SB Nation - Cal Clutterbuck

Minnesota Wild vs. Edmonton Oilers: Game Recap

nathaneide — Thu, 24 Dec 2009 06:15:43 -0000

about 17 hours ago: Minnesota Wild's Nick Schultz, left, and Kyle Brodziak, right, congratulate Guillaume Latendresse, center, after his empty-net goal with seconds to go against the Edmonton Oilers in the third period of an NHL hockey game Wednesday, Dec. 23, 2009 in St. Paul, Minn. The Wild won 3-1. (AP Photo/Jim Mone)

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Minnesota Wild 3-1 Edmonton Oilers

The Wild needed this game. They needed to get a team they had beaten in 10 straight games at the X. They needed a team against whom Niklas Backstrom is unbeaten at home. They needed a team looking up at them in the standings. They needed to get aggressive, forecheck with authority, drive to the net, look for rebounds and get a power play goal.

Against the Edmonton Oilers on Wednesday night, the Wild did everything they needed to get a convincing win. Sure, it was only 2-1 going into the last minute of play, but the game never felt like it was that close. Nice goals tonight for Andrew Brunette on the power play off a rebound of a bomb by Marek Zidlicky (Martin Havlat was the one who kept that play alive with a nice move down low to get the puck up top to Mikko Koivu who sent it across to Zidlicky). That was followed late in the second period by a seeing-eye backhander by Owen Nolan. The Irish God of War found the tiniest crack with that shot. Then to cap it off, Guillaume Latendresse was awarded for his great effort tonight with an empty netter.

What did I like tonight?

The forecheck. Edmonton was chipping the puck out of the zone all night rather than skating it out and taking the blue line with speed. That was all a result of the aggressive two-man forecheck. Cal Clutterbuck, Kyle Brodziak, Guillaume Latendresse, Andrew Ebbett and Mikko Koivu were making it very uncomfortable for the Oilers tonight. That trend must continue for the Wild's new system to work effectively.
Martin Havlat - Andrew Ebbett - Guillaume Latendresse. This is the line I've been waiting for since the first time Ebbett and Lats took the ice for the Wild. Havlat's a playmaker, ok, we can handle that. Ebbett is an energy guym can chase the puck down in the offensive zone and Latendresse isn't afraid to shoot, will plant himself in the low slot and can work the puck in the corners without losing it, because he's just that strong on his skates. Havlat needs to continue to work with these two, get comfortable, make that pretty toe-drag and feed it to the big man to finish.
Clayton Stoner. Sure, his "fight" with Ryan Stone was nice (that was a whooping), but more importantly, the kid shows what can happen with proper AHL seasoning. He's poised, makes smart plays, gets into the offense when he sees a chance, but always gets back to play his role. It's nice to see Chuck Fletcher and Todd Richards fixing the Colton Gillies issue by leaving him in Houston. Hopefully he can learn what guys like Stoner and Earl have learned with their time in the AHL. Too bad James Sheppard is stuck paying for the sins of Doug Risebrough.

A couple negatives tonight though:

Shoot the puck. Sure, it makes me sound like the drunk idiot yelling SHOOT every time their on the power play, but seriously, they were passing the puck around the Oilers like they were facing a squirts team, then when they actually took a shot, the Oilers had gotten back into position. The Wild were almost always two or three passes past when they should've shot. I'd like to see the number of shots the Wild have had blocked in comparison with the rest of the league. I think it would be telling.
The power play in general. Yeah, they got a goal, but they spend so much time chasing the puck in their own end because of blocked shots and deflected passes that they have a hard time getting into a rhythm.
FSN's crew. Guys, his name is lah-TAWN-dress, not lah-TAHN-DRESS. Bob Kurtz gets it right, just ask him.
The officiating crew. Robert Nilsson slashes Havlat all the way down the ice, Havlat gives him a shot back, Nilsson loses it, then Steve Staios jumps in and takes a couple shots at Marty and the calls go to Nilsson and Havlat? Then on the next stoppage Clutterbuck hits Shawn Horcoff at the whistle, Dustin Penner takes a shot at Clutterbuck and Kyle Brodziak pulls Penner off, but both Clutterbuck and Brodziak go and Penner stays out of the box even though he pushed a ref? Really? This is ridiculous. Then again, it's the same league that didn't suspend Sheldon Souray for punching Craig Weller with a cast last season, so go figure. Oh, speaking of which, Sheldon Souray drops gloves with Owen Nolan? Really? That's just pathetic.

Please read the game recap over at The Copper & Blue

Hockey Wilderness Three Stars

Owen Nolan (1 G)
Andrew Brunette (1 G)
Guillaume Latendresse (1 G)

Questions to Answer

Can the Wild get back on track by beating a team below them in the standings? Yes. From the opening drop, there wasn't a question as to who was going to win. This game was complete domination, even when it was 1-1.
With the flu going around the locker room, is chicken soup on the menu for the pre-game meal? The team looked relatively healthy tonight. They had much more energy than they did against Colorado.
Will Niklas Backstrom get back on his game, or are we seeing a long-term problem? Well, the goal was on a huge rebound, and he had three or four other big ones, but he stuffed Patrick O'Sullivan on the breakaway in the third period and looked more comfortable than he did in the previous two games.
Derek Boogaard has been on the verge of scoring all year, will tonight bring a Christmas miracle for #24? I thought he had it tonight, but the puck just trickled off his stick wide of the goal mouth.
Will snowmaggedon and the weather terrorists end the Wild's sell-out streak? 18,250. Guess it remains.

Oilers vs. Wild, 12/23/09 - Looking up at the rest of the conference

Derek Zona — Wed, 23 Dec 2009 18:29:01 -0000

via www.sportslogos.net

SBNation's Oilers vs Wild coverage

Hockey Wilderness

For a glimpse into the world of Minnesota hockey life, visit SnagFilms at the "Pond Hockey" link, or watch the movie below.

Hockey Wildnerness takes on the near-putrid Abel2Yzerman and enrages the natives. Ugga bugga boo. Then HW lays into their gods and really annoys them.

In an "it ain't your year" sign, the Wild lose their equipment. Cal Clutterbuck's panties go up in smoke.

Apparently the NHL is punishing the Finns, because they've chosen the Wild vs. Hurricanes matchup for the Finnish game. Poor, poor Finns.

Derek Boogaard is a useful player. Alright, he's a good guy to have around. Okay, he's useless.

Minnesota Wild Injuries

Probable

Player	Injury Type	Injury Date
Guillaume Latendresse	other-excused	12/23/2009

Questionable

Player	Injury Type	Injury Date
Martin Havlat	other-excused	12/23/2009

Out (IR / Out / Suspended / Physically unvailable)

Player	Injury Type	Injury Date
Brent Burns	concussion	11/19/2009
Pierre-Marc Bouchard	concussion	10/04/2009
Petr Sykora	concussion	11/09/2009

Minnesota Wild vs. Colorado Avalanche: Game Recap

nathaneide — Tue, 22 Dec 2009 04:47:17 -0000

More photos » by Jim Mone - AP

2 days ago: Colorado Avalanche's John-Michael Liles, right, blocks Minnesota Wild's Derek Boogaard's attempt to score on goalie Craig Anderson in the third period of an NHL hockey game Monday, Dec. 21, 2009 in St. Paul. Minn. The Avalanche won 4-3. (AP Photo/Jim Mone)

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Minnesota Wild 3-4 Colorado Avalanche

Well, that got interesting at the end. Kinda makes you wonder what would've happened had they not had a couple massive mental mistakes, like a turnover at the blue line and giving up another shorty.

The Wild fought off a horrible second period marked by bad power play chances, poor goaltending, sloppy defensive mistakes and a seemingly apathetic effort by bouncing back in the third with goals from Owen Nolan and Martin Havlat, but it wasn't enough as Matt Hendricks' shorthanded marker in the second period gave the Avalanche a 4-1 lead and it was just too much for the Wild.

This game was going to be a bit of a test for the club. There was enough time since the fire on Friday to get more comfortable with replacement gear, they were back in the friendly confines of the Xcel Energy Center and in front of the Team of 18,000 and were playing a team they had beaten once in regulation in the past 15 games.

Even so, the hole in the second period was too big to overcome, though the Wild gave a valiant effort in the third, outshooting the Avalanche 13-4 and putting together possibly their best period of the season.

Let's hope Backstrom and the defense pick it up against the Oilers on the 23rd.

Please read the game recap over at Mile High Hockey

Hockey Wilderness Three Stars

Martin Havlat (1 G)
Owen Nolan (1 G)
Cal Clutterbuck (1 G)

Questions to Answer

Will Niklas Backstrom look more confident in game two of "Operation break-in the new gear"? Well, as I learned, it's not new equipment, but he just doesn't look comfortable out there. Maybe Josh Harding needs to come in and give Backstrom a spell.
How will Owen Nolan look in his first game back with the club? Great to see Nolan get a goal. This team needs to to play well and provide leadership on the ice.
Can Martin Havlat continue to build his game? Another game, another goal. Havlat's on a roll. Looks like he finally has his feet underneath him.
Does Jon DiSalvatore get to keep the frequent flier miles he accumulated today since he didn't get to actually play? I'm still not sure he even got on the plane!
Why do the Wild hate me? I get an HDTV and none of the games have been in HD!!! Seriously, this is uncool. I'm having shoulder surgery tomorrow, and if the rest of the games this week aren't in HD, there's going to be hell to pay!

How Erik Karlsson scored his first NHL goal

PeterR — Mon, 21 Dec 2009 13:00:49 -0000

It may have taken a little longer than he would have liked, or than many had expected, but Erik Karlsson scored his first NHL goal Saturday in the Ottawa Senators' 4-1 victory over the Minnesota Wild. How it happened will likely be forgotten if his career plays out as Senators fans and brass expect him to, but why not take a closer look at the play as it developed while it's still fresh in our minds.

It started off with a wrister from Karlsson. Bit of a weak-looking shot, with Karlsson sliding across the blue line, but he did what was most important: He hit the net.

(Read more... )

After Niklas Backstrom made the save, Joshua Hennessy and Peter Regin worked the front of the net. Minnesota defender Clayton Stoner appeared to hold a conversation with Backstrom, and Marek Zidlicky was bodied off the puck by Regin, who won the puck battle and drew the puck back to Alex Kovalev on the side boards.

With Kovalev on the sideboards, he draws left winger Cal Clutterbuck towards himself--and away from Karlsson's shooting lane--while settling down the puck. Once he's got it settled, he looks to Karlsson, and sets the rookie up with a perfect one-timer pass: A steady puck with a good pace, at just the right spot in front of Karlsson.

Cue the one-timer. We've heard a lot about Karlsson's slapshot, but haven't had much of an opportunity to really see him let one rip so far this season. This time, he made no mistake, and his timing--with a little help from a perfectly-placed pass from Kovalev, and some wingers drawn out of position (or just hesitant to block the shot), the puck got through.

Again in front of the net are Hennessy and Regin. Only Regin got a point on the goal, but both of them deserve some credit for winning that battle for the puck and for causing trouble in front of the net. For this second shot, Regin was right at the top of the crease, while Hennessy worked Zidlicky a little higher off the crease.

And a celebration ensues. It really looked like Kovalev wanted to get Karlsson that goal--in fact, it had kind of looked like the team had been working to get him his first for a few games now.

Might not be an amazing goal (wouldn't it have been spectacular if he'd scored on that breakaway a couple of games ago), but a first goal is a first goal. The fact that it was the fourth goal in a 4-1 victory won't likely matter much to him a few seasons from now.

Minnesota Wild @ Montreal Canadiens: Game Recap

nathaneide — Fri, 18 Dec 2009 03:43:43 -0000

More photos » by Paul Chiasson - AP

6 days ago: Minnesota Wild's Cal Clutterbuck, right, is surrounded by teammates, from left to right, Nick Schultz, Shane Hnidy, Chuck Kobasew and Eric Belanger following his goal against the Montreal Canadiens during third-period NHL hockey action Thursday, Dec.17, 2009, in Montreal. The Wild defeated the Canadiens 3-1. (AP Photo/The Canadian Press,Paul Chiasson)

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Minnesota Wild 3-1 Montreal Canadiens

As goes Mikko Koivu, so go the Wild. Koivu's game winner came on the power play from Martin Havlat at 14:08 of the first period, and the game was pretty much over at that point. Yes, I said from Martin Havlat on the power play. Havlat continues his solid play and the Wild scored a power play goal, all on the same shift. Will wonders never cease?

Havlat continues to bounce from line to line, which for many players and teams that would create chemistry problems, but for Havlat and the Wild right now, it's paying off. Maybe it gives him a chance to get away from other teams' checking lines, or maybe it allows him to play a bit more freewheeling, but either way, until he finds a connection with a couple of guys, I love the way things are working out over the last month and change.

I'm not going to hold Guillaume Latendresse's point-less game against him. It was his first game back in Montreal since the trade, and he was probably playing a bit tight. Even so, Lats is still bringing it on every shift, playing tough with the puck and getting himself in position to create problems. The scoring will come, I can smell it.

It was great to see Robbie Earl use his speed and get back on the scoresheet. There isn't a player on the Wild's roster right now that uses his opportunities as well as Earl, and that's ridiculously painful for me to say about the former ~~Diver~~ Badger. His opening goal really set the tone tonight.

Speaking of guys working hard and having it pay off, I just smile every time Cal Clutterbuck scores, and it isn't because I love the fact that the Wild score, it's because he earns everything he gets. This guy works his ass of each and every shift, leaves everything on the ice, is great off the ice and seeing him succeed is a thing of beauty.

Speaking of guys I love to watch, Owen Nolan has been snake-bitten lately. The Irish God of War just can't buy a break, and needs to get healthy in a hurry. Granted, I wasn't expecting him to match his performance of last season, but he needs to get on a roll here, and it'll only make things better for the Wild as they enter the middle of the season.

It's also nice to see the defense gelling. Greg Zanon, Nick Schultz and Clayton Stoner were fantastic tonight. Zanon has to have the best positional defense of anyone the Wild have ever had. He's seemingly always in the right spot to stop a shot. Schultz has completely turned his game around from the beginning of the season when he was trying too hard, and being abandoned too frequenly, and Stoner didn't look like a rookie out there tonight. He played a solid defensive game, and the best part ... you didn't notice it at all. That's what you want from a defensive defenseman.

This team is fun to watch right now, and they're back to being respectable. Now if they keep this up, maybe we can talk about adding a piece or two instead of trading off Andrew Brunette and Owen Nolan.

Please read the game recap over at Habs Eyes On The Prize

Hockey Wilderness Three Stars

Mikko Koivu (1 G)
Robbie Earl (1 G)
Cal Clutterbuck (1 G)

Questions to Answer

Can Lats get payback? He did get a standing ovation, but alas, no points in 14:34.
How is Pouliot liking life in Hamilton? Apparently he still has that wrist injury, so they'll likely see Benoit Pouliot in Montreal eventually, but it's not looking great for them so far.
How will Clayton Stoner react to getting his first call-up? Stoner didn't give up a goal, so that's a positive, and according to many, he looked decent on his first NHL game.
Mike Cammalleri has always eaten the Wild alive. Does that continue now that he's out of the West? Nope! Great to see the Wild keep him off the board.
How crappy is it that my first chance to watch a game on my new TV, and FSN is going standard def? Lame. I didn't get a chance to watch tonight, so I didn't get to see the reportedly horrible SD feed by FSN.

Game 34 Preview: Jackets get Wild

Mike MacLean — Tue, 15 Dec 2009 20:04:19 -0000

More photos » by Terry Gilliam - AP

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This is going to be brief- the Jackets need to win. Minny is on a tear, and Columbus very much isn't. The Wild, like Nashville, aren't a great team on paper- they make up for that by playing hard, physical hockey and they get timely scoring. Not to mention they have a great goaltender, one who finished behind ours in Vezina voting last year i may add.

I'm not a fan of making a trade just to shake things up, but what is there left to do? GM Scott Howson has put together a team that, again, on paper has all of the elements necessary to win, with the exception of one area. The forwards are a nice mix of snipers (Juice, Nasher); gritty forwards who can score (Vermette, Umby), playmakers (Voracek, Brass) and muckers (Torres, Pahlsson) just to name a few. We have a great goaltending tandem, but the defense needs help. Stralman has been great on the powerplay, as advertised. For that alone, he was a great add. Russ is coming into his own, and has been the best blueliner of late. The other four blueliners however, have not played well. Last season, Commie and Hejda were uber-reliable, steady minute-munchers who could hold the fort down. This year however, they are slow, plodding, and are missing assignments. Methot hasn't done much of anything, and Tyuts- well if he's not commiting a turnover he's horribly out of position. It's like he can't decide whether to play offense or focus on his defensive game. Regardless, a steady defenseman needs to be brought in. One who won't wow you, just somebody to settle things down. An older player would be great.

Or, and this would be the easiest move- the team can just work harder. I don't just mean turn it on when you are already down a goal or two, i mean start the game hard, set the tone, and continue for a full 60 minutes. The goals will come from hard work, and next thing you know- you've won the game.

Fearless Prediction: A solid 60 minute effort, for crying out loud this is the same team that was so great defensively last season, what happened? Did the fact that they are scoring now lead them to forget about their other duties? I predict they play hard, because of they don't, they will continue to get embarrassed.

Game Time: 8:00pm ET

Opponent's Blog: Hockey Wilderness

Game Page: Blue Jackets vs Wild Coverage

TSN Preview:Blue Jackets vs Wild Preview

TV: None

Radio: WBNS-AM (1460); WWCD-FM (101.1)

More after the jump...

From the Columbus Dispatch:

The Blue Jackets, who lost to Nashville last night at home, are 1-2-2 in the second game of back-to-backs this season. After a 7-12-2 start, the Wild has been one of the NHL's hottest clubs the last month, going 8-2-1. The Wild has won three of the last four games in Xcel Energy Center.

Jackets Links:

Columbus Blue Jackets / Columbus Blue Jackets Schedule

Columbus Blue Jackets Roster / Columbus Blue Jackets Stats

Here are the lineups for tonight's tilt:

Columbus Blue Jackets

Jason Chimera	Antoine Vermette	Rick Nash
Kristian Huselius	R.J. Umberger	Jakub Voracek
Andrew Murray	Samuel Pahlsson	Jared Boll
Fredrik Modin	Derick Brassard	Raffi Torres

Fedor Tyutin	Anton Stralman
Mike Commodore	Jan Hejda
Kris Russell	Marc Methot

Mathieu Garon

Steve Mason

EXTRA: Michael Blunden, Mathieu Roy

INJURED: Rostislav Klesla, Derek Dorsett

Minnesota Wild

Andrew Brunette	Mikko Koivu	Antti Miettinen
Chuck Kobasew	Eric Belanger	Cal Clutterbuck
Guillaume Latendresse	Kyle Brodziak	Martin Havlat
Derek Boogaard	Nathan Smith	James Sheppard

Greg Zanon	Nick Schultz
Marek Zidlicky	Kim Johnsson
Jaime Sifers	Shane Hnidy

Niklas Backstrom

Josh Harding

Coyotes Celebrate Cinco de Coyo(te), Bryzgalov Gets Shutout in 2-0 Win.

OdinMercer — Tue, 08 Dec 2009 08:15:48 -0000

More photos » by Ross D. Franklin - AP

16 days ago: Phoenix Coyotes' Ilya Bryzgalov (30), of Russia, celebrates his shutout win with teammate Keith Yandle (3) at the end of the third period after an NHL hockey game against the Minnesota Wild Monday, Dec. 7, 2009, in Glendale, Ariz. The Coyotes defeated the Wild 2-0. (AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin)

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Woooooo! 5 wins in a row baby! Have a Margarita tonight because it's Cinco de Coyo! The fans around the arena were certainly high-fiving and celebrating and while there's still a long way to go, a shutout win over the Wild certainly made everyone feel good and elevated the Coyotes to 37 points on the season. It also sets up a matchup with the Kings on Thursday that will be for the fifth place spot in the West and 2nd in the division either way. But enough with standings and all that poppycock. To the gameness!

First of all I was really annoyed that Mikkel Boedker was a scratch tonight. I'm glad Peter Mueller got to come back and played fairly well but Mikkel Boedker has played his pants off lately and not gotten any reward for it. I get that Tippett doesn't want to use younger layers as that just doesn't fint into his scheme, but to call him up and use the minutes he's played pretty well and get no reward is disappointing at best. Then the guy I highlighted in the pregame Cal Clutterbuck, was a scratch as well as I guess he got some sort of illness that's been going around. His absence didn't really decrease the amount of hitting and all around scrapping as the teams would get into hitting matches and fights especially later in the game.

For the most part the game itself was an outstanding goalie battle. Both Ilya Bryzgalov and Niklas Backstrom were outstanding, but the Phoenix offense was just good enough to get a missed rebound past him for the first goal by Scottie Upshall. Then Shane Doan made a fantastic move to get the puck to Taylor Pyatt who scored his third goal in as many games. On the offensive end that was the entirety of the production offensively.

In the third period though the game started to get away from the officials in a big way. Mid way through the period Ed Jovanovski made a big hit on one of the Wild players (I can't recall who it was) but there was no penalty and the Minnesota players wanted to go after him. The hitting picked up in a big way after that with Winnik, Upshall and Jovo all getting hits on people within a short time. The emotions boiled over at the end of the game with a huge scrum in the corner. Keith Yandle threw a few punches in the middle of the crowd, but Vernon Fiddler grabbed a guy out of the pile and simply beat the hell out of him. Owen Nolan and Keith Yandle almost went after each other too, but the officials were able to clear the players off the ice so that the team and the crowd could celebrate what really mattered in Ilya Bryzgalov's shutout. I wouldn't be surprised if there were some fines or suspensions handed out because of the after the horn activities.

Coyotes vs. Wild - Game Preview #30

OdinMercer — Tue, 08 Dec 2009 01:00:15 -0000

Hehehe. Clutterbuck. Teehee. (Saying that never gets old...)

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Yeah yeah. I'm getting this thing done! And if you're lucky I'll even do a post game later tonight. (Nah, I'll do one. I've been slackin') Tonight your Phoenix Coyotes, owner of a season tying long, 4 game win streak face the equally hot Minnesota Wild who have won their last 5 games. While Minnesota certainly had a lackluster beginning to the year, they've found something to get them through lately. So it's streak vs. streak tonight at Jobing.com Arena!

FIVE FOR WINNING

HIT! HIT! HIT! HIT!
Sporting last year's hits leader in Cal Clutterbuck (teehee) the Wild like to play a hard hitting style and when they get the lead there the rest of their game seems to follow. The Coyotes need to be prepared to answer the Wild's physical play with hard hits of their own. Daniel Winnik was laying guys out against the Senators and other players like Scottie Upshall and Mikkel Boedker were showing some surprising checks as well.

Play for, you know, 40 minutes at least...
In the post game presser, Coach Dave Tippett even said that the Coyotes weren't putting in a whole lot of effort after they got the first couple of goals. More times than not the effort that they gave on Saturday won't be capable of winning them the game. If it wasn't for the outstanding play in goal and some lucky breaks the Coyotes could have lost that game rather easily. As Tippett said, we'll take the two points, but we can play better and we have to play better.

Give Bryz Some Room, Then Don't Hang Him Out to Dry
The Coyotes got the early lead on Saturday giving goaltender Ilya Bryzgalov some room to breathe and not have to hold the entirety of the team on his shoulders, at least for a little while. Except then the team just decided to go into prevent style play and Ilya was getting a lot more pressure than a shot here and there. When the Coyotes get the lead they need to keep playing as though they don't have it because when they back off the gas bad things quickly happen.

Get Out of the Corners
Lately the Coyotes have been spending way too much time playing around in the corners. Both on the defensive end where they haven't been winning the puck battles and clearing, as well as on the offensive side where they just keep giving the puck to the new guy in the corner and going around in circles. At some point you have to get the puck out of there and into some sort of playable area.

Is the Ice Really That Bad?
The puck seems to be going everywhere as of late at the Job. Is it really an ice issue at this point? I don't understand. I thought we put in a new system to fix the ice issues. Shouldn't the issues also improve now that the temperature outside has gone down? One would think so, but it seems as though they've just gotten worse with the puck handling getting significantly worse in the second half of periods. Some solution needs to be found, and barring that the Coyotes just need to adjust to it and turn it to their advantage.

Key Players

Mikkel Boedker

#89 / Left Wing / Phoenix Coyotes

Height: 5-11

Weight: 195

Born: Dec 16, 1989

Mikkel Boedker is fighting for a more permanent role on this Phoenix Coyotes team and needs to show the coaching staff some irrefutable evidence of why they should give him more playing time. He's been getting time with top players like Shane Doan and Robert Lang. He's been throwing a good hit here and there, but he needs to create some scoring or draw penalties so that the staff has to leave him on the ice. He's come really close a couple of times on some nifty stick moves near the net but he needs to seal the deal on one of them soon.

Andrew Brunette

#15 / Left Wing / Minnesota Wild

Height: 6-1

Weight: 210

Born: Aug 24, 1973

Last time out Andrew Brunette rang up a couple of points on us with a goal and an assist. He's really been the standout player for the Wild this year with 10 goals and 16 assists. In order to win tonight we'll need to find a way to contain him and keep him from creating opportunities.

The Owie List

Phoenix Coyotes Injuries

Questionable

Player	Injury Type	Injury Date
Peter Mueller	other-excused	12/07/2009

Out (IR / Out / Suspended / Physically unvailable)

Player	Injury Type	Injury Date
Kurt Sauer	other-excused	10/07/2009

Minnesota Wild Injuries

Out (IR / Out / Suspended / Physically unvailable)

Player	Injury Type	Injury Date
Brent Burns	concussion	11/19/2009
Pierre-Marc Bouchard	concussion	10/04/2009
Petr Sykora	concussion	11/09/2009

Andrew Ebbett and Guillaume Latendresse: What's the effect?

nathaneide — Tue, 24 Nov 2009 03:49:47 -0000

by Paul Chiasson - AP

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In the last three days, the Minnesota Wild have added Andrew Ebbett off waivers from the Chicago Blackhawks and traded Benoit Pouliot to the Montreal Canadiens for Guillaume Latendresse. These moves are likely seen from the front office as a way to spark a rather anemic offense and to try to provide some change to a team that has been underperforming to the expectations set by the franchise and the fanbase.

We've already looked a bit deeper into Andrew Ebbett, and much has been said about Latendresse's lackluster performance in Montreal, culminating in this passage from Habs Eyes on the Prize

2009-10 was said to be a season in which Latendresse would finally surpass the 20 goal mark, which is still something noteworthy for depth player on teams thought to be playoff bound. After seasons of 16, 16 and 14 goals, much more was expected of the former second round pick.

What effect will adding Ebbett and Latendresse have on the Wild? Where will they fit in the lines? How will this affect the offense, and will they be the type of players to give their all on every shift, work hard in the offensive zone and get back to cover their defensive responsibilities? How will this change the

Ebbett seems to be a second or third line center. He'll likely fit with Cal Clutterbuck and will likely see Latendresse on his other wing. With these two coming in, it's already moved Nathan Smith back to Houston and will probably see Danny Irmen on his way out other, with Robbie Earl joining them if/when Chuck Kobasew, Petr Sykora and Pierre-Marc Bouchard return.

With everyone healthy, lines might look something like this:

Andrew Brunette - Mikko Koivu - Martin Havlat
Owen Nolan - Eric Belanger - Antti Miettinen
Guillaume Latendresse - Andrew Ebbett - Petr Sykora
Cal Clutterbuck - Kyle Brodziak - Chuck Kobasew

So, where does this leave PMB, should he ever return? What about Derek Boogaard? Can you move Robbie Earl back to Houston? Does James Sheppard fit anywhere? Obviously injuries have played a major role this season, but if everyone's healthy, there are simply too many spots, and not enough guys have proven that they are assured a spot in the lineup.

So Wilderness, give me your answers!

10 Things To Do While Waiting For Vancouver To Play Again

Yankee Canuck — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 16:10:12 -0000

10. Fondly relive the magic and the legend that was Mikko Jokela's time with Vancouver.

9. Go to the Province or the Sun and see if you can find the most inane, off-base comment from the past week or two. For instance, here's a thoughtful submission courtesy of "FireGillis":

Gillis' big mistake this summer was handing the worst contract in NHL HISTORY to the italian.

(ed note: As an Italian I am proud to say - we're finally #1 at something)

8. Pick a player from the existing roster, or a member of management, and why he should play which character in Star Wars (episodes IV-VI, don't bother with the others). And suffice it to say Mike Gillis gets to be the emperor. Princess Leia? Probably best to keep that one to yourself.

7. Figure out why Sami Salo isn't smiling here. Or explain why Mattias' game trumps that of Sami's.

6. Help Mike Gillis find another aging Swedish diva to chase. Any name will do, from Carl Abrahamsson to Lars-Erik Esbjörs to Eilert Määttä to even Ulf Thors. The more diacritic marks over vowels the better. Explain why he'd be a good member for the top six. Show your work.

5. Three words: Pavol Demitra Operation. Fun for ~~the whole family~~ probably no one.

4. "Dump and chase" is a boring phrase. Help make AV feel better about his offensive strategery by coming up with another name. Make it sound impressive, like "Offensive Thrust" or "Aggressive Vision". How about "It Never Works"...wait, not that.

3. Create another Kyle Wellwood Twitter trending topic. Bonus points if you can weave in lack of scoring, soccer injuries, $1,200,000 and Fudgie the Whale. Gold star if you can actually bring Twitter down so we can say Wellwood forced the Fail Whale on humanity.

2. Using a space gun (or Project Harp which, if you're a conspiracy nut, is a means to control weather), pick only one of the following NHL players to fire into the exosphere: Chris Pronger, Zack Stortini, Steve Ott, Cal Clutterbuck, Sean Avery, Dion Phaneuf or Dustin Byfuglien. And, yes of course, Pierre McGuire is an acceptable substitution.

1. It's only a matter of time before Shane O'Brien slips up to the press about his icetime so help our 7th defenseman with a more colorful script, Mad Libs style. Use his rant from March as practice:

"He said: 'If you're not going to [NOUN], get off the [VERB] [NOUN]...That's all he [ADJECTIVE], and I just went back to the [NOUN]. Nothing [PLURAL NOUN] me right now. It seems [ADVERB] that the more [ADJECTIVE] you are, it seems to be a [ADJECTIVE] thing. I don't [VERB]."