MARCUS FOLIGNO

Jordan Binnington made 25 saves and the St. Louis Blues beat the Minnesota Wild 5-1 in Game 6 to advance to the second round of the Western Conference playoffs.

Vladimir Tarasenko had three goals in the third period to break open a tied game and series, and the St. Louis Blues pushed the Minnesota Wild to the edge of elimination with a 5-2 victory in Game 5.

Jordan Kyrou and David Perron each scored twice, Jordan Binnington made 28 saves in his first start this postseason and the St. Louis Blues beat the Minnesota Wild 5-2 to even the best-of-seven Western Conference series at 2-2.

Kirill Kaprizov had a goal and an assist, Marc-Andre Fleury stopped 29 shots, and the Minnesota Wild beat the St. Louis Blues 5-1 to take a 2-1 lead in their Western Conference playoff series.

The physicality of the NHL playoffs is creeping into the crease.

The Minnesota Wild and the St. Louis Blues were two of the best teams in the NHL down the stretch of the regular season, with these long-running rivals locked in a relentless heavyweight fight for second place in the Central Division. After nudging ahead of the Blues by winning their last two games, the Wild earned the extra home game in the first round. “We’re going to play a very good hockey team — experienced, skilled — and they’re playing one, too,” Wild general manager Bill Guerin said.

Kevin Fiala and Frederick Gaudreau each had a goal and an assist for the Minnesota Wild in a 3-2 victory over Carolina.

The Minnesota Wild are preparing to play in the NHL's Winter Classic for the first time.

Now their first scheduled game with Houston has been added to the postponement list. ___The Big 12 has announced the reschedule dates for nine women’s basketball games postponed this season because of COVID-19 protocols. ___The Atlantic Coast Conference announced Thursday that Louisville's men's basketball game at Virginia Tech scheduled for Saturday has been postponed due to COVID-19 concerns. Ad___Saturday’s men's basketball game between Texas A&M and Florida has been postponed due to COVID-19. It's the third straight Florida men's game affected by the coronavirus.