NEU » lves just as Kaushal Silva would go on to

ST. PAUL, Minn. -- Theres hardly a better way to create momentum in hockey than killing penalties at home, as the Minnesota Wild did so well.Scoring five straight goals to build a big lead at the second intermission will usually get that done, too.Erik Haula and Jason Pominville scored and assisted on the others first-period goal, fueling the Wild for a 6-3 victory over Los Angeles that triggered an early exit for Kings goalie Jeff Zatkoff on Tuesday night.Not every game can be a Picasso, Wild coach Bruce Boudreau said. We found a way.Three shots by the Kings hit the pipes in the first period, which Pominville punctuated with his goal with 12 seconds left after a sloppy line change that Kings coach Darryl Sutter blamed on veteran defenseman Alec Martinez.Then the Wild squelched 49 seconds of a 5-on-3 situation for the Kings midway through the second period before Charlie Coyle, Mikko Koivu and Teemu Pulkkinen scored for the Wild. Sutter pulled Zatkoff for Peter Budaj during the second intermission.The Wild, whose perennially effective penalty kill units fell to fourth-worst in the NHL last season with a stoppage rate of 77.9 percent, denied all five power plays for the Kings and finished the game as one of three remaining teams in the league without a power-play goal against them yet this season, with 11 opportunities.Youd like your power play to click, but thatd only count for one, Sutter said. There were saves to be made there that werent.Zatkoff stopped 11 shots in his third straight loss since replacing star Jonathan Quick just 20 minutes into the season opener last week. Budaj made nine saves.All I know is that If I was playing Id shoot from everywhere, Boudreau said. When you know that youve got a goalie thats a little bit rattled, youve got to get pucks at the net.Tanner Pearson had two goals, both assisted by Jeff Carter, and Anze Kopitar also scored in the third period for the Kings, but Jared Spurgeons end-to-end empty-net fling from the far corner put the bow on a banner evening for the Wild.Pearson gave the Kings the lead 50 seconds into the game, but the Wild snapped back with a breakaway goal by Haula from the left wing that sneaked between Zatkoffs pads a mere 46 seconds later. With Haula centering Pominville and Nino Niederreiter, the Wilds third line was buzzing all night.We just keep feeding off each other, and we just know where were going to be, Haula said.Darcy Kuemper, in his first start of the season, was a lot luckier than Zatkoff. He finished with 27 saves and was all smiles afterward.I got away with a couple there. The post is a goalies best friend, Kuemper said.The Kings couldnt have started the season in worse fashion, with Quick out indefinitely with a lower-body injury. After winning the Stanley Cup in 2012 and 2014, the Kings missed the postseason in 2015 and won only one playoff game last spring while going out with a whimper in their first-round loss to San Jose.Before Quick was hurt, the Kings were already down one of their top six forwards with a broken right foot for Marian Gaborik in the World Cup of Hockey likely sidelining him until late November.I think everyone knows that Quickie is a big part of this team, but with Zats and Boods we have trust in them and we have to help them out too, Pearson said.The Kings have been outscored 12-6 in three games.Thats just not going to cut it, Kopitar said. You dont have to be a scientist to figure it out.Game notes The Wild are 13-4-4 in their last 21 home games against the Kings. ... Pominville has four goals and 10 assists in 17 career games against the Kings. He didnt score his first goal last season until his 22nd game, on Nov. 28 against Dallas. ... Gaborik, who last skated for Minnesota eight seasons ago, is still the Wilds all-time leading scorer with 219 goals. Hes been replaced in the lineup by Devin Setoguchi, another former Wild player, albeit only briefly from 2011-13.UP NEXT:Los Angeles stays on the road for a visit to Dallas on Thursday night.Minnesota remains at home to play Toronto on Thursday night. Michael Taylor Jersey . Oaklands loss to Seattle clinched the ALs best record for the Red Sox with one day to spare in the regular season. "I think everybody was kind of watching," catcher David Ross said. "Demp (Ryan Dempster) came out before he went to the bullpen and was just yelling that they lost. Sean Doolittle Jersey . Louis Blues. Shane Hnidy joins Brian Munz for the broadcast on TSN 1290 Radio at 7pm ct. http://www.cheapnationalsjerseyschina.com/matt-wieters-jersey/ . PETERSBURG, Fla. Ryan Zimmerman Jersey .In my heart and mind Im competing for India, luge competitor Shiva Keshavan told The Associated Press in an email interview. Every day Im flooded with messages from Indians all over the world telling me they are supporting me. Trea Turner Jersey . From filmmaker Nanette Burstein (On the Ropes), The Price of Gold revisits the saga that rocked the figure skating world ahead of the 1994 Lillehammer Olympic Winter Games: the assault on Nancy Kerrigan, and the plot that led its way back to her rival Tonya Harding. 9Mitchell Starc (24 wickets at 15.16)Until Rangana Heraths final day burst of wickets to complete a 3-0 sweep, Starc was the series leading wicket taker by a distance, a remarkable effort in the prevailing conditions. This series was confirmation of his arrival as a mature yet still fiercely-fast Test bowler, now pain-free after ankle and foot surgeries. His evolution has been undoubtedly helped by the presence of Allan Donald on this tour, particularly in reversing the ball from over the wicket in addition to his favoured line from around the stumps. The only member of the touring party to significantly enhance his reputation, even if his batting dropped off alongside the rest of the tail.8Shaun Marsh (153 runs at 76.50)An excellent first-innings century upon returning to the team in the third Test and a decent opening stand with David Warner in the second innings too. Unfortunately Marsh was unable to confound his reputation as the architect of some great one-off innings by dint of his omission until the series had been decided. Nevertheless, Marsh has shored up his spot for the tour of India next year, regardless of what happens in the Tests at home.6Josh Hazlewood (7 wickets at 32.71)Nothing spectacular or out of the ordinary, Hazlewood at least did his job, which was more than could be said for many team-mates. He bowled economically, and took advantage of the only real seam movement available for the series by taking wickets at Pallekele. Offered next to nothing with the bat, but its not what hes in the team for.Steve OKeefe (3 wickets at 24.66)Was shaping as Australias most dangerous spin-bowling option for the series before a hamstring strain sentenced him to an early trip home. If OKeefe was crestfallen by that moment of misfortune, he at least channeled it into a long, stubborn stay at the crease alongside Peter Nevill to try stave off defeat at Pallekele - his best Test innings. Less edifying was a police report for abusing pub security and refusing to leave the venue on a night out after he returned home.5Mitchell Marsh (163 runs at 27.16 and 2 wickets at 59.00)A series of starts with the bat and some handy spells with the ball offered more evidence - admittedly of the fleeing kind - that Marsh is going to evolve into a cricketer of substance. Annoyed to be foxed by a Lakshan Sandakan googly and bowled at Pallekele, Marsh played the left-arm wristspinner better from that point, though also falling victim to Rangana Heraths wiles. Still defends with hard hands early in his innings, but progress is being made.4Steven Smith (247 runs at 41.16)Played two of the three most substantial Australian innings of the series, but also played the worst shot to get out - a harebrained charge down the wicket at Herath in Pallekele that was both unnecessary at that time and ultimately damaging to Australias chances for the whole series. As captain of a team so thoroughly humiliated, Smith maintained his dignity, but did not seem anymore capable of mastering conditions or situations than the men he led. Tactically sound, he could perhaps have bowled more, and certainly caught better.Nathan Lyon (16 wickets at 31.93)Better figures than he returned in the UAE in 2014 are misleading - Lyon needed to assert himself on this tour and was unable to do so. Partly this was because his spin up method is best suited to Australia, and partly because sheer unrelenting accuracy eluded him when it was needed. But there was also the sense, evident before, that as a quiet and diffident character, Lyon is happiest as part of a bowling ensemble rather than as the spearhead. At a time when the moment needed seizing, he could not do so.David Warner (163 runs at 27.16)A hard-driving 68 in the final innings of the series shows what Warner could have offered on this tour, had he been able to get through his first few balls at Pallekele. Instead a pair of low scores underlined his lack of match preparation coming into the tour, and thereafter his obvious talent was not accompanied by any sense of permanence at the battiing crease.dddddddddddd. It is now four overseas series since Warner last made a hundred away from home. More is needed from Smiths lieutenant.Jon Holland (5 wickets at 54.80)So surprised was Holland at his call-up to replace OKeefe that he had to renew his passport in 24 hours before flying to Sri Lanka. Once he joined the side, Holland struggled to adapt to the method best suited to the pitches, where side spin and skid are more important than overspin and bounce. Even so, Holland improved in Colombo, and in the first innings bowled beautifully. However he was let down in the field and by ill fortune, meaning he had precious few wickets to show for his work. Lacking the confidence those wickets mayhem brought, he then struggled on day four. Should not be ruled out of India.3Adam Voges (118 runs at 19.66)In the words of Tex Perkins, the honeymoon is over baby, its never gonna be that way again. Voges arrived in Sri Lanka with a Test average of 95.5 and the confident expectation of making runs after playing on a series of slow, low tracks in England with Middlesex. However he managed to get himself out in varying ways across the first two Tests, culminating in a rash of reverse sweeps in Galle. Colombo ended with a textbook lbw dismissal by Herath, the same method by which he very nearly fell to his first ball of the series. Voges Test record remains handsome, but he has receded from the Bradman platform to that of a mere Pollock. The selectors must now work out how long they want to keep him on board, and sound out Voges as to his own intentions.Joe Burns (34 runs at 8.50)Like Voges, Burns was out in a variety of ways across the first two Tests, before finding himself dropped for the Colombo Test. He looked at times to be out of his depth, but in the second innings at Pallekele established a decent platform only to cop Sandakans best ball of the series. Should the selectors choose to pick a team tailored even further to India than this one was to Sri Lanka, Burns may find himself surplus to requirements, bit it would be harsh to leave him out at home given his successes last summer. Peter Nevill (51 runs at 8.50 and 11 dismissals)One dogged innings at Pallekele, one sneaky smart stumping at the SSC and very little else. Nevill is an admirable cricketer, all hard work and diligence, but he was unable to build scores in Sri Lanka and his keeping showed signs of deterioration as the series went on. Among the biggest issues for Nevill and the selectors is that his busy, correct batting technique looks more batsman-like than his glovemans commission at No. 7 - he bats higher up the order for NSW. At the very least a shift above Mitchell Marsh may be needed to allow Nevill the chance to form partnerships with other batsmen.2Moises Henriques (8 runs at 4.00)A puzzling selection for the tour and even more so for the third Test, Henriques took an opportunity that could have been used to let Burns or Khawaja redeem themselves just as Kaushal Silva would go on to do. Henriques is a good tourist, a fine fielder and a mature young man, but his first-class record simply did not warrant inclusion to bat No. 5 in a Test match, and a pair of low scores served only to underline the point.Usman Khawaja (55 runs at 13.75)Before this tour Khawaja inked a new bat contract with Kookaburra, signifying his rise in standing and financial status after a wondrous 2015-16 season. What followed in Sri Lanka was a rapid fall, as four cheap exits and worrying patterns of dismissal had him dropped for the third Test. Perhaps most troubling in all this is the fact that Khawaja was actually one of the more experienced batsmen on tour in respect to Asian conditions - he had toured Sri Lanka in 2011 and then gone to India two years later. A return to the top three in Australia is likely, but he has some serious thinking to do before India next year, if the selectors decide to choose him, that is. ' ' '