Columbus

COLUMBUS, N.M. - From a small hill at a state park here, the border town of Palomas, Mexico, can be made out through the desert haze. It lies four miles to the south, but the corruption that roils Palomas and the rest of Northern Mexico may as well be a block away. Last year, black sedans and hatchbacks loaded with federal agents poured into Columbus, a town of 2,000 people, arresting the mayor, the police chief, a city trustee and nine others. They have all pleaded guilty in a gun-smuggling operation that sold about 100 firearms, mostly assault rifles, to Mexican drug cartels.

COLUMBUS, N.M. - From a small hill at a state park here, the border town of Palomas, Mexico, can be made out through the desert haze. It lies four miles to the south, but the corruption that roils Palomas and the rest of Northern Mexico may as well be a block away. Last year, black sedans and hatchbacks loaded with federal agents poured into Columbus, a town of 2,000 people, arresting the mayor, the police chief, a city trustee and nine others. They have all pleaded guilty in a gun-smuggling operation that sold about 100 firearms, mostly assault rifles, to Mexican drug cartels.

Columbus, Ohio, was named for the famed explorer. Here's your chance to explore the Ohio capital for $208 round-trip, plus taxes and fees, from LAX on Delta. There is no minimum stay. You can travel any day of the week through November. (Seasonal nonstop service is offered on Thursdays, Fridays and Sundays beginning in March.) Info: Delta Airlines , (800) 221-1212 Source: Airfarewatchdog.com

When: 4 PST. Where: Nationwide Arena. On the air: TV: Prime Ticket; Radio: 1150. Records: Kings 31-23-12, Blue Jackets 21-38-7. Record vs. Blue Jackets: 2-1. Update: It is bound to be a rough reception for former Blue Jackets forward Jeff Carter of the Kings, who spent a short but eventful time in Columbus, mostly injured and mostly unhappy. Carter was traded to the Kings for defenseman Jack Johnson and a conditional first-round draft pick on Feb. 23. Carter, who has scored twice for the Kings in five games, had 15 goals and 25 points for the Blue Jackets in 39 games.

When: 4 PST. Where: Nationwide Arena. On the air: TV: Prime Ticket; Radio: 1150. Records: Kings 31-23-12, Blue Jackets 21-38-7. Record vs. Blue Jackets: 2-1. Update: It is bound to be a rough reception for former Blue Jackets forward Jeff Carter of the Kings, who spent a short but eventful time in Columbus, mostly injured and mostly unhappy. Carter was traded to the Kings for defenseman Jack Johnson and a conditional first-round draft pick on Feb. 23. Carter, who has scored twice for the Kings in five games, had 15 goals and 25 points for the Blue Jackets in 39 games.

If Columbus didn't discover the "New World," someone eventually would have; all the things that he is blamed for would have been blamed on someone else. Don't blame Columbus, he was just a navigator. CHARLES W. LeCOMPTE Santa Barbara

You could never quite call it a circus-type atmosphere for the Kings at the Toyota Sports Center, not with the Lakers occupying part of the El Segundo complex. But it came close Friday with the departure of defenseman Jack Johnson, the looming arrival of just-acquired forward Jeff Carter from Columbus, trade rumors engulfing captain Dustin Brown and the completion of defenseman Willie Mitchell's two-year, $7-million contract extension Not long after the trade for Carter became official, Brown became a trending topic on Twitter in Canada on Thursday night, rocketing like a hot initial public offering.

One disgruntled forward and one desperate team. That perfect hockey storm resulted in the struggling Kings' acquiring center Jeff Carter from the Columbus Blue Jackets on Thursday in exchange for defenseman Jack Johnson and a first-round draft choice in 2012 or 2013. If the Kings do not make the playoffs this season, the pick slides to next year. The deal reunites the 27-year-old Carter, a former 46-goal scorer, with Mike Richards, his close friend and former teammate in Philadelphia.

This could be the most important week of Dean Lombardi's six seasons as general manager of the Kings. If he acquires a high-impact scorer by the trade deadline of noon Pacific time Monday, he can salvage a season that began with high expectations but descended into a grim battle to score goals and make the playoffs. Failure to reach the postseason could cost Lombardi his job and there would be no reason to argue he should stay. The only elite player available and able to deliver the necessary scoring jolt is Columbus left wing Rick Nash , who reportedly listed the Kings among teams he'd be willing to join in a trade.

In the long, photo-decorated hallway that leads to the terrace garden dining area at Soho House, producer Michael Barnathan paused to point out a black-and-white snapshot of him and his wife grinning broadly as they celebrated their three Critics' Choice Awards for "The Help. " Barnathan and co-producer Chris Columbus are unabashedly, pinch-me-to-be-sure-this-is-real giddy about the gathering awards momentum behind the film, which focuses on the lives of black maids in Mississippi at the start of the civil rights movement.

Ducks forward J.F. Jacques was suspended three games by the NHL for an illegal check to the head of Columbus forward R.J. Umberger on Sunday, a misdeed that will cost him $23,780.49 as a repeat offender. Jacques delivered the hit as Umberger followed through on a shot, "making his head the principal point of contact," NHL disciplinarian Brendan Shanahan said in a video on the league's website. Shanahan issued his ruling Monday after conducting a phone hearing with Jacques, who was suspended for part of the preseason and five regular-season games for leaving the bench to start a fight in an exhibition game.