstrom gives the Kings a strong second line, perhaps their strongest line at the moment, by allowing Tony Granato to move to center. Despite the fact that Luc Robitaille, operating from left wing on the second line all season, has a team-high 39 goals, he hasn’t had a steady center since opening night.

Granato, who scored his 34th goal Tuesday, appears to have finally filled that role, perhaps better than anyone since Bernie Nicholls was traded two seasons ago.

“It’s just a coincidence,” Sandstrom said when asked if there was a correlation between his return and the Kings’ streak. “They had been playing well before and we’ve had a lot of home games.”

But his linemates were not so hesitant to give him credit.

“It gives our team depth,” Robitaille said of Sandstrom’s return, “and so much speed. The other teams have to use two checking lines. There is no time for them to score.”

No argument from Granato.

“That guy there is an inspiration,” he said of Sandstrom. “If every team had 20 Tomas Sandstroms, they would have a lot of success. Fortunately, we have one.”

King Notes

King wing Corey Millen sat out Tuesday night because of a sore shoulder. He is questionable for tonight’s game against the San Jose Sharks. . . . The Kings will make a rare trip on a commercial airliner to get to San Francisco for today’s game. Owner Bruce McNall has leased the King jet to Gov. Bill Clinton (D-Ark.) for his presidential campaign. Clinton will have the plane until March 10. . . . Although he is sidelined for the season because of a knee injury, Steve Kasper accompanied the Flyers.