Kings, 5 vs. Wild, 2

Well, we know that the Wild are good at one thing, and that's being inconsistent, and they showed it again last night. After beating a good Chicago team the previous night, the Wild lose to the second to last team in the West.. The Kings got the type of goals that the Wild need to be getting, the goals where there's a screen in front of the goal and a shot from the point either going in or deflecting in to the net. All night Kings players were in front of Backstrom and Harding, screening them, and there were no white jerseys around them to move them out of the crease. Kyle Calder got the first goal of the game for the Kings with a great screen from Dustin Brown and Armstrong got basically the nail in the coffin to make it 4-2 after Zidlicky had made it a one goal game when he deflected a shot from the point, and he was only a few feet from Backstrom.

With the All-Star break here (though there are still games tonight) the playoff push is here, and the Wild have to start stringing wins together if the want to be in the top eight at the end of the season.

Notes:

• Same lineup as in Chicago, with Irmen and Reitz being the heathly scratches.
• Backstrom was pulled after the second and was replaced by Harding.
• Pretty good bout between Boogaard and Ivanans.
  
  
• Zidlicky set a new club record for powerplay goals for defensemen, previously held by Burns, with his ninth goal of the season (all in the powerplay).
• Both Zidlicky and Bergeron were -3 tonight, but at least we know that Bergeron knows how to play goalie if we need him to.
• The Wild were wearing their traveling whites and LA their home jerseys.
  

UP NEXT: Tuesday (27) vs. Toronto Maple Leafs, 7:00pm CT