In the midst of the Wild’s five-game losing streak to end October, the statistic that stood out most negatively was their penalty kill. They ended the season’s first month with a 3-6-3 record and were in a battle with the Ottawa Senators for the NHL’s worst numbers with a man in the penalty box.

One factor in Minnesota’s slump-busting win versus Vancouver to start November was a 3-for-3 night when the Canucks were on the power play.

Yes, it was just one game. But in that success, the Wild’s head coach saw some of the vital little things that can make the razor thin difference between winning and losing.

“One, we won some faceoffs. So we got the puck out of our end,” John Hynes said in praise of his penalty killers. “We were good on the forecheck, of not allowing easy sets, which allowed us to get into pressure and be able to clear pucks. So we didn’t have to spend the whole time in the D zone.”

In expressing some frustration with his team’s effort in the final game of October, a 4-1 loss to Pittsburgh, Hynes had spoken of the game’s fundamentals — playing with pace, competing for pucks, digging in for faceoffs — and the willingness to do those things. In a few examples of his team sacrificing their bodies to block pucks on the penalty kill, he saw clear evidence of that necessary refocusing on the game’s basics to beat the Canucks.

“We had two huge blocks. (Jonas) Brodin had a block right at the net-front, and (Marco) Rossi had a huge block, which is what you need on the kill,” Hynes said. “They’ve got five of the top players on the ice, so there’s usually going to be some kind of a scoring chance. If there’s a breakdown and you have shot-blocking and that type of commitment on top of getting a save, usually that’s a good recipe.”

The Wild entered Tuesday night’s game against Nashville still 31st out of 32 in the NHL on the penalty kill, ahead of Ottawa, with a 64.3 percent success rate.

Fourth line chemistry

A glance at the game-by-game line charts shows the trio of Tyler Pitlick, Ben Jones and Yakov Trenin filling the fourth line role in the Wild’s two most recent wins: Oct. 20 versus the Rangers in New York, and Nov. 1 versus the Canucks in St. Paul.

While Hynes still wants to get rookie Danila Yurov in the mix from time to time, the Pitlick-Jones-Trenin trio’s propensity to win faceoffs and play quality minutes had them back on the line chart together versus the Predators.

“They’ve been very effective in the last two wins,” Hynes said. “They know what they need to do. Pitlick had two or three blocks, some big hits. Trenny had some big hits. They were on the forecheck. Jonesy was in there, he was good in the faceoff circle. I think they talk on the bench, so they bring what you need from that kind of ‘energy’ line.”

Pitlick and Jones had spent a little time as linemates in Iowa prior to their call-up to the Wild, and said there was a natural comfort when they were reunited at the NHL level.

“I feel like we all kind of understand the assignment, creating energy and getting pucks in deep, being physical, being responsible defensively,” said Pitlick, who entered the Nashville game still looking for his first point in his eighth game with the Wild. “It’s just gonna be simple with us. Right up, get it in, forecheck, get it back to the D and get to the net.”

Jones, who got his fifth game for the Wild on Tuesday, has perhaps found his niche as a faceoff specialist on a team for which starting with possession has been a struggle.

“I think we’re still players that play pretty similarly, and understand how important it is to play that way,” Jones said. “We know what we are and play within that. … We’re guys that are always willing to chat and see what the other guy is seeing.”

Jones entered the Nashville game having won a team-best 69.6 percent of his faceoffs this season.

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WASHINGTON (AP) — Aftab Pureval won reelection as mayor of Cincinnati on Tuesday, defeating Cory Bowman, a Republican who is Vice President JD Vance’s half-brother.

Pureval was first elected mayor in 2021. The office is officially nonpartisan, but his party preference is Democratic.

Pureval won the all-party municipal primary in May with more than 80% of the vote. Prior to running for mayor, he worked as a lawyer.

The Associated Press declared Pureval the winner at 8:13 p.m.

By JOHN HANNA

TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — Kansas’ Republican House leader on Tuesday dropped efforts to force a redraw of U.S. House districts that would have thrust the state into a widening national battle for partisan advantage in the 2026 elections.

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The announcement by Kansas House Speaker Dan Hawkins ends a weekslong push by GOP lawmakers to circumvent Democratic Gov. Laura Kelly and call themselves into a special session on redistricting, which would have convened later this week.

A session would have targeted ousting four-term U.S. Rep. Sharice Davids, the only Democrat in the state’s congressional delegation.

Kansas Republicans were trying to answer President Donald Trump’s call for states to redraw their maps to give the GOP at least seven more winnable seats ahead of the 2026 midterms so the party stands a better chance of keeping its slim House majority.

The Kansas constitution allowed Republicans to bypass Kelly’s refusal to call a special session by having two-thirds of the members of both chambers sign a petition. The GOP has the necessary supermajorities, but a few Republican lawmakers opposed a mid-decade redistricting. Others feared that changes could make the three other Republican-held districts more competitive for Democrats.

“Planning a Special Session is always going to be an uphill battle with multiple agendas, scheduling conflicts and many unseen factors at play,” Hawkins said in a statement.

GOP lawmakers in Texas,Missouri and North Carolina have heeded the president’s call for new maps. California countered with an initiative on Tuesday’s ballot to pick up five Democratic seats there.

It would have been only the second time in the state’s 164-year history that lawmakers bypassed the governor for a special session. The only previous time was in 2021, when Republicans sought to challenge federal COVID-19 vaccine mandates. GOP leaders circulated this year’s petition for weeks.

Republicans still could circulate another petition, but the Legislature is scheduled to convene its next regular, annual session on Jan. 12, and they would still have time after that to get a new map into law.

The state’s filing candidate filing deadline isn’t until June 1, and the primary election is Aug. 4.

By JOSH BOAK, LINLEY SANDERS and AMELIA THOMSON-DEVEAUX, Associated Press

WASHINGTON (AP) — Economic worries were the dominant concern as voters cast ballots for Tuesday’s elections, according to preliminary findings from the AP Voter Poll.

The results of the expansive survey of more than 17,000 voters in New Jersey, Virginia, California and New York City suggested the public was troubled by an economy that seems trapped by higher prices and fewer job opportunities.

And a year after President Donald Trump was brought back to the White House on the promise that he could tame inflation and unleash growth, economic worries were still at the top of voters’ minds. Despite a rising stock market, inflation remains elevated, and hiring has slowed sharply. Since October, a federal government shutdown has only compounded the sense of uncertainty.

While Trump has tried to highlight his efforts to deport immigrants in the country illegally and send federal officers and National Guard troops into cities to fight crime, few voters saw these issues as the top concern for the places they live.

These broader economic anxieties were accompanied by high discontent in some of the off-year elections. More than half of voters in New Jersey and Virginia said they were “angry” or “dissatisfied” with how things were going in the country.

The economic challenges have played out in different ways at the local level. Most New Jersey voters said property taxes were a “major problem,” while most New York City voters said this about the cost of housing. Most Virginia voters said they’ve felt at least some impact from the recent federal government cuts.

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Most voters said they aren’t getting ahead financially

Voters mostly said their own finances were stable, but the poll results suggested that many feel they cannot get ahead in the current economy. That leaves them feeling stuck in place, instead of moving up the financial ladder.

About 6 in 10 voters in New Jersey, Virginia and New York City said their family’s finances were “holding steady,” but relatively few felt they were “getting ahead,” and about one-quarter said they were “falling behind.”

About half of Virginia voters, who were deciding between Democrat Abigail Spanberger and Republican Winsome Earle-Sears for governor, said the economy was the most important issue facing their state. Just 2 in 10 pointed to health care, about 1 in 10 named education or immigration, and fewer than that said crime was the top issue facing the commonwealth.

Most New Jersey voters, who were choosing between Republican Jack Ciattarelli and Democrat Mikie Sherrill for governor, said either taxes or the economy were the top issue in their state. About one-third of voters named each of these issues, compared to about 2 in 10 who said this about health care. Less than 1 in 10 identified immigration or crime as top issues.

Just over half of New York City voters said the cost of living was the most important issue in the city — as the expense of rent and level of income inequality has climbed in America’s most populated city. Democratic mayoral nominee Zohran Mamdani is running against Andrew Cuomo, the former New York governor, and Republican Curtis Sliwa. About one-quarter said crime was their major concern. Another 1 in 10 said this of immigration, and less than 1 in 10 pointed to health care or transportation as the top issue.

Dissatisfaction with direction of the country

The polling found a high level of discontent about America’s direction as a country in several states, a sign that few voters have felt reassured so far by Trump’s return to the White House.

Democratic-led California asked its residents to vote Tuesday on a plan to redraw the lines of its congressional districts, after Trump has pushed Republican states such as Texas to amend their district boundaries in hopes of helping GOP candidates in next year’s midterm elections.

About half of California voters described themselves as “angry” about the direction of the country, with another 2 in 10 saying they were “dissatisfied.”

About 6 in 10 voters in Virginia and New Jersey said they are “angry” or “dissatisfied” with the way things are going in the country today. Just one-third said they are “enthusiastic” or “satisfied.”

Federal cuts hit Virginia voters, while New Jersey voters worry about taxes

People are stressed about affordability, but that’s manifesting itself in different ways.

In Virginia, federal government layoffs and funding cuts initiated by the Trump administration seemed to be taking a toll. Roughly 6 in 10 voters said federal government cuts this year affected their family’s finances “a lot” or “a little.” Those economic woes could compound if the ongoing government shutdown persists and federal employees and contractors are forced to go without paychecks.

In New Jersey, property taxes and electricity costs were raising alarms. About 7 in 10 New Jersey voters called property tax rates where they live a “major problem” and about 6 in 10 said that about their utility bills. Sherrill, the Democrat, seized on cost-of-living issues to attack Trump, whereas Ciattarelli has suggested that tax cuts would help to provide relief on inflation.

In New York City, about 7 in 10 voters said the cost of housing where they live was “a major problem,” with renters being especially likely to point to this as an issue. Fewer voters called crime “a major problem” in the city.

The 2025 AP Voter Poll, conducted by SSRS from Oct. 22 – Nov. 4, includes representative samples of registered voters in California (4,490), New Jersey (4,244), New York City (4,304) and Virginia (4,215). The AP Voter Poll combines data collected from validated registered voters online and by telephone, with data collected in-person from election day voters at approximately 30 precincts per state or city, excluding California. Respondents can complete the poll in English or Spanish. The overall margin of sampling error for voters, accounting for design effect, is plus or minus 2.0 percentage points in California, 2.1 percentage points in New Jersey, 2.2 percentage points in New York City, and 2.1 percentage points in Virginia.