from Michael Russo of the Star Tribune,

After what he called “a grueling stretch” during which his dragging team completed eight games in 13 nights with a third consecutive loss Thursday, Yeo and several players admitted fatigue has set in.

That has resulted in questionable decisions on the ice.

In Thursday’s 3-0 loss in Los Angeles, the Wild gave up two goals on two shots a little more than three minutes into the game. And the Kings’ second and third goals came directly off bad turnovers, then poor line changes by veterans.

The Wild has lost four times in the past five games, but it’s not getting completely outplayed. In Los Angeles, the Wild tied a team record for fewest shots allowed in a road game (14). But lack of focus is evident. Breakouts haven’t been clean. Sustained forechecks have been nearly nonexistent. And these are two facets of the Wild’s game that had been so improved this season.

“I’m not one for making excuses, you know me, [but] you can see it on the video that we don’t have the legs,” Yeo said. “You see it in the game [Thursday]. We’ve got one guy going and [the other two forwards] are dragging their feet coming up the ice. It’s not because we’re not working. It’s because we don’t have that extra push to get there right now.”

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