Coach Darryl Sutters team knows all

LOS ANGELES -- Even after three games and a cross-country flight in the previous five days, the Los Angeles Kings came out roaring at home with a three-goal first period against Winnipeg. . Coach Darryl Sutters team knows all about peaking for the post-season after its Stanley Cup title run two years ago, and the Kings are counting down the games until they can try it again. Anze Kopitar scored two goals in the first period, Jonathan Quick made 24 saves, and the Kings beat the Jets 4-2 Saturday night for their sixth straight victory. Trevor Lewis and Tyler Toffoli also scored for the Kings, who havent lost since March 17. Marian Gaborik and Willie Mitchell had two assists apiece as Los Angeles took a big early lead and cruised to its 14th win in 17 games. "I dont think there is any coasting goes on, period," Sutter said. "Youre just trying to refine parts of your game, very simple. You are trying to take care of your own business first. Youre not a playoff team until you clinch the playoff spot." The Kings are just a couple of wins away from clinching their fifth straight playoff trip and a first-round matchup with San Jose or Anaheim. After 4 1/2 weeks of outstanding play out of the Olympic break, theyre all but locked into third place in the Pacific Division. Los Angeles has won 13 of 16 since Sochi, with three one-goal losses between two lengthy winning streaks. Kopitars third multigoal game of the season was set up by another strong offensive game from Kings newcomer Gaborik, who had his second multipoint performance on Los Angeles top line. "We have a chance to finish very strong and prepare for the playoffs," said Gaborik, who has eight points in his past nine games with Los Angeles. "This team works well in a system. Everybody is on the same page. Everybody is trusting each other. Its like one big machine." And that machine steamrolled the Jets in the opening 20 minutes. Matt Halischuk and Blake Wheeler scored in the third period for the Jets, who hadnt visited Los Angeles since Jan. 3, 1996. Ondrej Pavelec gave up three goals in the first period before getting pulled, and Al Montoya stopped 12 shots in the final 40 minutes. Winnipeg has lost four of six and 10 of 13, its playoff hopes dwindling to a faint prayer. The Jets trail eighth-place Phoenix in the Western Conference standings by nine points with seven games to go and three teams between them. The erstwhile Atlanta Thrashers finally have appeared in every NHL road arena since their move to Manitoba in 2011, but they couldnt keep up in the first period against their surging hosts. "We got taught a real good lesson in the first period about being ready to play a hard game," Winnipeg coach Paul Maurice said. "We were just giving up so much ice and backing up. The last two periods, we were ready to play. Theres a learning lesson for some." The Kings went ahead just 2:42 in when a sharp-angled shot somehow got past Pavelec for Lewis career-best sixth goal of the season. Lewis didnt score in his first 38 games of the season, but the grinding forward has four goals in March. Kopitar then scored when a rebound of Gaboriks shot banked off his skate and in for the Slovenian centres 23rd goal. Gaboriks shot sent Winnipeg defenceman Mark Stuarts stick flying into Pavelecs chest. Kopitar scored again late in the period, muscling past the Winnipeg defence for a rebound backhand. "There is no explanation," Wheeler said of the Jets early effort. "They came out with the kind of energy you need to start a hockey game. We didnt. Thats what happens. After the opening period, we figured it out a little bit." After a scoreless second period, Halischuk scored his first goal since Dec. 14 from right in front of Quick, banging home Evander Kanes pass from below the goal line in the corner. Quick made an amazing facedown save with 1 minute to play, sticking his right leg into midair to block a long Winnipeg shot. NOTES: The Kings have outscored their opponents 19-11 during their winning streak. ... Los Angeles has 44 victories, two shy of the regular-season club record with seven games to go. ... Mitchell had his first multipoint game since April 5, 2012. The stay-at-home defenceman missed all of last season with injuries, and he had seven points in his first 69 games this season. . LOUIS -- St. . Despite the advantage of four Fijians being sent to the sin-bin in eight minutes early in the first half, Italy almost spoiled the occasion for two of their rugby greats by blowing a 30-10 lead with 20 minutes to go. LAKE FOREST, Ill. -- Brandon Meriweather delivered some big shots for the New England Patriots. He wouldnt take any fresh ones at them, though. The Pro Bowl safety insisted hes just looking forward to a fresh start with the Chicago Bears and had nothing but praise for the Patriots and coach Bill Belichick on Monday. "I have a lot of respect for that organization," he said. "I have a lot of respect for Bill and the rest of the people, the rest of the staff there, but thats behind me." The Patriots released Meriweather on Saturday even though he was coming off back-to-back Pro Bowl seasons. He agreed to a one-year deal with Chicago a day later, joining a team that won the NFC North at 11-5 and advanced to the conference championship game. He called the Bears "a first-class organization" and said he hopes to be ready for the opener against Atlanta this season. He also sidestepped questions about his role and the reasons the Patriots gave him for releasing him. "Thats between me and coach," Meriweather said. Pressed on that, he responded: "Im sure if you called Bill and asked him, Im sure hed give you all the details." Meriweather was a first-round pick with 244 total tackles and 12 interceptions over four seasons. In 2009, he had a career-high five interceptions and made the first of two straight Pro Bowls, but the Patriots opted not to keep him. "Brandon played a lot of good football for us," Belichick said. "We kept the players this year that we felt would be the best makeup for the 2011 team. Its not the 2009 team; its the 2011 team, so those are the players that weve selected." The fact that one of the most successful organizations released him might set off some alarms. It didnt at Halas Hall, though. "I dont see what Belichick has to do with us," coach Lovie Smith said. "We make our decisions based on what we see. We like Brandon being a part of our team." Meriweather joins a defence in Chicago that ranked ninth overall, but just 20th against the pass last season. The Bears rely heavily on takeaways and he should help in that area, considering his 12 interceptions the past three years are tied for fourth among NFL safeties. Chris Harris and Major Wright have beeen starting at safety for Chicago, and if he expects to supplant one of them, Meriweather wasnt saying. . "I expect to do whatever the coach asks me to do," he said. "If he comes in and asks me to play on special teams, I expect to do that. I just want to come in and contribute any way I can." Would he be surprised if he didnt start at some point? "Surprised? Like I said earlier, nothing in this league surprises me anymore," he said. Hell have to adjust quickly to the cover-2 after playing in a 3-4 with the Patriots. Its a defence known for its simplicity in some ways, relying on speed and aggression. In that sense, it could be a good fit for Meriweather, who tends to freelance. Even so, theres still quite a bit to digest. "As a safety, you have to learn everything thats going on, unlike a corner," Harris said. "Corners, they dont really have to learn the entire defence. As a safety, you need to know whats going on. You need to know what those linebackers are doing because of run gaps. You need to know what this linebackers doing because of pass coverage or what this corners doing or what the other safetys doing. You have to learn a lot, but hes a very bright guy from what I can tell just from talking to him." Meriweathers aggression has gotten him in trouble in the past, whether the result was a big gain for the opponent or a big hit to his chequebook. He was initially fined US$50,000 last season after a helmet-on-helmet hit to Baltimores Todd Heap, a penalty that was later reduced to $40,000. Before that, he was known mostly for his role in an on-field fight during a 2006 game against Florida International while at Miami. A few months earlier, he fired a gun at an assailant who had shot Miami backup safety Willie Cooper outside the house Cooper shared with Meriweather and another teammate, police said. Meriweather wasnt charged and police said he used the gun legally. In Chicago, hes looking forward to a fresh start. Hes reuniting with college teammate Devin Hester and he sees a good fit. So do the Bears. "The guys made plays his entire career," Harris said. "Anytime you can get a guy of that calibre on your roster, I think it definitely makes your team better." ' ' '