ST. Supersonics Jerseys Throwabck . PAUL, Minn. -- The Minnesota Wild were reeling as last year ended. Star Zach Parise was on injured reserve. Coach Mike Yeos job was in jeopardy. Then the problems really piled up. Starting goalie Josh Harding was out of action again with an illness. Captain Mikko Koivu broke his ankle. Defenceman Jared Spurgeon got hurt, too. Somehow, the Wild survived -- and thrived. "Ah, it was a piece of cake," Yeo said last week, smiling wryly. "I slept like a baby." With an 11-4-2 record in 17 games since the calendar turned to 2014, the Wild have taken control of the first of two wild-card spots in the Western Conference playoff race. With 69 points, theyre ahead of Phoenix and Dallas, who have 64 apiece and have played one fewer game. Eight of those 11 wins were in regulation. "All I wanted to do is I wanted our players to look at me and say, OK, hes got confidence. OK, well, we should have confidence," Yeo said. "That was the one thing that I wanted. And I did believe in the group that we had still. And I did believe in the game that we played." The Wild still have had trouble scoring, ranking 25th in the NHL with 2.36 goals per game. With Hardings return unknown and Niklas Backstrom injured and ineffective at different times this season, Darcy Kuemper has taken over in the net. Relying on a rookie goalie can be a risk. But Parise is back in form from his broken foot. Spurgeon has returned. Koivu is skipping the Olympics and expected at full strength when the schedule resumes on Feb. 27. Nino Niederreiter, acquired in a draft-day trade, has given the offence a boost. Mikael Granlund has bounced back from a rough rookie year. "I think weve got good character," leading scorer Jason Pominville said. "A lot of guys stepped up in different situations. It wasnt easy at times. You could tell that we were missing some of our key guys, but I think other guys kind of found a way to adjust their game and get adjusted to the level of our play that you have to be successful night in and night out." During Yeos tenure as coach, the Wild have seemed to play better in less-than-ideal circumstances than when in tip-top shape. "Knowing our group, knowing competitors in general, they love a challenge," Yeo said. "So I think we all do." League realignment was welcomed by the Wild, for enhanced regional rivalries to better entice fans and more games in their own time zone. But this season, the new look has made their post-season bid more difficult. Only the top three teams in each division are guaranteed a playoff spot, and St. Louis (84 points), Chicago (84) and Colorado (79) are comfortably ahead of the Wild, who have only 23 games left. "Weve just got to focus on winning games and when we play Colorado, try to beat them and try to lessen that cushion that they have on us and try to slowly creep up on them," Pominville said. Added Parise: "Thats hard to gain that many points. But you never know. ... Youve got to push the teams down that are below you, and we have to take care of ourselves." The non-Olympians on the roster will reconvene for practice next week. The Wild will have to be careful not to lose the momentum they built, with 21 days between games. "Much the same as out of the lockout, its how can you get yourself game ready?" Yeo said. "Making sure that youre ready to execute and play at the pace that you need to play at, making sure that youre ready to battle at the level you need to, and making sure that the conditioning is at the level that you need it at." Cheap Supersonics Jerseys . The mood in Seattle was electrified as the parade featuring the NFL champions began near the Space Needle and made its way to CenturyLink Field, the home of the team. At a ceremony inside the stadium, the team thanked its loyal followers -- the 12th Man -- capping a day of boisterous celebration that drew an estimated 700,000 revelers to Seattle. Avery Johnson Jersey . Sections of the British media reported Friday that Brooklyn Beckham, the son of United great David, was invited to a training session at the club on Thursday. WASHINGTON -- After Jordan Zimmermann put the Washington Nationals in position to win on the mound, Denard Spans legs and Ryan Zimmermans bat made sure they beat the Chicago Cubs. Zimmermans eighth inning single drove in Span for the go-ahead run as the surging Nationals capped a strong weekend with a 2-1 win over the Cubs on Sunday. The expected pitchers duel took place as Zimmermann outdueled Jake Arrieta over six innings and left with a 1-0 lead. "The starter for them today was as advertised, tough," Zimmerman said of Arrieta. "The way Jordan pitched, that was a game we needed to win." The Cubs tied it in the seventh on Starlin Castros sacrifice fly against Drew Storen. Spans hustle turned a soft hit to right field off Pedro Strop (1-4) into a double leading off the eighth. The Cubs challenged the play, but replay showed that the sliding Span avoided the tag. "The fact that he broke out of the box hard and thought two (bases) from the beginning of it was key for us," Nationals manager Matt Williams said. Two outs later, the Cubs intentionally walked Adam LaRoche to bring up Zimmerman, who ripped a single to left to score Span from second. Tyler Clippard (6-2) worked out of trouble in the eighth inning. Rafael Soriano pitched the ninth and earned his 21st save for the Nationals, who have won seven of eight. Washington moved within one-half game of NL East-leading Atlanta. The Nationals took two of three games in the series, including 13-0 on Saturday to break Chicagos four-game winning streak. Zimmermann allowed seven hits with one walk and struck out five. He has given up two earned runs or fewer in seven straight starts. The right-hander is 3-2 with a 1.26 ERA in that span. "I think he found his slider," Williams said. "Gives him another weapon." The Cubs had at least one hit in each of the first six innings, but couldnt generate a clutch one versus Zimmermann. Chicago left 12 runners on base and went 1 for 9 with runners in scoring position. "I fell behind hitters and wasnt able to throw first-pitch strikes,"; Zimmermann said. Bob Rule Jersey. "Guys got on base, and I had to work out of a few jams. Other than that I threw the ball well." Following this weekends blockbuster trade that sent starters Jeff Samardzija and Jason Hammel to the Oakland As, Arrieta inherited the No. 1 role in the Cubs rotation. He has pitched to that level lately. The righty won his four previous starts and flirted with no-hitters in his last two. Arrieta carried a perfect game into the seventh inning on June 24 against Cincinnati and went 7 2-3 innings without allowing a hit at Boston on June 30. Washington ended such hopes immediately. Span hit a fly ball that sailed over the outfielders for a double leading off the first. One out later he scored on Jayson Werths groundout for a 1-0 lead. Arrieta allowed four hits and one run over six innings with three walks and five strikeouts. He gave up two singles to open the fifth, but escaped the jam. Zimmermann struck out while attempting to bunt the runner over. "It was a dogfight," Arrieta said. "I really had to grind it out there. I had guys on base. I had to make pitches in big situations. I was able to do that." Storen entered having allowed only three earned runs this season and only one in 17 appearances since May 17. The Cubs threatened in the eighth, putting runners at second and third with one out against Clippard, but didnt score. Pinch-hitter Wellington Castillo struck out looking, and Ryan Sweeney grounded out. Justin Ruggiano, Anthony Rizzo, and John Baker all had two hits for the Cubs. NOTES: The Cubs recalled RHP Blake Parker from Triple-A Iowa before the game. Parker takes the roster spot created by the trade with Oakland. ... Chicago hasnt announced who will replace Samardzija and Hammel when their rotation spots come up Wednesday and Thursday. Edwin Jackson (5-8, 4.99) will open the five-game series at Cincinnati on Monday against fellow RHP Mike Leake (6-7, 3.47). ... Nationals RHP Stephen Strasburg (7-6, 3.53) will face RHP Chris Tillman (7-4, 4.21) on Monday when Baltimore visits Washington. ' ' '