Marc-Andre Fleury smacked his stick, then Wild snapped out of it

The puck sailed by Marc-Andre Fleury, the third goal against him on five shots just past the midway point of the first period, and the Wild goaltender smacked his stick against the post.

"It was probably good for the group to see him do that," coach Dean Evason said, "because probably jacked them up a little bit."

Fleury's reaction was the end of a terrible start by the Wild and the beginning of its redemption, a 6-3 comeback against the Kings on Sunday at Xcel Energy Center that included an impressive 29 straight saves by the netminder while the Wild successfully rallied from its biggest deficit of the season.

"It'd be easy for him to turn it off, but he's an absolute wall back there and made tons of saves after," rookie Matt Boldy said. "That's why he's going to be a Hall-of-Famer."

Los Angeles blitzed the Wild early in three different situations: shorthanded, at 5-on-5 and during a power play, which culminated in Fleury hitting his stick against the post after that last finish 10 minutes, 17 seconds into the first period.

"Trying to get the frustration out," he said. "A few deep breaths to relax a bit. Then try to make the next save."

But Fleury didn't just stop the ensuing shot.

He turned aside all remaining attempts from the Kings, racking up 31 total saves after the Wild stuck with the 37-year-old even though the coaching staff contemplated a goalie switch to ignite the players.

"The team that we have, I always have confidence that we can come back in games, and we did," Fleury said.

Not only did Fleury improve to 4-1 since a trade last month from the Blackhawks with a 2.30 goals-against average and a .926 save percentage in those five starts, but the new mask he debuted on Sunday is undefeated.

Splashed in bright green, the lid features "a wild beast with his mouth open" around a red cage, a design similar to the one Andy Moog sported in the 1990s with the Bruins.

"And got some flowers in the background," Fleury said.

Boldy was vital to the Wild's comeback, assisting on the team's first goal by Kirill Kaprizov before scoring the second in what was his first game back from an upper-body injury that sidelined him the previous four games.

"It was definitely frustrating," said Boldy, who is up to 13 goals and 29 points. "Whenever you're out, you definitely want to be there in the room with the guys and playing. Looking at it, it wouldn't have been beneficial to the team to play through what was going on.

"It was frustrating, but the guys got some wins and it's a little bit easier when the team is doing good."

Nic Deslauriers didn't suit up against Los Angeles after the winger was hobbled from a shot block Friday in the 4-3 overtime loss at St. Louis.

"We don't want a situation where he gets another shot on it or hurts it more," Evason said. "He wasn't happy to be out, but he'll be close for next game."

Defensemen Jon Merrill and Matt Dumba both skated Sunday but remained out with upper-body injuries. Merrill is nearing a return, Evason said, while Dumba isn't close to playing yet.