EDMONTON -- There was plenty of post-Olympic rust to go around, but none seemed to stick to Darcy Kuemper in the Minnesota Wilds net. Derrick White Jersey . Kuemper made 21 saves to earn his second career shutout as Minnesota returned from the Olympic break on a winning note, defeating the Edmonton Oilers 3-0 on Thursday night. "We did a real good job, we were aware of the situation and everyone was focused tonight," Kuemper said. "It was just a solid team game tonight. We had seven days of practice. You just use the first two practices to get the fundamentals back and then you worry about the next game. I stuck to my game and obviously the team played great in front of me." Mikael Granlund, Stephane Veilleux and Dany Heatley scored for the Wild (32-21-7) who won their third game in a row. "I think thats our biggest strength, to have a good defensive game," Granlund said. "I thought we played good defensively and Kemps had a good game in net. We didnt give them too much." Wild head coach Mike Yeo said his team played far from perfect, but they will take the win anyway. "I dont think that we played this game at the level that we headed into the break at and I think thats normal," he said. "I was impressed with the detail and the structure in a lot of areas, but I think our puck work can get a little better in some areas too." The Oilers (20-34-7) have lost two in a row after winning five of their previous six. "It was pretty embarrassing," said Edmonton forward David Perron. "Nothing was going right for us. We couldnt generate any offence and our defence wasnt good. It was an awful game." It was the fifth time this season that the Oilers have been shutout at home and eighth time this season they have failed to score in a game. "Thats not how we wanted to come back from the break at all. It seemed like there was a lot of rust on our team," said Oilers forward Taylor Hall. "Whether that was the break or whatever, it doesnt really matter. They had the same break that we did and we just didnt play well." Oilers head coach Dallas Eakins thought neither team really looked that good on their return to action following the long break. "That was an ugly hockey game, I thought for both teams," he said. "It was quite amazing watching this game the number of players falling down with nothing going on around them and passes going behind players. It was firmly two teams coming off of a long break." The game started with a bang as Oilers forward Matt Hendricks checked Wild defenceman Nate Prosser in to the boards in the first minute of play. Prosser was helped to the dressing room and did not return until the second period. Minnesota got revenge for the hit by taking a 1-0 lead a minute later as Oilers goalie Ben Scrivens was caught out of position as Zach Parise fed the puck in front to Granlund who had an empty net to put his teams first shot of the game into. Each team only accounted for six first period shots apiece, with Edmontons best chance coming late in the period when a high bounce flipped off of Kuempers back and landed in the crease before being sent to safety by Jared Spurgeon. Kuemper made a big save of his own seven minutes into the second as he was quick to come across and rob Jordan Eberle at the side of the net on the tail end of an Oiler power play. Minnesota made it 2-0 midway through the second period as Erik Huala fought off Oiler Anton Belov behind the net to send a backhand to a primed and ready Veilleux who blasted a one-timer from the top of the circle past Scrivens for just his second goal of the season. The Wild took a three-goal lead midway through the third as Charlie Coyle made a nice play to swing out from behind the net and find Heatley in front, who lifted his 12th of the season over a sprawling Scrivens. Notes: Both teams saw some success before the pause in the NHL schedule as the Oilers were 5-1-1 in their previous seven games, while the Wild were 4-1-2 in their last seven. Edmonton only allowed 12 goals during that seven-game stretcha The Wild have had a great deal of success against Edmonton in recent years, coming into the game having won five of six and 14 of its last 17 versus the Oilers, including seven of their last eight appearances in Edmontona Minnesota forward Mikko Koivu is reportedly close to returning but remained out with an ankle injury for Thursdays gamea Minnesota goaltender Niklas Backstrom returned from an abdominal injury dating back to Jan. 30, but served as the backup to Kuempera It was Edmontons only home game in all of February. The Oilers last home date was on Jan. 29 when Scrivens set an NHL record for most saves in a shutout with 59 in a 3-0 victory over the San Jose Sharksa Oiler forward Nail Yakupov took a shot to the right ankle from teammate Justin Schultz in the third and did not return. Marco Belinelli Spurs Jersey . Pistorius denied the allegation that he said to the close friend of the girlfriend he killed: "How can you sleep at night?" The accusation by Kim Myers provided a bizarre twist during the trial of the world-famous double-amputee Olympian, who is facing 25 years to life in prison if convicted of premeditated murder for shooting dead Steenkamp, a 29-year-old model, at his home last year. LaMarcus Aldridge Jersey . Louis Cardinals won the World Series last season, but after losing first baseman Albert Pujols to free agency and manager Tony LaRussa to retirement, they opened the 2012 season in 12th spot in the TSN. https://www.spurslockerroom.com/Luka-Samanic-City-Edition-Jersey/ . -- Former NHL star Jeremy Roenick shot a second-round 69 to take the lead after 36 holes and former LPGA great Annika Sorenstam and Chad Pfeifer, who lost his left leg above the knee serving in Iraq, are among several players in contention in the American Century Championship tournament on Saturday.Philadelphia, PA (SportsNetwork.com) - Another season has come and gone on the European Tour, but not before the 2014 campaign produced a number of compelling storylines, including the emergence of the now-No. 1 player in the world. Rory McIlroy has always been a rising star in the sport of golf, but it still appeared as if he had not quite taken that leap to the next level. That all changed in 2014 as McIlroy had loads of success on both the European and PGA Tours en route to claiming the season-long Race to Dubai. While McIlroy reeled in four wins last season, including two major championships, there was quite a bit of parity on the European circuit as only four other players earned multiple wins. Mikko Ilonen, Miguel Angel Jimenez, Bubba Watson and Alexander Levy each had two victories, with one of Watsons wins being his second career Masters title in April. While Henrik Stenson did not have the season he had in 2013, the Swede still led the way in top-10 finishes and he ended 2014 on a high note by winning his second consecutive DP World Tour Championship, Dubai. Now lets see who else made some noise in 2014: PLAYER OF THE YEAR -- RORY MCILROY There is little surprise here as McIlroy took the golf world by storm in 2014 and emerged as the best player on the planet. At the end of 2013, McIlroy was ranked No. 6 in the world and he had five victories on the European Tour in his career. While McIlroy did not pick up a win early on in the season, he certainly threw his name into the mix in nearly every event he played in, starting with the Abu Dhabi HSBC Golf Championship. McIlroy began his season on the European Tour with a tie for second in Abu Dhabi and he followed that up with another top 10 as the then-24-year-old finished tied for ninth at the Omega Dubai Desert Classic. Following a pair of so-so results at the seasons first two World Golf Championship events, McIlroy registered a tie for eighth at the Masters, the only major championship he would not have claimed come seasons end. McIlroys first win of the season and sixth victory on the European circuit came at the BMW PGA Championship a couple weeks after his 25th birthday. McIlroy carded a 6-under 66 in the final round to beat out Shane Lowry by one shot. The U.S. Open was up next for McIlroy, a championship he won back in 2011. McIlroy did not fare well at Pinehurst No. 2 as he tied for 23rd. He followed that up by missing his only cut of the season at the Irish Open. After a tie for 14th at the Scottish Open, McIlroy caught fire and emerged as the worlds best player down the stretch. He put his name back on the map with a 2-shot victory at the Open Championship, his third career major title. McIlroy shot three rounds in the 60s before concluding with a 1-under 71, but it was enough to beat out Sergio Garcia and Rickie Fowler by two. McIlroy made it two straight events with a win as he shot four rounds in the 60s en route to a 2-shot victory over Garcia again at the WGC - Bridgestone Invitational. The Ulsterman kept things going as he made it three consecutive victories when he emerged with a 1-shot win in the dark at the PGA Championship. McIlroy beat out Phil Mickelson to win his second PGA Championship title and his fourth major championship overall. McIlroy did not win again in 2014, but he concluded his European Tour season with a pair of runner-up finishes at the Alfred Dunhill Links Championship and the DP World Tour Championship, Dubai. On the season, McIlroy made 14 starts and missed just one cut. He accumulated four wins, three runner-ups, seven top-5 finishes and nine top-10 finishes. Henrik Stenson was also considered for Player of the Year honors. TOURNAMENT OF THE YEAR -- BMW INTERNATIONAL OPEN Entering the week in Germany, Fabrizio Zanotti had never won on the European Tour, and he really had to work for his first career title at the BMW International Open in June. Zanotti shot up the leaderboard on the final day with seven birdies and no bogeys en route to a 7-under 65, which put him at 19-under-par 269 for the week. That was not quite good enough to win it in regulation, however, as Gregory Havret, Henrik Stenson and Rafael Cabrera-Bello joined Zanotti in a four-way pllayoff that lasted five extra holes. Trey Lyles Jersey. Stenson, who had a huge back nine in regulation that featured four birdies and an eagle, nearly ended things on the first playoff hole, but his birdie effort just rolled past the left edge. All four players wound up making par and advanced to a second playoff hole. Back on the 18th hole for the third straight time, Havret was the only player to miss the fairway off the tee and he tripped to a bogey. Meanwhile, Zanotti, Stenson and Cabrera-Bello all came through with birdies and the playoff continued with three remaining. On the short, par-4 17th at Golf Club Gut Larchenhof, all three players hit the green from the tee, but the trio missed their eagle efforts and each settled for birdie. Back to the 18th for the fourth playoff hole, Cabrera-Bello missed the fairway and he found water on his second shot. Zanotti and Stenson settled for pars, while Cabrera-Bello was eliminated. Now with heavy rain falling, Zanotti and Stenson headed back to 17. Stensons tee shot cost him the title as his ball went into the water. Zanottis first shot came up just short of the green and he knocked his second shot close. Stensons third shot found a bunker and the ensuing shot went well by the hole. The Swede conceded the hole from there to give the title to Zanotti. The win is still Zanottis only victory on tour. In 2014, Zanotti went on to finish in the top 10 five times, with his second-best finish coming at the Madeira Islands Open, where he tied for third. ROOKIE OF THE YEAR -- BROOKS KOEPKA In his first full season on the European Tour, Brooks Koepka certainly made a name for himself with one victory and five total top-10 finishes during the 2014 season. Making 15 total starts on the year, Koepka made 11 cuts, had two finishes inside the top three and four inside the top five. At the end of the campaign, the American finished eighth in the season-long Race to Dubai. Koepka posted his first top finish at the Dubai Desert Classic, where he tied for third. That was Koepkas last European Tour start for over three months as he played on the PGA Tour as well. Koepka returned for the BMW PGA Championship and missed the cut, but he found a lot more success at the U.S. Open a couple weeks later. While Martin Kaymer ran away with an 8-shot win, Koepka tied for fourth. After missing a pair of cuts, Koepka settled for a share of 67th place at the British Open before he earned a tie for 15th at the PGA Championship. Koepka finished his season strong as he did not miss a cut after the Scottish Open. In his next four starts, Koepka had three top-11 finishes and he tied for 48th at the BMW Masters. Koepka waited until the second-to-last event of the season to pick up his first win as he outlasted Ian Poulter to win the Turkish Airlines Open by one shot. Koepka fired a final-round, 7-under 65 to come back and win. A tie for 42nd at the DP World Tour Championship, Dubai rounded out Koepkas 2014 season. GOOD YEAR - Henrik Stenson waited until the final event of the season to pick up his first win of 2014. The Swede missed just one cut in 19 starts on the season, picking up a tour-leading 10 top-10 finishes, including two runner-ups. - Joost Luiten had one victory on the year at the Irish Open, but he was also tied for second with Rory McIlroy in top-10 finishes with nine. Luiten came in third three times and was inside the top five seven times. - Mikko Ilonen, Miguel Angel Jimenez, Bubba Watson and Alexander Levy joined McIlroy as the only other multiple winners on tour in 2014. All four of them had two victories each. BAD YEAR - After a successful rookie season in 2013, American Peter Uihlein made just 13 cuts in 23 events, notching just two top-10 finishes all season. - Ian Poulter is a 12-time winner on the European Tour, but despite making all but two cuts in 14 events in 2014, Poulter did not register a win. He had just one runner-up and finished inside the top 10 three times all season. - Justin Walters made 29 starts on the season, but he made the cut just 10 times with only one top-10 finish. Walters lone top 10 was a tie for second at the Joburg Open. Over his final 12 events, Walters missed the cut nine times and was disqualified once. ' ' '