Kings can’t tame surging Wild, 3-1

ST. PAUL, Minn. â€”  Kings goalie Dan Cloutier hasn’t had much success against the Minnesota Wild.

And it didn’t get any better Wednesday night when Manny Fernandez made 35 saves and Brian Rolston scored two goals to help the Wild defeat the Kings, 3-1, to continue its franchise-best start.

“I played them a lot when I was with Vancouver,� said Cloutier, who stopped 26 shots but dropped to 7-10-4 against the Wild. “But they seem to have more offense this year. And Manny is playing very well right now.�

Rolston scored his team-high seventh and eighth goals of the season, Todd White had a goal and two assists, and Pierre-Marc Bouchard added three assists for the Wild.

Northwest Division-leading Minnesota (8-1-0) moved into a tie with Dallas for the Western Conference’s best record. Buffalo (9-0-0) is the only team in the NHL with a better mark.

“Hopefully we can keep going,� Wild Coach Jacques Lemaire said. “All the points that we’re getting could be points that could help us make the playoffs.�

Minnesota, coming off a 2-1 West Coast trip, improved to 6-0 at home.

Brian Willsie scored a third-period goal for the Kings, who fell to 1-5-2 in their last eight games. Included in that stretch was Minnesota’s 2-1 overtime victory Oct. 18 at Staples Center.

The Wild has gotten off to such a red-hot start in part because teams have had such a hard time scoring against it. Minnesota has given up 15 goals this season, tied with Dallas for the fewest in the NHL.

“Any defenseman that is on the ice, we have confidence that they’re going to do their job,� Bouchard said. “And Manny is doing a great job. He’s making some key saves.�

Fernandez and the Wild’s defense have been particularly impressive against the power play. The Kings were 0 for 7 with the man advantage as the Wild increased its NHL-best penalty-killing percentage to 93.5.