ning.Hes been interacting with the guys, Maddon said. Theyve accepted him back, so its time to move forward.It was La Ste

LOS ANGELES -- The Los Angeles Kings cant win in regulation, and theyre unbeatable in extra time. They fail to score a goal for a full week, and then they outscore the defending Stanley Cup champions.Although the Kings season doesnt make much sense so far, not even Sidney Crosbys latest burst of brilliance could stop them.Nic Dowd scored 2:37 into overtime, and the Kings snapped a three-game skid with a 3-2 victory over the Pittsburgh Penguins on Thursday night.Trevor Lewis and Matt Greene scored slump-busting goals and Peter Budaj made 21 saves in a strong bounce-back effort for the Kings, who had been shut out in three consecutive games and 10 full periods before they applied their grinding defensive game to slow down the speedy Pens.Los Angeles is 0-6-0 in regulation this season, but 5-0-0 in overtime games.We obviously played through (difficulties), coming from down a goal, and got a lead, said coach Darryl Sutter, who earned his 600th NHL victory. I thought we were really solid. Scored the first goal. Just got to keep fighting through that stuff.The Kings started overtime with a power play, but Pittsburgh easily killed it. Dowd then got in alone on Fleury and slipped in a backhand for his second NHL goal.Dowd said he only ended up in position to score because he had fallen down earlier, forcing him to join the rush late.Nothing special. I just made a move and luckily that side was open, Dowd said. Maybe the other 50 percent of the time, maybe (Fleury) is there.Crosby scored two goals for Pittsburgh, giving him six in five games to start his season. Marc-Andre Fleury stopped 24 shots for the Penguins, whose four-game winning streak ended.It was just tight hockey, Crosby said. Theyre pretty comfortable playing that way. Theyre always pretty stingy, especially playing at home. Thats just kind of the game you expect. You dont accept it. You want to get chances, you want to generate, but not if it means giving things back the other way.Despite giving up Crosbys tying goal midway through the third period, the Kings rallied to win a meeting of Second Six NHL franchises celebrating their 50th anniversaries. These teams have won four of the last eight Stanley Cup titles, but only the Penguins are in contending form at this early point of the season.Crosby has been in rare form since missing the first six games with a concussion, scoring goals in four of his five games with two multi-goal efforts already. He scored in the first period and then tied the game midway through the third, deflecting home Kris Letangs shot.We marvel some at how good he is, Pittsburgh coach Mike Sullivan said. Hes playing inspiring hockey right now.The Kings got their goals from much less likely sources.Lewis ended their 205-minute, 25-second scoreless drought when his contested attempt trickled underneath Fleury for the grinding forwards first regular-season goal since March 26.Greene then ended his 26-game scoring drought with a long slap shot early in the third. The stay-at-home defenseman hadnt scored a point since March 3, 2015.Theres really no rhyme or reason to it, Greene said. Just try to shoot the puck as hard as you can at the net every time.Game notesKings G Jeff Zatkoff received his Stanley Cup ring from the Penguins before the game. Zatkoff, currently injured, played early in the postseason for Pittsburgh last spring on the way to its title. ... D Kevin Gravel made his season debut for the Kings in place of Tom Gilbert, who began a three-game suspension for boarding Anaheims Nick Ritchie on Tuesday. ... LW Teddy Purcell returned to the Kings lineup for the first time since Oct. 14. The newcomer played in Los Angeles first two games, but was scratched for the next eight with an undisclosed injury. ... Pittsburgh scratched RW Tom Kuhnhackl for the second straight game. He scored no goals in the first nine games.UP NEXTPenguins: At San Jose on Saturday night for a Stanley Cup Final rematch.Kings: Host Calgary on Saturday night before heading to Eastern Canada for a road trip.Lyle Alzado Youth Jersey .com) - The Pittsburgh Penguins placed forward James Neal on injured reserve Tuesday. Jim Plunkett Womens Jersey . PETERSBURG, Fla. http://www.shoptheraidersonline.com/Elite-Kenny-Stabler-Raiders-Jersey/ .Y. -- Injured Buffalo Sabres forward Marcus Foligno did not practice with the team Monday and head coach Ron Rolston said its unlikely hell play in Wednesdays season opener in Detroit. Jim Otto Jersey .C. -- Al Jefferson joked that he feels he can score from anywhere on the court. Ronnie Lott Jersey . PAUL, Minn.CHICAGO -- Tommy La Stella wanted to share his story with teammates on the Chicago Cubs. From La Stellas perspective, they were the only people who needed to know more about why he refused to report to the minors when he was demoted in July.La Stella met with the team after he was recalled from Triple-A Iowa on Wednesday, providing his account of his time away from the organization. But other than that meeting before a game against the Pittsburgh Pirates, the infielder stayed mostly quietly about the circumstances surrounding his departure and eventual return.I understand that theres going to be people out there who kind of draw conclusions and stuff and thats fine, La Stella said. Im not necessarily out here to make anybody see anything or explain anything. As long as people understand that there are things out there that are kind of personal to me and Ive shared those with the guys. Its not necessarily going to be just like a cut-and-dry, black-and-white answer where everybody goes `Oh yeah, I get it now. That answer doesnt really exist.La Stella was the victim of a roster crunch when the loaded Cubs activated outfielder Chris Coghlan from the disabled list on July 29. The 27-year-old La Stella had options remaining, which left him vulnerable in a crowded infield.La Stella was hitting .295 with a .388 on-base percentage at the time, and did not take the news well, according to manager Joe Maddon. He went back home to New Jersey and the Cubs gave him some time to report to Iowa before placing him on the temporary inactive list on Aug. 10.La Stella said he understood why he was sent down, and that had nothing to do with his refusal to report to the minors. He chalked up his time away to personal baseball reasons and not necessarily personal issues with me or anything like that, more just personal stuff throughout my career.Asked if he missed the game while he was away, La Stella responnded I missed the guys.ddddddddddddLike I said, man, the game to me, thats kind of just the avenue for the other type of enjoyment that I get through those guys and the stuff that we get to do together, he continued.After weeks of dialogue between the New Jersey native and the team, La Stella joined Double-A Tennessee in mid-August. He batted .296 (8 for 27) in eight games in the minors before returning to the big leagues.The Cubs could have waited until major league rosters expand on Thursday to make the move, but Maddon said they liked the matchup with Pirates right-hander Ryan Vogelsong on the mound for the series finale. La Stella started at second base, and reliever Spencer Patton was optioned to Iowa.La Stella was greeted with a warm round of cheers when he batted for the first time in the second inning.Hes been interacting with the guys, Maddon said. Theyve accepted him back, so its time to move forward.It was La Stellas 23rd start of the year, and he likely will remain in a mostly reserve role the rest of the way. But he could be a nice lefty bat off the bench in the playoffs for the major league leaders.Said it before. The guy could wake up in the middle of the night, hit a line drive on a 1-2 count, Maddon said.La Stella, who was acquired in a November 2014 trade with Atlanta, said he isnt sure if he will keep playing baseball beyond this year. He also praised Cubs president of baseball operations Theo Epstein for how he treated him during his time away.He understands people and he treats you like a person, La Stella said. This whole time, the dialogue, he was just talking to me as a guy and he wasnt talking to an employee, which I really, really appreciated throughout the whole process.---Jay Cohen can be reached at http://www.twitter.com/jcohenap ' ' '