NEW YORK -- Accustomed to clawing back from deficits, the comeback Los Angeles Kings now must figure out how to play with a series lead. Tyler Flowers Braves Jersey . Despite not leading for a single second in this Stanley Cup final, Los Angeles has a two games to none lead on the New York Rangers. Thats not something players are proud of, but somehow it has worked. You can listen to Game 3 on TSN Radio at 8pm et/5pm pt and watch the post-game news conferences on TSN.ca and TSN GO. "We find ourselves in the same situation reguritating the same mumbo jumbo every time," winger Justin Williams said. "Were in a results-oriented league, and the results are were up 2-0. I dont care how we got here." The Kings have gotten to Monday nights Game 3 by winning four times in these playoffs after falling behind by at least two goals. One more would tie the record set by the 1987 Philadelphia Flyers. Adept, if not comfortable, at coming from behind, the bigger question for the Kings is how theyll handle what on paper is a comfortable lead over the Rangers through two games but based on the play is far from it. They already saw their 2-0 series lead over the Anaheim Ducks in the Pacific Division turn into a 3-2 deficit, and theyre hopeful that history wont repeat itself. "Momentum is a big part of playoff hockey and once a team has it, its important to try to switch the tide in your favour as quick as possible," forward Dwight King said. "The longer you let that go, like in the Anaheim series, they get a little more confident and feeling good about their game. When youre playing a team thats got that going for them, its a little tougher to defend." The Rangers sound like a confident group because theyve gone stride for stride with the seasoned Kings and could believe theyre a couple of bounces away from being up 2-0. Coach Alain Vigneault has been satisfied with his teams play save for one period, and his players are attempting to focus more on the positives on the ice than the deficit in the series. "I think we played two good games over there," forward Mats Zuccarello said after landing in White Plains, N.Y. "I think we played the best hockey." Maybe the Kings havent played their best hockey, and certainly they havent at the start of games. Theyre the first team in NHL history to win three straight playoff games after trailing by two goals, having also done it in Game 7 of the Western Conference final against the Chicago Blackhawks. Williams said he can tell a lot about teammates from studying their faces in trying times. "You can read a lot (about) what someones thinking by just looking at their face," he said. "Between the second and third (Saturday) night I looked around and I didnt see anyone scared. I saw a prepared team that knew what they had to do." Thats thanks in large part to being here before. From Williams to captain Dustin Brown, defenceman Drew Doughty, centre Anze Kopitar and goaltender Jonathan Quick down the roster, this core group has experience going deep in the playoffs. The Kings also now have a resume full of multi-goal comebacks, which hasnt necessarily made digging out of holes easier but provided perhaps some muscle memory when playing from behind. "I feel together as a team weve been through almost all of them you can imagine, and weve pulled through," Williams said. "So when were down, do we feel comfortable? No, we dont feel comfortable. But we feel like were able to come back. And belief is a very underrated attribute, and we have that going on within our team right now." Experience from the 2012 Cup run could serve Los Angeles well right about now. That Kings team went up at least two games to none in every series on the way to the franchises first championship. In these playoffs, they havent been as much of a buzz saw. They fell behind 3-0 to the San Jose Sharks in the first round before pulling off the improbable series comeback and needed seven games against the Ducks and Blackhawks, too. What the Kings havent had in the same vein as their 2012 domination theyve made up for with resilience. Coach Darryl Sutter sees experience as the root of that. "Weve played a lot of hockey in May and June over the past three seasons," Sutter said. "For us, youre never not of the belief that you cant come back or youre not going to win." The Rangers, who came back from being down 3-1 to the Pittsburgh Penguins in the Metropolitan Division final, share that same belief. Vigneault was short and to the point on what he thought New York needed to do to get back into this series: win Game 3 at Madison Square Garden. "We need to hold serve," Vigneault said in White Plains. "Were back in our building. Weve played some good hockey. We might feel that we deserve a better outcome than what we have right now, which is trailing by two games. But it doesnt matter. At the end of the day we got to take care of business tomorrow, and thats what were going to do." If anyone understands the mental approach of coming back, its the Kings, who havent led for over 228 straight minutes dating back to the conference final. And while the Kings are quick to point to results, they cant believe theyve broken the Rangers spirit already. "We should know that more than anybody, that its tough to put a team down," Williams said. "Especially when youre playing for the Stanley Cup, its going to be hard to put a team down. But we need to try to step a little bit more on the throat tomorrow." Stepping on the Rangers throat might as well be code for dont fall behind by two goals again. Marian Gaborik, whom the Rangers traded at the 2013 deadline, knows more than anyone on the Kings just how the Garden can sound and feel if things get hairy for the visiting team. "To look around the building itself, it has some sort of energy that you want to be in there and just play," Gaborik said. Sutter, who has been coming to the Garden for 30 years, knows it looks different now following renovations but that the fans still have the same moxie. "They love their team and they hate the other team," he said. "Thats what you like. You like going into buildings that are like that. Theyre loud, they say they hate you, all those things, its good." Plenty of hatred has already built up between the Kings and Rangers already after two physically gruelling games. Fatigue could be a factor as well, as the teams flew back from Southern California on Sunday and did not take the ice for practice. But the Kings are used to this. They made similar trips against the New Jersey Devils in the final two years ago before ultimately lifting the Cup back home in Game 6. Theyre two victories away from doing it again. And while this group is similar to the 2012 one, Williams said he gets a similar feel to the 2006 Carolina Hurricanes Cup-champion team he was on about never being out of games. That kind of belief can go a long way, no matter the score in a game or the situation in a series. "Now we feel that anythings possible out there," Williams said. "You get down two goals, it doesnt matter. You get down three, I dont care. Were going to keep pushing, and the term 60 minutes-plus certainly applies to anyone who wants to beat us." NOTES -- Sutter did not provide an update on Jeff Carter, who left Game 2 briefly after taking a hip check from Ryan McDonagh but finished with 24:01 of ice time. The Kings coach said he wouldnt talk about injuries because he didnt have to. ... Vigneault similarly had nothing new to say about Rangers backup goalie Cam Talbot, who has been unavailable in the Cup final with an undisclosed injury. Bryse Wilson Braves Jersey .C. Lions 35-14, was named the CFLs offensive player of the week Tuesday. Sheets recorded his ninth 100-yard rushing performance of the season to tie the Riders club record. Patrick Weigel Jersey . "Back in 2011, when they announced that the game was coming here, we knew that it was going to be pretty important that we had a good year and hopefully could get into it, let alone win it, so I felt some pressure obviously within for sure," Taman said Monday, less than 24 hours after the Riders won the championship. https://www.cheapbraves.com/1853o-babe-ruth-jersey-braves.html . The eighth-year point guard played in his 500th career game on Sunday, a 98-93 win over the Orlando Magic. Does he feel like hes played in that many games? "No," he said initially, before reconsidering.Its a new generation in Detroit, an elder statesman keeps getting it done in New Jersey, Lecavalier struggling, Muzzin and Bartkowski playing bigger roles and more in Scott Cullens latest NHL blog. 1. Its been a tough year for the Detroit Red Wings, not least of all because of injuries. Hey, all teams have injuries, but the Red Wings are heavily-dependent on veteran forwards Pavel Datsyuk and Henrik Zetterberg, both of whom have missed time and, at the moment, are both out of the lineup. But, necessity is the mother of invention and the Red Wings have pressed their young forwards into service. Riley Sheahan, Tomas Tatar, Gustav Nyquist, Tomas Jurco (and even a returning-from-injury Darren Helm) have been crucial to keeping the Red Wings treading water as they wait for their star forwards to return. There is an argument to be made that the ever-patient Red Wings might have opened doors sooner for their young players, rather than trot out the likes of Dan Cleary, Jordin Tootoo and Mikael Samuelsson right out of the gate. Sheahan, Tatar, Nyquist and Jurco all played for Calder Cup-champion Grand Rapids in the AHL last season, and all four have made a successful adjustment to the NHL game. Its early in their careers, of course, but they are part of the reason the Red Wings are still within striking distance of a playoff berth, a position that was pretty much unthinkable for a team that hasnt missed the postseason since 1990 and was supposed to have an easier time with their move to the Eastern Conference. 2. Though the New Jersey Devils came up short in Sundays Stadium Series game at Yankee Stadium, Devils RW Jaromir Jagr continued his brilliant season, adding two more assists to give him a team-leading 44 points in 53 games. This is a far cry from Jagr in his peak years, when he was the most productive scorer in the game, by a healthy margin, for more than a decade, but no less remarkable. Jagr is 41-years-old and has a shot to surpass Mark Messier in 2000-2001 as the second-highest-scoring player in a 40-year-old plus season since 1980. (Teemu Selannes 80 points in 2010-2011 seems safe.) On top of those historical numbers, Jagr is also delivering strong possesion numbers, ranked 18th among forwards in Corsi% (minimum 500 minutes). Yes, his game is offensively-slanted, but he remains a beast on the puck in the offensive zone. 3. A veteran forward that is having a harder time of it is Flyers C Vincent Lecavalier, who has two goals and six points in his past 20 games, going back to late November and hes been getting destroyed in puck possession. Most recently, hes been playing with Wayne Simmonds and Brayden Schenn, but all of the Flyers forwards have been faring better without Lecavalier, which is a precipitous decline for a 33-year-old forward, especially one that has four more years remaining on his deal. Somehow, the Flyers are going to have to find a way to make Lecavalier a productive player, whether that means time on the wing, more sheltered minutes or different line combinations. 4. Lightning rookie C Tyler Johnson has been thrust into a more significant role in the absence of Steven Stamkos and, while hes not making anyone forget one of the games premier goal-scorers, Johnson has been great. In the past 25 games, Johnson has played more than 20 minutes per game, with Saturdays hat trick against Colorado giving him 10 goals and 21 points in those 25 games. Johnson was the AHL MVP last season, scoring 65 points in 62 games with Syracuse, so he has the offensive pedigree, and hes moved into a tie with Nathan MacKinnon for the rookie scoring lead, with 34 points in 52 games. The challenge will be figuring out where Johnson fits once Stamkos returns. At this rate, Johnson is going to give Valtteri Filppula plenty of competition for second-line centre minutes. 5. Kings D Jake Muzzin has taken a bigger role on the Los Angeles defence, as the Kings reduce the workload of veteran Robyn Regehr, who has been decidedly at the opposite end of the possession spectrum compared to Muzzin. Regehr is averaging 16:28 ATOI per game in January, his lowest monthly average since February, 2002 (minimum three games) and while Muzzin has put up spectacular possession stats in his career, hes led a rather sheltered existence for the most part. Now, paired with Drew Doughty and taking on tougher assignments, its an opportunity for Muzzin to prove hes worthy of the responsibility. 6. The Boston Bruins knew that they would have to deal with a major loss to their lineup when D Dennis Seidenber suffered a season-ending knee injury, and they are naturally looking for a replacement. Its not easy to trade for top-four defencemen, but the Bruins have assets to move in order to facilitate a deal, if they can find the right match. Potential unrestricted free agents on teams on the outside of the playoff picture include Henrik Tallinder, Tom Gilbert, Andrew MacDonald, Nick Schultz, and ex-Bruins Derek Morris and Mark Stuart, all of whom come with some warts, but its not like Seidenberg was universally-heralded when the Bruins acquired him from Florida in March, 20100. Nick Markakis Braves Jersey. Whats interesting about the Bruins current situation is that the defenceman who is rising up to play bigger minutes in Seidenbergs absence is Matt Bartkowski, who was acquired from Florida with Seidenberg. Bartkowski, 25, had played 20 career NHL games prior to this season and is making a modest $650,000 this season, so it was no surprise that he started the year seventh on the depth chart, dressing in four of the first 16 games. But, with Seidenberg out, Bartkowski has played 20:44 per game in January, ranking third on the Bruins behind Zdeno Chara and Johnny Boychuk, and while hes not a possession beast, Bartkowski has held in his own in that ice time, giving the Bruins some time to make a deal and giving them another option on the blueline going forward. Between Bartkowski, Kevan Miller and Torey Krug, the Bruins are getting some mileage out of low picks/undrafted free agents on their blueline. 7. Sabres C Steve Ott is a versatile veteran forward who can play centre or wing and, on a Sabres team full of prospects and cast-offs, that has resulted in a surprisingly prominent role, playing 19:45 per game this season (up from last years career-high 18:33 ATOI) to lead all Buffalo forwards. Ott has spent his time lately on a line with Cody Hodgson, tallying eight points (2 G, 6 A) in the past nine games. Considering Ott is an unrestricted free agent at seasons end, and one that plays the gritty style teams tend to covet going into the playoffs. While Ott does, like all Sabres, tend to get beat up in possession game, and has a team-worst minus-20, some of that is a function of playing way too much, more than he would on a playoff contender. 8. Hurricanes LW Jiri Tlusty was one of the leagues luckiest last season, scoring 23 goals in 48 games, while scoring on 19.7% of his shots while playing with Eric Staal and Alexander Semin on Carolinas number one line. It was natural, then, to expect regression this season and Tlusty obliged, but to a ridiculous degree, scoring four goals and eight points in his first 35 games. Also, naturally, he was no longer skating on the Hurricanes top line. That has changed more recently, however, and Tlusty has seen his ice time head upwards (over 17 minutes per game) in the past four, during which hes scored five points (2 G, 3 A). Considering the Hurricanes top line has a low on-ice shooting percentage, especially compared to last season, which could be regression at work, or could be some room for that trio to finish strong this year, which could make Tlusty surprisingly relevant for fantasy owners, at least as far as forwards with 15 points this season would rate. 9. Hes not a big numbers guy, with one assist in 16 games, but there is reason to keep an eye on Oilers rookie D Martin Marincin, who is the one Edmonton defenceman (with more than 10 games played) to have positive possession numbers. As a result, his ice time is going up, to 18:50 per game in the past seven, and over 19 minutes in each of the past three. For an Oilers team that desperately needs to tilt the ice in the other direction, with so much of it focused on blueline improvement, Marincins development is a small positive. 10. An update on the move of Jets D-turned-RW Dustin Byfuglien, who has been skating at forward for eight games, scoring two goals and four assists, with 23 shots on goal. His ice time is down, as expected, to 19:20 per game, and his shots per game is actually down a bit, to 2.88 per game. For fantasy owners, who get the benefit of Byfugliens eligibility on defence, hes still super valuable. If he can continue to produce as a winger, it may not be as valuable as a 25-minute-per-game defenceman, but its not likely going to get re-visited until the Jets run into trouble. When a team is getting good results, theyre not likely to make major changes. After all, it was practically Claude Noels last gasp as head coach to move Byfuglien forward. FIRST NHL GAMES Joonas Nattinen, C, Montreal - A third-round pick of the Canadiens in 2009, Nattinen has decent size, but has produced middling results in the AHL, 42 points in 127 career games, so he got an opportunity due to injuries, but it was only a cup of coffee against Toronto, playing a total of 1:45 in his NHL debut. Joe Whitney, LW, New Jersey - Listed at 5-foot-6, Whitney is another diminutive forward to come out of Boston College and hes been scoring in the AHL, putting up 88 points in 108 games over the past two seasons. He got a shot on the Devils top line, with Travis Zajac and Jaromir Jagr in his debut, but the 25-year-old was returned to the minors after playing eight minutes against Washington. Philip Varone, C, Buffalo - A fifth-round pick of the Sharks in 2009, Varone wasnt signed by the Sharks, but was signed as a free agent by the Sabres in 2012. Hes put up 120 points in 176 career AHL games, earning his first taste of NHL action, getting more than 11 minutes per game on a line with Brian Flynn and Marcus Foligno. Scott Cullen can be reached at Scott.Cullen@bellmedia.ca and followed on Twitter at http://twitter.com/tsnscottcullen. For more, check out TSN Fantasy on Facebook. ' ' '