Gästebuch » Wrap up a three-game homestand

When the Los Angeles Kings host the Arizona Coyotes on Thursday night at Staples Center www.officialstarsproonline.com , they’ll try to pick up where they left off before the Christmas break. The Kings (14-20-3) have collected points in three straight games for the first time this season, beating the visiting Winnipeg Jets 4-1 followed by overtime wins at the San Jose Sharks and Vegas Golden Knights on consecutive days last weekend.“It’s going to make the break that much better and we feel really good in here,” Kings defenseman Drew Doughty told reporters after the win against Vegas on Sunday. “At the same time, we can’t let this break slow down our momentum. We’ve got to carry it through and carry it on after.”Article continues below ...The Coyotes (16-18-2) won two in a row before the break, beating the visiting Colorado Avalanche 6-4 on Saturday to end a three-game losing streak before winning a shootout in San Jose on Sunday.“It definitely boosts our confidence,” said Arizona forward Alex Galchenyuk, who scored twice in regulation and had the only goal of the shootout against San Jose. “We’re working hard, playing the right way, executing the game plan. We’re a hard team to beat and we’re creating scoring chances, we’re going to the net and playing solid in our own end. … We’ve got to keep going now. We’re not satisfied. There’s still a lot of games to be played and we’ve got to keep pushing.”The Coyotes have already won at Staples Center this season, beating the Kings 2-1 on Dec. 4.Adin Hill made 25 saves in that game to improve to 4-0-0 in his rookie season, but he has allowed at least three goals in each of his past five starts and was returned to Tucson of the American Hockey League on Monday.Darcy Kuemper likely will get the start against the Kings on Thursday. He earned the win against San Jose after losing his previous six starts, though the Coyotes were held to one goal in four of those outings and two in another.The Kings remain last in the NHL in scoring at 2.30 goals a game Dallas Stars T-Shirts Authentic , but they’ve done better lately, scoring at least three goals in four straight games for the first time this season.Despite a rocky first three months of the season, Los Angeles is only eight points out of the final playoff spot in the Western Conference.“You never know what can happen,” Doughty said. “We know that if we can win, let’s say 15 out of 20, 17 out of 20, something like that, we might be back in the picture. You never know, so we’ve just got to control what we’re doing and win some hockey games.”The Coyotes are five points out of the final playoff spot. They also realize they need to keep winning if they hope to reach the playoffs for the first time since the 2011-12 season, when they lost to the Kings in the Western Conference finals.“It’s going to be a big second half for us, a big push mentally,” Arizona coach Rich Tocchet told reporters after the win against San Jose. RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — Nothing brings out the best in New York Islanders goalie Thomas Greiss quite like the Carolina Hurricanes — and the barrage of shots they toss his way.The Islanders beat Carolina 2-1 on Sunday night after Greiss made 38 saves in his fifth straight victory against the Hurricanes.“He seems to love this building Dallas Stars Hoodies Authentic ,” teammate Anders Lee said. “He’s seen everything, and for him to come in tonight and stand on his head … he’s the main reason we really won tonight.”Lee had a goal and an assist, Ryan Pulock scored the go-ahead goal late in the second period and Josh Bailey had two assists for the Islanders, who have earned points in three straight games. Playing eight of their first 11 games under new coach Barry Trotz on the road, they’ve won two in a row for the first time.“Guys have bought in right from the start, but hesitation at times — maybe being unsure of certain situations, and these last few games here, you start to see that it’s more natural to guys and guys are in the right spots,” Pulock said. “We’re doing a good job of not giving up a lot of grade-A chances and that’s what you’ve got to do to give yourself a shot to win every night.”It also helps to have Greiss facing a team he dominates: He’s stopped 128 of the 130 shots he’s faced in his last three games against Carolina. He earned his first victory since a 2-1 overtime win in the opener here on Oct. 4, and his winning streak against the Hurricanes dates to March 2017.Carolina averages a league-leading 41.5 shots per game — nearly five full shots more than second-place San Jose.“I’ve had a bunch of games, too, where they’ve lit me up,” Greiss quipped.Teuvo Teravainen scored for Carolina while Sebastian Aho matched a pair of club records with an assist — giving him points and assists in all 11 games this season Dallas Stars Hats Authentic , the longest active streak in the league.The Hurricanes had their two-game winning streak snapped and missed a chance to jump idle Pittsburgh for first place in the Metropolitan Division.He thwarted one of Carolina’s best chances late, stopping a slap shot from Justin Faulk with about seven minutes remaining before Teravainen shot wide of an empty net. Moments later, he turned aside Justin Williams’ close-range shot.“Listen, Greiss is a good goalie, but he’s not a world-beater,” Williams said. “Every goalie in this league is good, and he’s one of them. We just, for some reason last couple games, we haven’t found a way to get one past him, and we have to.”Petr Mrazek, making his third straight start, finished with 18 saves for the Hurricanes, who lamented some issues on specialty teams. The power play has produced goals in only one of their last six games Custom Dallas Stars Jerseys , and the penalty kill — which yielded the first goal in this one — entered as the NHL’s second-worst, a tenth of a percentage point behind Philadelphia at 67.6 percent.“Yes, we deserve better. Yes, we outshot them, but did we?” Williams said. “They did a great job clearing the front of the net. We didn’t have many second opportunities. Our power play needs to get us a goal. Certainly, when we lose the special-teams battle, it’s an uphill battle most of the game. And power play’s got to find a way to get one for us.”Pulock’s go-ahead goal came with 5:25 left in the second with a turnaround slap shot between the circles off a smooth pass from Lee, who skated along the boards.Lee put New York up 1-0 at 3:13 of the first — and 9 seconds into a hooking minor on Jordan Staal — when he scored on the power play off a pass from Bailey.Aho, who entered tied for fifth in the league with 15 points, matched Ron Francis’ franchise record for the longest point streak to start a season and Eric Staal’s club mark for most consecutive games with an assist at any point during a season.He set up the tying goal 1:16 seconds into the second period, with Teravainen banging in the rebound of Aho’s shot.NOTES: Carolina D Dougie Hamilton rang the left post early in the third. … The Islanders scratched RW Cal Clutterbuck (upper body) and RW Tom Kuhnhackl replaced him in the lineup. … Bailey has points in five straight games, the longest active streak on the team.UP NEXTIslanders: Finish a three-game trip Tuesday night at Pittsburgh.Hurricanes: Wrap up a three-game homestand Tuesday night against Boston.