|
 Goaltender Darcy Kuemper posted his second shutout of the season,
allowing the Wild to earn a 3-0 victory over the Kings on Thursday
night at Staples Center.
Kuemper stopped 32 shots as the Wild, who lost 3-1 to the Anaheim
Ducks on Wednesday night. Minnesota (23-16-8) won for the first time
since Jan. 7, when it earned a 2-1 decision over the Toronto Maple
Leafs.
"Obviously, we had a tough stretch, so we're due in a lot of areas,
and I think our game had been a lot better the last couple of games,
just weren't really getting the results," said Kuemper, who has
seven career shutouts. "That seems to happen a lot of times when
you're coming around with something, but tonight, you know, we get
that early power-play goal, and it was nice to see them rewarded."
Left winger Zach Parise and centers Charlie Coyle and Erik Haula
each scored a goal for Minnesota. The Wild are 20-4-2 when they
score first and 16-0-1 when leading after the second period.
Kings netminder Jonathan Quick had 25 saves.
The Kings (29-14-3) were blanked for the first time since Dec. 19,
when the Maple Leafs pounded them 5-0. Los Angeles was shut out for
only the third time this season.
"I liked our focus," Minnesota coach Mike Yeo said. "Again,
continuing to stay with it despite the way things have gone and
finding a way to be a little bit better."
After Kings right winger Dustin Brown skated off for crosschecking,
Parise delivered his 17th goal of the season, converting a pass from
left winger Thomas Vanek for a power-play goal and 1-0 lead at 3:12
of the second period.
"I feel like even though we've been struggling, I feel like our game
has been getting a little bit better here, and that's got to be the
focus," Yeo said. "We've got to continue to try to get better, and
we'll do the same thing like we've been doing."
With 14 seconds left in the middle period, the Wild scored on a
beautifully executed play. Coyle was on the receiving end of an
excellent pass from defenseman Marco Scandella, who flipped the puck
to Coyle behind the Kings' defense. Coyle scored on a breakaway for
a 2-0 advantage.
The Kings challenged the play for offside, but the call stood. Los
Angeles never seemed the same afterward.
"We didn't play a really good game," Kings center Vinny Lecavalier
said. "They were skating pretty good in the second period. They got
that momentum and they got that goal in the last minute."
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Haula scored a short-handed goal at 5:04 of the third period,
fielding a pass from center Mikko Koivu and snapping a wrist shot
past Quick for the final margin. It was Haula's fourth goal this
season.
"Score the first goal, might be a difference," Kings coach Darryl
Sutter said. "No excuses. We lost opportunities in the first period
to go up one or two. We had two or three opportunities. We made
really good plays, and they didn't shoot it. It was a close game.
The teams were close."
Wild center Jarret Stoll, a former King, received a warm ovation in
the first period. Stoll, claimed off waivers by Minnesota after the
New York Rangers released him, returned to Staples Center for the
first time since he and the Kings parted ways during the offseason.
Stoll was part of the Kings' 2012 and 2014 Stanley Cup
championships.
Stoll, who scored his first goal in a Wild uniform in the setback to
the Ducks, registered 9:59 of ice time Thursday.
NOTES: Kings F Anze Kopitar produced four goals and 16 assists in
the previous 12 games before being blanked Thursday. Kopitar has
nine goals and 18 assists in 38 contests against Minnesota. ... Wild
C Mikko Koivu has 29 points (eight goals, 21 assists) in 32 games
against the Kings. ... Minnesota scratched RW Justin Fontaine, D
Tyson Strachan and G Niklas Backstrom. ... D Christian Ehrhoff and C
Andy Andreoff were unavailable for Los Angeles. ... Kings G Jonathan
Quick celebrated his 30th birthday, while Los Angeles D Brayden
McNabb turned 25. Wild D Ryan Suter enjoyed his 31st birthday. ...
The teams meet again March 22 at Minnesota. ... Both clubs resume
play Saturday. The Wild cap their four-game road swing at the San
Jose Sharks, while the Kings visit the Arizona Coyotes. ... An
announced crowd of 18,230 attended.
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