From the Rink: Nothing comes easy for Wild in Los Angeles

LOS ANGELES -- The sunshine is out and the weather is warm on the West Coast. The Wild escaped the cold and the snow just in time on Monday, but that doesn't mean it's time for a California vacation, not with the Pacific Division-leading Los Angeles Kings on the docket tonight at Staples Center.
In fact, quite the opposite.
The Kings, perennially one of the most difficult teams to play against in the NHL, have caused the Wild problems in recent years. Minnesota has had its fair share of success, winning 13 of the past 23 games. But six of those contests have gone to a shootout. Two of the three games last season were decided in overtime, with each team winning on home ice.

One of the biggest, most rugged teams in the League, Los Angeles appears to be back in top form again this season after a rough campaign last year.
"Heavy hockey team, playing smart defensively and really limiting the chances against right now," said Wild forward Marcus Foligno. "It's something we're trying to do as well right now. They're a team on the rise and they're going to give us a tough test tonight but it's something we have to measure ourselves against."
The Kings are led by forwards Anze Kopitar and Dustin Brown, defenseman Drew Doughty and goaltender Jonathan Quick, who all appear to be back at the peak of their powers.
That's especially the case for Brown, who has struggled in recent seasons but already has 11 goals this season, three shy of his total from all of last year and equal to each of his two prior seasons.
Kopitar, the Kings' captain, has already surpassed his goal total from last season and is on pace to shatter his career high in points, posting 14 goals among his 31 points in 28 games played.
Quick, who was limited to just 17 games in an injury-riddled 2016-17 season, is once again playing at an elite level, the way he was playing when he backstopped Los Angeles to a pair of Stanley Cups earlier this decade.
"Playing against those guys for the four and a half years (when he coached in Anaheim), you've seen them at their best and through two Cup runs," said Wild coach Bruce Boudreau. "I watched [L.A.'s game] against St. Louis and broke it up pretty good, and they were very similar to the 2011 team [that won the Stanley Cup].
"It all started with Kopitar, Brown, Doughty, Quick."

Unlike the typical California excursion, which involved back-to-back games and a tight window to enjoy the warm weather, the Wild has two days between tonight's contest and Friday's game against Anaheim.
The group has team bonding activities planned for that time, as well as another practice on Thursday in southern California. All of those things will be more pleasant if the Wild can start the trip on the right note on Tuesday.
"The weather is always a little bit nicer when you win," Foligno said. "It's a big game tonight, where if we win, we've got two nice days of just team bonding and make it a little bit more enjoyable for the week."
Here are the projected lineups:
WILD
Marcus Foligno - Eric Staal - Nino Niederreiter
Jason Zucker - Mikko Koivu - Mikael Granlund
Daniel Winnik - Charlie Coyle - Chris Stewart
Tyler Ennis - Matt Cullen - Zack Mitchell
Ryan Suter - Matt Dumba
Jonas Brodin - Ryan Murphy
Mike Reilly - Nate Prosser
Devan Dubnyk
Alex Stalock
KINGS
Alex Iafallo - Anze Kopitar - Dustin Brown
Tanner Pearson - Nick Shore - Tyler Toffoli
Marian Gaborik - Adrian Kempe - Trevor Lewis
Jussi Jokinen - Torrey Mitchell - Jonny Brodzinski
Jake Muzzin - Drew Doughty
Kurtis Macdermid - Alec Martinez
Derek Forbort - Christian Folin
Jonathan Quick
Darcy Kuemper