SACRAMENTO, Calif. -- Jimmermania began in Sacramento with hundreds of fans gathered at the airport to cheer the arrival of a player most had only watched on television or read about during the NCAA tournament. Its headed for a much quieter conclusion. As the Kings and guard Jimmer Fredette worked toward reaching a buyout of his contract, the former BYU sensation was not in attendance for Tuesday nights 129-103 loss to the Houston Rockets. Kings coach Michael Malone said the team advised Fredette to stay home until a resolution is reached. Malone said he wished Fredette well and believes the third-year guard can carve out an NBA career somewhere -- just not in Sacramento. "For whatever reason, Jimmer was never able to find success, whether they were unrealistic expectations from his college career or whatever it was," Malone said. "But he just wasnt able to play to the level that everybody wanted him to play, which is somewhat maybe unrealistic. Maybe we have to temper our expectations for Jimmer and let him just become a solid NBA player. And theres nothing wrong with that." Fredette, who turned 25 years old Tuesday, is making about $2.4 million this season. He will be a free agent if -- and most likely when -- he clears waivers. Kings general manager Pete DAlessandro told reporters at the teams morning shootaround that he was approached by Fredettes representatives about a buyout. He said Fredette no longer fits into the teams plans but Kings owner Vivek Ranadive "loves Jimmer and wants to do the right thing by Jimmer. Were just talking about things at this point. Theres nothing done at this point." A person with knowledge of the discussions, who spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because negotiations were ongoing, said the sides hoped to finalize an agreement by the end of the week. Yahoo Sports first reported the buyout talks. Fredettes locker at the arena also was cleared out. Fredette was drafted 10th overall in 2011 after dazzling at BYU, where he won The Associated Press player of the year award his senior season. Fredette never lived up to the fanfare in Sacramento, though the franchises instability -- playing for three different coaches, two different ownership groups and constant relocation chatter -- didnt help his cause. Fredette is averaging 5.9 points and 11.3 minutes this season, shooting 47.5 per cent from the floor and 49.3 per cent from 3-point range. For his career, hes averaging seven points, 1.5 assists and 1.1 rebounds while shooting 41.6 per cent overall, including 40 per cent from beyond the arc. But the same concerns some scouts had about Fredette when he entered the league -- his defence, ball-handling skills and ability to score off the ball against bigger and more athletic defenders -- persist. "Every time he shot it, I thought the ball was going in. I will say that," Malone said. Fredettes time in Californias capital city has been nearing an end since the Kings decided not to pick up a team option before this season on his contract for the 2014-15 season. Sacramento also tried to move Fredette before last weeks trade deadline but couldnt get any suitable deals. Since Sacramento traded Marcus Thornton to Brooklyn for Jason Terry and Reggie Evans last week, Malone promised to use the remainder of the season to give rookie guards Ben McLemore and Ray McCallum more playing time. That move buried Fredette even further on the bench. Fredette led the nation in scoring at 28.5 points per game and guided BYU to the round of 16 in the NCAA tournament as a senior. Big performances in big games had NBA stars tweeting his name, President Barack Obama mentioning him while filling out his bracket and college basketball fans in a frenzy. The Kings acquired him in a draft-day trade with Milwaukee as the 10th overall pick. Fans have remained incredibly vocal about Fredette, often screaming at games for him to play more -- and cheering louder for him than other reserves when he finally enters. . Paul Westphal was the only one of Fredettes three coaches committed to giving him extended minutes. Even that didnt last long. Westphal was fired after a 2-5 start in Fredettes rookie season. Keith Smart and Malone both opted to go away from Fredette in favour of other guards, most notably Isaiah Thomas, who has outplayed Fredette since their rookie season. "Jimmer knows how to play, hes a worker, hes a great kid," Malone said. "And I just hope that he goes to a team that allows him to play and put him in a position to have success and maybe he can catch on with somebody." Custom Colorado Rockies Nike Jerseys . Coetzees finish, with six birdies and no bogeys, took him to 19-under 268 overall and past South African compatriots Thomas Aiken and Justin Walters, the overnight co-leaders. 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If Vettel wins at Suzuka on Sunday, and his nearest rival Fernando Alonso finishes worse than eighth, the German driver will join his compatriot Michael Schumacher and Argentine Juan-Manuel Fangio as the only men to win four consecutive titles.The Canadiens and Ducks win; notes on Max Pacioretty, Nathan Beaulieu, Daniel Briere, John Gibson, Devante Smith-Pelly, Jarret Stoll and more. MAKE IT SEVEN Facing elimination, the Montreal Canadiens came out of the gate quickly to take an early lead, got a few bounces and 26 saves from Carey Price on the way to a 4-0 win, tying the series at three games apiece. Montreals big scorers came to play, as LW Max Pacioretty scored once and added an assist. It was Paciorettys second goal of the playoffs, his first of this series. Pacioretty struggled early in the series, but has been better (43 5-on-5 shot attempts for, 41 against) over the past three games. Paciorettys assist game on the first of Thomas Vaneks two goals. A couple of additions to the Habs lineup paid off in limited roles for Game Six. Veteran C Daniel Briere, a healthy scratch in Game Five, was on for nine shot attempts for and four against, anchoring the fourth line with Dale Weise and Brandon Prust. Rookie D Nathan Beaulieu, in for Douglas Murray, chipped in an assist and was one for 58.3% of 5-on-5 shot attempts when he was on the ice. Canadiens D Josh Gorges, charged with protecting the lead, played a game-high 26:19, and was on the ice for 25.0% of 5-on-5 shot attempts. With Gorges off the ice, the Canadiens held 64.3% of the shot attempts at even strength. That the series is going seven games doesnt come as a major surprise -- over the past decade, the Canadiens and Bruins have gone seven games in a playoff series in 2011, 2008 and 2004 -- but with a couple of missed opportunities earlier in the series (ie. Lost lead in Game Two, OT loss in Game Four), the Canadiens needed a really big performance to take this particular series to Game Seven. The Bruins have been the better team ove the course of this season and carried play more consistently over the course of this series, but that doesnt much matter now. Wednesday night will bring a winner-take-all Game Seven between these arch-rivals, with a trip to the Eastern Conference Final awaiting the winner. DUCKS FLYING HIGH For the first time in the Freeway Series, the home team came out on top, and the Anaheim Ducks 4-3 win in Game Five gave them a 3-2 series lead over the Los Angeles Kings. The Ducks turning to rookie G Joohn Gibson, in their time of need, has altered the series and Gibson turned aside 39 of 42 Kings shots in Game Five to earn the win.dddddddddddd In five regular season and playoff games with the Ducks this season, Gibson has stopped 150 of 157 shots (.955 SV%). This wouldnt be the first time that a rookie goaltender made a name for himself in the NHL playoffs, but Gibsons performance in the last two games has already tipped the series in Anaheims favour. Ducks LW Devante Smith-Pelly is taking a liking to his role on the number one line with Ryan Getzlaf and Corey Perry. Smith-Pelly scored a pair of goals and led the Ducks with six shot attempts and seven hits. Once the Ducks jumped out to a 4-1 lead, they went into a defensive shell as the Kings mounted a comeback attempt. LW Marian Gaborik scored a pair of goals, giving him a playoff-leading eight goals, and had seven shots on goal. Not surprisingly, the Kings top line of Gaborik, Justin Williams and Anze Kopitar carried play, all three on the ice for better than 70% of 5-on-5 shot attempts. Unheralded Kings C Jarret Stoll has been having a tremendous series. In five games, hes been on the ice for 65.8% (79 for, 41 against) of the 5-on-5 shot attempts. Hes gone without a point in the past eight games, but the puck is spending a lot of time in Anaheims zone when Stoll is on the ice. Also, in Game Five, Kings D Drew Doughty had 13 shot attempts, including a deflection in the final minute that was kicked aside by Gibson. Kings C Mike Richards played 9:50, second-lowest on the team (ahead of only Jordan Nolan) and didnt take a shift in the final 10 minutes. In 250 regular season and playoff games over the past three seasons with Los Angeles, prior to Game Five, Richards had played more than 10 minutes in 249 of those games. The Kings may hold an edge in territorial play in this series, but theyre now facing a deficit and have to win back-to-back games against the Ducks. Finding a way to get Gibson off his game has to be the priority because, right now, the kid is playing well enough to leave Los Angeles royally disappointed. Scott Cullen can be reached at Scott.Cullen@bellmedia.ca and followed on Twitter at http://twitter.com/tsnscottcullen. For more, check out TSN Fantasy on Facebook. ' ' '