the Kings' 3-1 win and brought them within 2-1 in the best-of-7 series with Game 4 set for Thursday at Staples Center (9 p.m. RT; NBCSN, TSN, RDS)."I wanted to give him a tap, but not where I got him," Keith explained. "I'm glad to see that he came back."Even though Keith called the high stick from behind "an accident," he may soon hear from the NHL's Department of Player Safety, which was reviewing the incident following the game -- as it does for all plays that could potentially rise to the level of supplemental discipline.The League won't decide on any potential supplemental discipline until at least Wednesday."I have no idea," Keith said when he was asked if he thinks he will hear from the NHL regarding the play. "I just said it was an accident."Keith was trailing Carter as the two were skating back up the ice. Keith reached down for his glove when Carter slashed his wrist. Keith, who had one hand on his stick, retaliated with a slash to Carter's face. He was given a double minor for high sticking."It's retaliation with a stick," Kings coach Darryl Sutter said. "It's not a high stick. Whatever they want to call it,Carolina Hurricanes Authentic Jersey, they'll call it. Don't even need video."Kings captain Dustin Brown thinks Keith hit Carter out of frustration. Los Angeles had taken a 2-0 lead 1:21 earlier."It's not a normal four-minute high stick, I don't think," Brown said. "I asked the ref. He only had one hand on his stick, but it's one of those things where it's not a four-minute [penalty] in the course of a play where you lift a stick or get a stick up on a guy. Probably Keith was a little frustrated and swung his stick and hit Carts in the face."Brown said the Kings are not worried about what the League will decide."This time of year, players complain a lot in the media about what goes on on the ice and we're worried about getting ready for Game 4,Rick Nash Authentic Jersey," he said. "The League, if they want to do anything, they can. It's nothing for the guys in here to be worried about."Carter finished Game 3 with a pair of assists and a plus-2 rating over 16:04 of ice time. He won eight of his 13 faceoffs, giving him a 19-9 record in the circle since he moved to center in Game 2 because Mike Richards has been unable to play due to an upper-body injury.---
LOS ANGELES -- Goals aren't scored in the neutral zone, but games can be won or lost there. The Western Conference Final is the latest example of the importance of that 50-feet-by-85-feet area in the middle of the ice.The Chicago Blackhawks dominated the neutral zone in Games 1 and 2. They came out to Los Angeles with a 2-0 lead in the best-of-7 series.The Los Angeles Kings were without a shadow of a doubt the better team in the neutral zone in Game 3 on Tuesday at Staples Center -- and they got back into the series with a 3-1 victory.Here are four reasons that showed how the Kings were able to flip it on the Blackhawks in Game 3:1. SkatingSimply put, the Kings outskated the Blackhawks. They were quicker to loose pucks and that gave them a chance to establish possession in the offensive zone -- an area that was sorely lacking for them at United Center."For whatever reason, they seemed to have more jump than we did," Blackhawks left wing Patrick Sharp told NHL.com. "At the United Center, I thought our legs were moving pretty well and when you're skating like that, you're going to get to loose pucks first and win those battles. [In Game 3], I think it's safe to say they won more battles than we did."The Blackhawks had 20 shots on goal, but 10 of those came in the third period when they were trying (unsuccessfully) to make a push. Los Angeles' ability to skate and get to the puck first forced the Blackhawks to play on their heels instead of their toes. Chicago is not effective when it has to play that way."They were getting to loose pucks, keeping plays alive, pinning us in our zone," Sharp said. "It doesn't happen often, but they did a good job of it."2. Smart decisions wi