struggling against it mightily, they finally figured it out to make the final score more one-sided than the game actually was.TRIER MYSTERYStill no word on why Allonzo Trier isnt playing. The sop

ST. LOUIS -- Coach Ken Hitchcock hopes the combination of a lopsided loss, a day off and a good practice on Monday will result in a better performance when the St. Louis Blues host the Buffalo Sabres on Tuesday night.Theres building times and this is it, Hitchcock told NHL.com. Weve got a real opportunity right now.The Blues have lost three games in a row and five of their last seven, including a 3-1 defeat at Nashville and an embarrassing 8-4 loss at Columbus on Saturday night, a game in which they trailed 7-1 at one point.Three of those recent losses came in games in which the Blues allowed five or more goals.Theres spots in games where were doing everything we want to do, then all of the sudden, things turn the other way and its going negative, said defenseman Alex Pietrangelo. Its got to come from within this room. Nobodys going to help us. Everythings getting magnified. Were not being as assertive as we usually are. You identify a check, you know thats youre guy and youre going to play him hard. If someone makes a mistake, youre there to help your teammate out right away.Were getting spread out in our end, were not communicating the way we need to communicate, and thats resulting in glaring opportunities, whereas in the past, if those were there, it didnt seem like they were obvious opportunities. I think when we get more assertive and play teams harder, be tougher to play against, its going to work in a positive direction.Jake Allen, who was pulled in the second period against the Blue Jackets after allowing four goals, will get the start in net against Buffalo.As a team, the Sabres can relate to what the Blues are going through. They are winless in their last four games, including both a shootout and an overtime loss. They have scored a combined four goals in those games.Just like the Blues, the Sabres have had a problem staying out of the penalty box. They have been called for five or more penalties in four of their last five games. The Blues have been called for the most minor penalties in the league (76) while Buffalo ranks 11th with 58 minor penalties.Weve got to stay out of the box, Sabres right winger Kyle Okposo told NHL.com. Thats something that needs to be addressed and needs to be executed. There are some penalties that you have to take and other ones that are just undisciplined penalties. Weve got to stay away from the undisciplined ones.Center Ryan OReilly, who has missed two of the last three games, could play against the Blues, according to coach Dan Bylsma. Buffalo still is expected to recall at least one forward and a defenseman from the minor leagues before Tuesday nights game.The Sabres have fallen to last in the NHL with an average of 1.93 goals per game.Maybe the biggest surprise is we havent got to the power play as much as we need to to get opportunities to score, Bylsma told the Buffalo News. We should be playing the way where teams have to take penalties against us. Given the lineup we have, we need to manufacture goals in a hard and difficult way.Texas Rangers Shirts . Laudrup revealed Thursday he was notified of his dismissal in "the briefest of letters which gave no reasons why such hasty and final action was deemed necessary. Rangers Jerseys China .1 million pounds ($61.2 million) on Saturday, giving the beleaguered English Premier League champions a major lift. https://www.cheaprangersbaseball.com/ . The Nashville Predators were glad their captain was still on their side. Weber had a goal and two assists, and Roman Josi scored the shootout winner to lift the Predators to a 4-3 win over the Flyers on Thursday night. Rangers Jerseys 2019 . -- Anaheim Ducks defenceman Luca Sbisa will be out at least six weeks with a torn tendon in his right hand. Texas Rangers Store . Didier Drogba gave away the penalty that put Senegal one goal away from a major upset, but the veteran striker will get another chance -- probably his last -- at the World Cup after Salomon Kalous injury-time strike sealed the Ivorians place in Brazil next year.TUCSON, Ariz. -- Parker Jackson-Cartwright took over as starting point guard for Arizona this season.Hes handled the takeover as well as he handles the basketball.Jackson-Cartwright had 15 points, a career-high 11 assists and one turnover in 34 minutes in the eighth-ranked Wildcats 71-55 victory over Northern Colorado on Monday night.Tonight was Parkers best game at Arizona, in my opinion, Wildcats coach Sean Miller said, because everything he did was important..Over the past two games, Jackson-Cartwright had 15 assists and one turnover.I was just ultra-aggressive, he said. My teammates give me confidence every day, in practice and in games. I was just doing what my coaches told me and feeding off my teammates energy.Lauri Markkanen scored 17 points and Kadeem Allen 10 for the Wildcats (4-0).Jordan Davis scored 20 for the Bears (1-3). Chaz Glotta, a transfer from Southern Illinois, made 5 of 11 3-pointers for 15 points.Northern Colorado is in a tough stretch to start the season.We started the season at Butler, we are on the fourth day of an eight-day road trip, first-year coach Jeff Linder said. We get back Saturday and travel out to Norman, Olaying teams like Arizona, even though were not into moral victories, prepares our guys to win.The Wildcats outscored the Bears 34-16 over the final 12:15.But most of the night, Northern Colorado -- picked by coaches and the media to finish near the bottom of the Big Sky Conference -- gave the Wildcats all they could handle.Northern Colorado bothered the Wildcats most of the night with a tight 2/3 zone defense.Its the first time this years team has really gone against a zone, Miller said. That first time you really rely on your older guys and, unfortunately for us, we have a ton of new faces, so we had a deer in the headlights look.The Bears were up 31-30 at the half and Glottas 3-pointer put them ahead 39-37 with 14::11 remaining.ddddddddddddBut Jackson-Cartwright drove inside, was fouled and converted the three-point play that put the Wildcats ahead for good, 40-39, with 12:15 to go. The play ignited an 11-2 run, capped by Markkanens two free throws that gave Arizona a 48-41 lead with 9:25 to go.The Bears twice cut it to four before Arizona pulled away.Neither team led by more than four points in the first 20 minutes.Markkanens soaring tip-in of Parker Jackson-Cartwrights miss just before the buzzer cut the Bears lead to 31-30 at the break.BIG PICTURENorthern Colorado: The Bears look a lot better than was forecast with the tough zone and could cause trouble in the Big Sky.Arizona: The young Wildcats got a taste of what they well could face in Pac-12 play when they faced the zone defense. After struggling against it mightily, they finally figured it out to make the final score more one-sided than the game actually was.TRIER MYSTERYStill no word on why Allonzo Trier isnt playing. The sophomore guard, a member of the Pac-12 all-freshman team last season, sat near the far end of the bench in sweat pants during Monday nights game.The university has declined to comment on why Trier hasnt been in uniform.HIBERNATING BEARSThe two leading scorers from last years Northern Colorado team are sitting out the season as redshirts. The move came as the school issued voluntarily banished itself from postseason play this season for undisclosed rule violations. No word on whether the NCAA will isssue additional penalties.UP NEXTNorthern Colorado: The Bears play Sacred Heart in the Las Vegas Classic on Wednesday.Arizona: The Wildcats also head to the Las Vegas Classic, facing Santa Clara on Thursday night. The winner faces winner of the Butler-Vanderbilt game. ' ' '