ST. PAUL, Minn. — Scoring goals figured to get tougher for the Wild after they traded Kevin Fiala, but the problem two games into the season is keeping the puck out of their own net.
The Wild couldn't overcome yet another leaky display on defense and were edged, 7-6, by the Fiala-led Kings on Saturday in front of 18,421 at Xcel Energy Center to remain winless.
And next up? None other than the defending Stanley Cup champion Avalanche.
Fiala made a splashy return to St. Paul after his offseason trade to Los Angeles, scoring a goal and assisting on two others to pick up his first points with the Kings and help them to their first victory of the season.
His line also delivered the game-winner, a shot by Adrian Kempe that broke a hard-earned 6-6 tie by the Wild, who finally pulled even at 7:32 of the third period on Sam Steel's first goal with the team. But 31 seconds later, Kempe reestablished a Los Angeles lead the Kings wouldn't relinquish. Cal Petersen finished with 29 saves, including a goal-line stop against Joel Eriksson Ek with just seconds to go, and Fiala's line combined for nine points.
That trio had the Wild chasing Los Angeles early, with Kempe burying a Fiala pass off the rush just 4:28 after puck drop.
Then at 8:55, the Kings fed a Ryan Hartman turnover to Gabe Vilardi for the deposit behind Wild goalie Marc-Andre Fleury. By 11:13, Los Angeles widened its cushion to three goals on a power-play one-timer by Drew Doughty that Fiala factored into.
Just 1:44 later and after calling a timeout, the Wild retaliated on a Jake Middleton point shot before Marcus Foligno trimmed the deficit to a goal at 16:43 when he lifted in a backhander as he was falling to the ice.
But with 1:32 left in the first period, the Kings moved ahead 4-2 when a long unobstructed shot from Alex Iafallo eluded Fleury, who smacked his stick against the boards in the aftermath.
Fleury did not return for the second, getting pulled after making 10 saves on 14 shots. Filip Gustavsson, whom the Wild acquired in the Cam Talbot trade with Ottawa, made his team debut and racked up 17 saves in relief while also absorbing the loss.
Gustavsson's first stop came against Fiala, setting the tone for a better start by the Wild that also featured a power-play goal from Eriksson Ek off a Kirill Kaprizov pass at 5:25, but Fiala would eventually convert. He turned in his own power-play tally at 9:11, with Los Angeles going 2 for 6.
The power play was also key for the Wild: Kaprizov responded at 12:12 after an assist by Gustavsson, his first ever, to become the first goalie in franchise history to post a helper in his team debut.
Again, the Kings answered back, this time courtesy a Matt Roy point shot with 6:50 left in the second, but so did the Wild; just 5:56 into the third, Mats Zuccarello delivered the third power-play goal; overall, the Wild went 3 for 6.
This was the fourth time the Wild clawed back within a goal of Los Angeles after going down 3-0 and even though they eventually reached equilibrium, they never ended up surpassing the Kings.
But it's their defense, not their offense, that's on the hot seat during this 0-2 start.
Through six periods of play, the Wild has been tagged for 14 goals.
