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Minnesota Wild @ Colorado Avalanche: Game Recap

nathaneide — Thu, 10 Dec 2009 04:54:25 -0000

More photos » by David Zalubowski - AP

10 days ago: Minnesota Wild right winger Antti Miettinen, of Finland, is congratulated by teammates after scoring a goal against the Colorado Avalanche in the first period of an NHL hockey game in Denver on Wednesday, Dec. 9, 2009. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski)

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Minnesota Wild 1-0 Colorado Avalanche

The Minnesota Wild get a 1-0 shutout win over the Colorado Avalanche in front of a very anemic crowd at the Pepsi Center. Frankly, if I wouldn't have seen Todd Richards behind the bench actually being interviewed by a Versus reporter, I would've assumed it was a replay of a game under the Lemaire regime.

Nice to see Antti Miettinen get back on the scoring track tonight. He now has seven goals in his last eight games. Someone's looking awfully tempting for Jari Kurri. Niklas Backstrom didn't have to be brilliant tonight, he just did his job and notched his 18th career shutout.

John Scott is already a lock to be a healthy scratch next game unless every other defenseman is injured on the way off the ice tonight. With three minor penalties, all of the either lazy or stupid variety, he could've single-handedly cost the Wild the two points were it not for the great play of the defense and Backstrom. The penalty kill was fantastic (granted the Avs power play looked like the Wild's tonight).

I'm going to leave the rest of the recap to our Denver correspondent. She's a grad student at Denver University by way of the Range and works in the DU athletic department's media relations office and was in attendance at the Pepsi Center tonight and will post her thoughts later.

Not all games include 60 full minutes of hard-fought, fast-paced hockey; however this game didn't include much of it at all. But, in the end, a win is a win; especially when the win is a shutout on the opponent's home ice.

Wednesday night's 1-0 win came as Niklas Backstrom earned his first shutout of the season and Antti Miettinen scored his eighth goal of the season over the Colorado Avalanche.

The two teams battled throughout the game fairly evenly, as the Wild had a total of 23 shots and the Avs ended with 22. However, the Wild did demonstrate their penalty kill ability, as the team finished the night with a total of six penalties.

The crowd support left something to be desired - for both teams, actually. Though it was a Wednesday night, the Pepsi Center was quite bare. Although, not surprising, many of the people in attendance donned Wild apparel, as Colorado is a mecca for has-been Minnesotans.

Truly, the best play of the night came between the second the third periods as two Mini-Mite teams took to the ice in a shoot out. One player scored his goal off a nice-looking deke. As the opposing goalie dove to the right, the young star turned the puck around to the left side past the outstretched goalie.

Let's hope the Wild steps it up a bit as they take on Calgary this Friday. After all, I thought the days of Minnesota's "slow-down offense" were over.

Please read the game recap over at Mile High Hockey

Hockey Wilderness Three Stars

Niklas Backstrom (20 saves)
Antti Miettinen (1 G)
Kim Johnsson (1 A, +1, 31:11 TOI)

Questions to Answer

Can they come out hot and bounce back from a horrible performance in Phoenix? Well, it wasn't great, but they got the 2 points.
With no Andrew Ebbett, who is going to provide his spark? Antti Miettinen got the goal and Koivu provided the spark of offense, but Johnsson was the backbone tonight.
What kind of effect will punishing Martin Havlat have on his play? 9:48 TOI. I think that says it all.
Can the Wild get to Budaj and rattle him? Not at all
Mikko Koivu has been the engine driving this machine, will he continue his excellent play? Koivu was great tonight, both defensively and by making plays in the offense.

Minnesota Wild @ Colorado Avalanche: Game Recap

nathaneide — Sun, 29 Nov 2009 05:08:16 -0000

More photos » by David Zalubowski - AP

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Minnesota Wild 3-2 (so) Colorado Avalanche

Two games against the Avalanche, two excellent efforts, seven goals and four points. This was exactly the kind of week the Wild needed to try to break out of their funk. Hopefully they can build on this, and Andrew Ebbett and Guillaume Latendresse continue to fit in as well as they have in the first week.

While it didn't always look this way on the scoreboard, the Wild controlled this game. Colorado got sloppy once they had the lead and Minnesota took advantage of the miscues and poorly times penalties, worked their way back into it, and never relinquished control, carrying it through to the shootout, where Mikko Koivu and Andrew Ebbett sealed the deal.

The Wild came out hot, with 12 shots in the first and 14 in the second. Were it not for the outstanding goaltending of Craig Anderson, the Avs could've easily found themselves on the wrong end of a bloodbath. Lucky for them, Matt Hendricks and Matt Duchene took advantage of two nice scoring chances (basically the only two chances in the first for the Avs) and got the Avs up 2-0 against the run of play. After that second goal, the Wild kept up the pressure and you could feel that it was only a matter of time until they took over on the scoreboard as well.

The scoring was started early in the second as Eric Belanger came flying in on a two on one, and rocketed one past Anderson. Nice to see Belly score, because he hadn't done so all month. After that goal, the Wild kept flying and kept the pressure on, but Anderson kept turning away everything the Wild could throw at him.

Each team had a goal disallowed for being played with a high stick. Duchene in the first and Guillaume Latendresse in the third. Lucky for the Wild, Latendresse is learning from his past in Montreal and parking himself in front of the net to get the rebounds, the way a power forward should. After a shot from Owen Nolan goes off Anderson, Latendresse is right there to bury it and get his first goal as a member of the Minnesota Wild.

Neither team would get another opportunity in regulation, and in overtime, disaster was averted as a puck trickled just wide of the cage as Josh Harding mussed it with his glove and it slid through the crease. This would send both teams to the shootout where Mikko Koivu would use his patented backhand roofer, then Andrew Ebbett scored the winner as Marek Svatos and Wojtek Wolski were stopped by Harding.

Please read the game recap over at Mile High Hockey

Hockey Wilderness Three Stars

Guillaume Latendresse (1 G)
Andrew Ebbett (shootout winner)
Craig Anderson (34 saves)

Questions to Answer

Will Kobasew find the first line to his liking again? He didn't score, but did get three shots and at least two nice scoring chances tonight. I think he fits well on that line.
Will Josh Harding perform well, spelling Backstrom? Harding was very solid today. Definitely earned his first win of the season.
Does Latendresse show signs of fatigue with all his travel the last few days? If he was feeling it, he certainly wasn't showing it. Nice goal to tie it up.
Is Adrian Dater the biggest ass in NHL media? Always. Luckily he talks trash about the Avs as well as anyone they play.
Will we see some bitterness due to the home and home? Will this game get ugly? Well, it got ugly really early on as David Koci tried to spark the Avs by tangling with John Scott. Not a great decision by Koci, as he couldn't match the reach of Scott, and it was a series of grabs and punches that didn't really land.

Question of the Day: What to do with Butch?

BReynolds — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 17:13:55 -0000

More photos » by Terry Gilliam - AP

I don't know what to say about this picture. Is Butch crying?

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Since the team does not seem interested in giving us anything new or interesting to write about, I am going to step back and look around for something, anything to keep us entertained.

Today, we look at Pierre-Marc Bouchard, and what his role is on this team, should he return anytime soon from his concussion.

Make the jump, and let's try to have some fun.

Let me preface this entire post with a couple things. First off, there has been absolutely no indication that Butch is ready to return. As a matter of fact, all indications are exactly the opposite, that he is still very far from even returning to skating, let alone practice or game play.

Second, I like Butch. I like the game he plays, and I like the dynamic he brings to an offense. He is a class act kind of guy, and has been a loyal member of this squad for a long time.

Now, that said, he has no role on this team. None that I can find anyway. He is a play making, pass first, try to set up the beautiful play kind of guy. The roster is full of them right now. Martin Havlat has gone from being held on high as the heir apparent to Gaby for putting points on the board, and that just has not happened. Havlat's game looks an awful lot like Bouchards, save for the spin-o-rama at the blue line. So, even if Bouchard is a master of the play making type, the Wild still really do not need him.

Should Bouchard magically reappear in the line-up, where do they put him? Does he skate at center, a position the Wild desperately need help with? What line does he fit with? Does he go back to wing? Which skater deserves to be dropped from the roster to make room for him?

Sheppard has had very public struggles, but plays on the fourth line. They cannot send Shep down without clearing waivers, and there is still some doubt he would clear. Even if he did, Does Brodziak deserve the demotion to fourth line? Does Belanger? Brodziak and Belanger have played pretty well thus far this season, despite Belanger having a recent slump. There is no way Butch deserves a spot at center on this roster. Not to mention that he has had no time to learn the position, as was the hope coming out of training camp, and the Wild cannot afford to have on the job training happening at such a vital position.

I would listen to the argument of moving Pouliot to the fourth line center position, giving Butch a role back on the wing. That situation still begs many questions. Pouliot is playing the best hockey of his career right now, as sad as that may be. Is it worth sending him to the fourth line to give Butch a spot? Does Pouliot deserve the demotion?

Butch cannot possibly be counted on in a checking line situation, so he would have to skate on one of the top two lines. Does he replace Miettinen of Brunette on Mikko's line? Does he skate opposite Havlat? Does he displace Owen Nolan down to a checking role? Can he even be mentioned as a replacement for Clutterbuck or Boogaard at this point?

Mikko's line has shown some good chemistry. The Belanger, Nolan, Havlat line has shown some spark, only to be doused by the wet blanket that is Marty Havlat. The line of Brodziak, Clutterbuck, (fill in random winger here) have shown they can play both ends of the ice.Boogaard has had so many scoring chances this season it seems only a matter of time before one goes in. Heck, even Robbie Earl has shown he can play. Kobasew is out, as is Sykora, two guys who by pdigree deserve a spot before Butch does. They alreay have John Scott fighting, literally and figuratively, to stay in the line-up.

This team still is not what it can be. They are playing better within the system, but are still a roller coaster. They have only put together a handful of 60 minute efforts, and have yet to discover a finisher. (A side note, if I were Robbie Earl, I would be shooting the puck every time I touched it, but that's just me.)

It looks to me like Bouchard adds little or nothing to the team, even when he does return. So, Wilderness readers, what is Butch's role on this team? Say he were to come back for the next game. Were does he skate? Who does he displace? Who goes back to Houston? Who sits in the press box to make room for him? How many more questions can I ask before I finish this post?

Later.

Buddha.

Minnesota Wild @ Carolina Hurricanes: Game Recap

nathaneide — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 03:45:46 -0000

Minnesota Wild 4-5 (so) Carolina Hurricanes

The Carolina Hurricanes had come in on a 14 game winless streak, tying the franchise record long streak dating back to when Minnesota Wild head coach Todd Richards was a member of the 1991-1992 Hartford Whalers (long live the Whale). Canes head coach Paul Maurice was sitting on the hottest of hot seats. They were missing their #1 goaltender in Cam Ward and one of their top offensive options in Eric Staal. The Minnesota Wild were wrapping up an Eastern Conference road trip in which they had trounced the bottom-feeding Toronto Maple Leafs, choked away a win against a team outside the top eight in the Tampa Bay Lightning, then lost a tough game to the elite-level Washington Capitals in which Josh Harding faced 41 shots. The Wild should've been looking to roll over the Canes and head back home.

Unfortunately, they looked like they were relying upon a beaten team to show up, and do nothing more than give them two easy points.

Carolina came out swinging. Jussi Jokinen was showing off for Finland Olympic GM Jari Kurri and put the Canes up 1-0 just 2:45 into the game. Then Joe Corvo scored on the power play with 2:11 left in the period to send the teams into the locker room for the first intermission with the home town Hurricanes up 2-0.

Minnesota used the break to regroup and came out with more intensity. However, the march to the penalty box for the Wild continued, as four Ray Whitney took advantage of the power play, and added to the Carolina lead at 3-0. Antti Miettinen then tipped in a goal on a Brent Burns shot to bring it to 3-1. However, the penalties continued to stack up, as Brandon Sutter notched another power play goal, creating a three-goal lead for the Canes again.

At that point, the momentum changed. Robbie Earl circled away from the net, turned and fired a puck over backup goaltender Michael Leighton. The goal was Earl's first career NHL marker. 19 seconds later, John Scott also scored his NHL first. The teams headed into the intermission with a Hurricanes leading 4-3, but the Wild had all the momentum.

Going into the third, it looked like the wheels were coming off for the Hurricanes. Minnesota controlled play, and Robbie Earl added his second of the afternoon, tying the game at 4. Minnesota then relaxed, with the game tied. This turned out to be a fatal mistake. The Wild would never again get a great scoring chance, and the Hurricanes were comfortable to play it out and go to overtime and the eventual shootout.

Once they got to the shootout, the Wild looked uncomfortable again, and the ice got choppy. Miettinen, Mikko Koivu and Marek Zidlicky were all stopped, but Jussi Jokinen sent the fans home with the two points and Minnesota got ready to head back to St. Paul with four points from a probable six on the trip.

A few positives from the game:

Brent Burns was a +4 on the evening
John Scott's first NHL goal
Robbie Earl's first and second NHL goal
Cal Clutterbuck and Kyle Brodziak's never-ending energy

Please read the game recap over at Canes Country

Hockey Wilderness Three Stars

Jussi Jokinen (1 G, 1 shootout goal)
Robbie Earl (2 G)
Ray Whitney (1 G, 2 A)

Questions to Answer

In this battle between the worst in the East and the worst in the West, who truly is the worst? Well, frankly, both teams had stretches of incompetence.
Could today be the end of the road for Paul Maurice? No, but Fanhouse puts Richards on the hot seat! Pink Slip Index - NHL Fanhouse
Can the Canes get payback for a bad OT loss to the Wild in October? That they did.
Once again, the Wild get a backup. Can they get on Leighton early and often? No, how about late and often?
Last game, Martin Havlat had 8 shots. Can he actually score this time?? Ugh.

Minnesota Wild at Tampa Bay Lightning preview

John Fontana — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 17:01:43 -0000

WHERE: St. Pete Times Forum, Tampa, Florida
WHEN: 7:30 PM EST
MEDIA: Sun Sports (cable), 620 WDAE (radio)

Another four day break comes to a close, and it's the last substantial break in action until after the new year. The Bolts will play 26 games between now and their next three day break (January 3 - 5) with three back-to-back games during that stretch.

A two-game homestand opens tonight as before the Lightning head to the west coast next week.

The most recent news that stands out with the Lightning is the loss of forward Drew Miller on the waiver wire. Paul Szczechura was recalled from Norfolk of the AHL to compensate the loss. There's no word yet if Chewie or Ryan Craig get tje start for tonight's game but it is worthy to note that the Bolts have raided the Admirals of two of their top four leading scorers. Chewie had 14 points in 14 games with the Ads, including six goals.

The local memo going into this game centers around Antero Niittymaki. The Tribune and the Times devoted ink/bandwidth to the subject in unison. The subject matter? The label of streakiness that Frank carries with him by way of playing days in Philadelphia:

"Every goalie is streaky," he said. "Trust me."

Point being, starting goalies get to play through tough spells. Backups don't always enjoy the luxury. Hence, the label.

"Everybody gets hot, everybody gets cold," Niittymaki said. "But I've been pretty much backing up the last couple of years, so when you're hot, they play you, and when you have a bad game, you sit on the bench the next two or three weeks.

"And everybody says, 'Oh, he cooled off.' But the thing is, he never got a chance to get back in there."

I'll take the streaky goalie with the league-leading .940 save percentagr, thank you very much.

The Minnesota Wild come into Times Palace tonight fresh off a victory versus the Toronto Maple Leafs on Tuesday night. They are on a two-game winning streak but are in the western conference cellar with 14 points this season (7-10-0). That, of course, is better than three teams in the Eastern Conference, but in the much more competitive west, it ties them for last with the Anaheim Ducks.

The Wild are 14th in the league on the power play with a 20% conversion rate. Their penalty kill unit is also formidable with a 85.9 kill rate (3rd in the NHL). And while goaltender Niklas Backstrom has been formidable in net (2.59 GAA and a .914 save percentage) and notched his 100th career win in the team's last victory. Interesting enough, however, is the fact that of the entire Wild roster, only two players have a positive plus/minus (Cal Clutterbuck +3, John Scott +2). The Wild are giving up 28.3 shots on goal a night and generating the same total number of shots.

For the Lightning, Victor Hedman is cleared to play and may do just that tonight... Though there would be nothing wrong with taking extra caution with the prize defenseman and having him sit out another game.

Other Previews

Tampa Bay Lightning official preview

Joe Bolts Fan

TSN.ca's preview

SB Nation's Wild community - Hockey Wilderness

Trick or Treat? Pens get the former in 2-1 loss to Minnesota

Hooks Orpik — Sun, 01 Nov 2009 02:36:18 -0000

More photos » by Keith Srakocic - AP

Crosby's not taking any grief. Plant him into the boards and have the audacity to return a slash and he just might have to beat you up.

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[Wild vs Penguins coverage - SB Nation blog Hockey Wilderness]

You win some, you lose some in an 82 game season. A lot of crazy things tend to happen when the year's that long. You know, like out-shooting a road team by a margain of almost 3-1, playing almost the entire game in their zone, out-hit them, but come up emptyhanded. That's the Penguins story tonight, just couldn't catch a lucky bounce or get a small break to result in a win.

For Minnesota not to have been laughed out of town Nicklas Backstrom (no not THAT one) had to be terrific. He was, recording 34 saves on 35 shots. Backstrom looked very poised, very confident in his crease and proved too tough for Pittsburgh to crack.
The Pens defense actually blocked the same number of shots (15) that the Wild players got through to Marc-Andre Fleury. Several of those shots were at the blueline or behind it. Fleury must have great costume ideas, he surely had a lot of time to not worry about stopping pucks tonight. He deserved a better fate in terms of taking the loss, but his counter-part put on a show at the other end and Fleury didn't even get the chance really to do his part, since the Pens controlled so much of the action.
Sidney Crosby's string of not taking crap has carried over. After Marek Zidlicky planted Crosby awkwardly into the boards, Sid gave him a little slash. Zidlicky returned the stickwork, tensions were high and gloves were dropped. Nice fight win by Crosby landing a few rights and pulling the jersey over Zidlicky's head.
At the same time, the Pens were of course without the services of the injured Evgeni Malkin and Sergei Gonchar. With Crosby in the box, the not so dreaded power-play unit was Bill Guerin-Jordan Staal-Chris Kunitz. That hurt not having #87 out there, give him one more chance with the man advantage and that's possibly a couple of chances for him to make a play. But it's impossible to make a play when you're penalized, as was the case.
8 hits by Brooks Orpik; he was handed out even more free candy to Wild players than you probably did to neighborhood children tonight.
The Penguins have been able to run a couple of set-plays off of faceoff wins (thanks to more wins in the circles) and they got their only goal on it. Credit Craig Adams on the win and a nice pass made by Martin Skoula to Pascal Dupuis who ripped it home.
Dupuis, by the way, had a game high five shots on goal and played pretty well against his old team. Pens fans have no problem piling on the guy, so I'll use this space to give him some props.
Petr Sykora had a very quiet night in his Pittsburgh return. He was credited with one shot on goal in just 13:59 played and the only time he stood out was when Kris Letang shouldered him post-whistle.
Seen enough of Chris Bourque? Dan Bylsma may have, he only gave Ray's kid two shifts in the third period. That was a team low (except for Eric Godard, who didn't get any ice-time at all).
I watch hockey almost every night with Center Ice, I play in a couple pools, I follow a wide variety of people on twitter, I consider myself realtively plugged in. But these Western Conference teams always seem to have one guy I've never heard of and one guy I didn't think was still in the league. Tonight's winners were John Scott and Owen Nolan, respectively.

This was the last of 3 games in 4 nights, but neither focus nor effort was the issue. Backstrom was. He was outstanding and the Pens couldn't find a way to scratch and claw enough to beat him more than once. Now we have a few days to re-charge the batteries before a game against each California team on the west coast next week (starting with old friend Ryan Whitney and Anaheim on Tuesday).

Minnesota Wild vs. Carolina Hurricanes: Game Recap

nathaneide — Sun, 25 Oct 2009 05:23:47 -0000

More photos » by Jim Mone - AP

about 1 month ago: Minnesota Wild's Greg Zanon, left, and Cal Clutterbuck celebrate Clutterbuck's game-winning goal in overtime against the Carolina Hurricanes in an NHL hockey game Saturday, Oct. 24, 2009 in St. Paul, Minn. The Wild won 3-2. (AP Photo/Jim Mone)

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Minnesota Wild 3-2 (ot) Carolina Hurricanes

Apparently the Wild want the fans to get more than their money worth at Xcel Energy Center. All three of the Wild's home games this season have gone into overtime, with the Wild winning all three.

The Hurricanes opened the game well, moving up and down the ice, controlling play and keeping the Wild from getting a shot until the 7:20 mark, including a shot-less power play, and only a Ray Whitney power play gave the Wild an opportunity to finally get into the groove. After Joni Pitkanen made a great play down low to feed Ray Whitney who slid the puck across the crease for an easy, but beautiful, Sergei Samsonov tap-in for a 1-0 lead on the power play, did the Wild start to apply pressure.

Tim Conboy took an ill-advised roughing penalty for punching Cal Clutterbuck well after the whistle after Clutterbuck crashed toward the net to get a rebound, then John Scott came in, pulled Conboy off Clutterbuck and dropped the gloves only to have the linesman send Scott away, breaking up the fight before it happened. Frankly, it was a crap move by the linesman. They were both ready to go, but by sending Scott away after he dropped the gloves the refs evened up the calls, sending Scott to the box for unsportsmanlike conduct. While skating 4 on 4 Aaron Ward was whistled for high-sticking, putting the Wild up 4 on 3, and Andrew Brunette did what he does best, scoring down low on the power play. This goal really sparked the team, and they started picking up the play.

On the next shift, it was clear that both Scott and Conboy were jawing in the boxes, as they dropped the gloves after the drop of the puck. The two former WCHA foes (Scott of Michigan Tech and Conboy of St. Cloud State) faced off and Conboy may think he's a bruiser (listed at 6'2", 210), but Scott (6'8", 258) destroyed him, connecting time and again, andConboy hung on for dear life, trying to protect his head. Scott received a rousing ovation from the announced crowd of 18,215.

Shots in the first ended at 9-9. The Wild were definitely carrying momentum into the second period. In fact, just 1:51 into the second period, Kyle Brodziak raced to a loose puck, beating the Carolina defense, making a slick move, dekeing around Cam Ward, getting him down and sliding the puck into the open net on the backhand. It was a fantastic move by a guy who had been providing energy all season for Minnesota. It was Brodziak's first goal as a member of the Wild and his first overall since March 27 of last season as a member of the Edmonton Oilers. Joni Pitkanen then silenced the crowd, taking another nice pass from Ray Whitney and beating a helpless Niklas Backstrom, knotting the game at 2. It was the second point of the night for both Pitkanen and Whitney.

The third period was back and forth, neither team really getting a lot of chances, but Carolina had the better ones, unfortunately for them, the Wild still had Backstrom. He was stellar tonight, making stops that most goaltenders simply could not make. It looked like things were heading toward a Hurricane victory until Pitkanen lost his head. He and Clutterbuck were skating up the ice trying to get back into the play when Cal must've said something to which Pitkaned took offense, because right in front of the Wild bench, Pitkanen hit Clutterbuck with a back elbow and the back ref raised his hands. Everyone in the arena saw it, Pitkanen committed one of the dumbest penalties I've ever seen. The Wild then took control on the power play, but couldn't get things to click and Eric Staal took a long pass after yet another Wild turnover, broke toward Backstrom, but Nik was once again up to the task, stoning him with less than a minute left. In the crowd, you could feel the points slipping away as Staal broke in on Backstrom, but Nik saved the game.

The Wild controlled play heading into the overtime, gaining momentum from the idiotic penalty on Pitkanen. It only took 1:55 for Greg Zanon to ring the post, the deflection to hit Clutterbuck in the face, then Cal dove across the open crease and, laid out on his belly, swung his stick at the puck and ....

Welcome back Cal. We missed you.

Tonight's game was a closely battled affair, in which Niklas Backstrom earned his salary, saving the Wild defensemen time and again, including robbing Eric Stall three times, with the biggest coming on a shorthanded breakaway with around a minute left in play.

Realistically, the 3-2 score shouldn't have been that close. Aside from Backstrom coming up huge time and again, the Hurricanes took 10 penalties, giving the Wild seven power plays, in which the Wild only scored once, and looked anemic on three others. I have to think this will get straightened out once Richards figures out who to have out there. Frankly, Shane Hnidy and Nick Schultz should never be on the power play. Those two were just terrible, and when they were paired together, the power play never clicked.

Time to take what the team learned from tonight and see if they can get their first road win of the season at Chicago.

Please read the game recap over at Canes Country

Hockey Wilderness Three Stars

Cal Clutterbuck (1 G)
Kyle Brodziak (1 G)
Niklas Backstrom (25 saves)

Questions to Answer

Will the Wild look lethargic on the back-to-back? Well, if no shots until the 7:00+ gone in the period is lethargic, then yeah. Luckily they picked up play after Carolina scored..
Can Petr Sykora's return help Martin Havlat? Umm, Havlat and Sykora were kept in check all night.
Is putting Kobasew on the top line going to help Koivu find some space? Not only did Kobasew's effort and hustle give Koivu some space, but, combined with Clutterbuck and Brodziak, they sparked the rest of the team to start driving for the net.
With no Steve Yzerman in the building, will Brent Burns relax and find his game? Burns looked better tonight, but still had periods of time where he would seemingly forget how to play defense. However, his offensive game was fabulous tonight.
Since Kim Johnsson is out, who will take his huge minutes? Marek Zidlicky had 27:02 TOI, but the guy sitting behind me wanted him in the press box all night. Burns had 24:31 and Greg Zanon had 24:13 of stellar defensive play. He's a lifesaver for this team. Nick Schultz only had 20:49, but that was surprising, since it seemed like he was always out there.

How NHL players have grown

James Mirtle — Wed, 21 Oct 2009 20:50:36 -0000

More photos » by Elise Amendola - AP

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When Insider asked me to look at the personal data for thousands of professional athletes dating back to the 19th century, I was fairly sure what I'd find. As expected, the numbers show that athletes from the big four leagues have grown larger since the first of the leagues (MLB) was established in 1876. For example, the average professional baseball player is nearly five inches taller now than when the sport first went pro. But in general, jocks have added even more weight than height over the decades. The average NFL player is 1.4 inches (or 1.2 percent) taller today than in 1950, but 41 pounds (or 19.7 percent) heavier since then. On a pounds-per-inch basis, players are 24 percent bulkier in the NFL, 12 percent bulkier in the NHL, 8 percent bulkier in the NBA and 5 percent bulkier in MLB than they were in 1950.

— Peter Keating, ESPN The Magazine

And there's a pretty neat graphic here that charts the results of this data in all four major professional sports.

NHL players have gone from an average of 5-foot-9 and 172 pounds in 1920 to 5-foot-11, 180 by 1955, 6-foot and 190 in 1980 and then, finally, up to the 6-foot-1, 205 pounds hockey players have averaged the last 15 years or so.

Here's a question to ponder: Just how big can the average NHLer get? Have we hit the limit?

Minnesota Wild @ Los Angeles Kings: Game Recap

nathaneide — Fri, 09 Oct 2009 06:14:26 -0000

More photos » by Jason Redmond - AP

2 months ago: Los Angeles Kings' Ryan Smyth, from left, Jack Johnson and Anze Kopitar celebrate after Smyth scored against the Minnesota Wild during the first period of their NHL hockey game in Los Angeles on Thursday, Oct. 8, 2009. (AP Photo/Jason Redmond)

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Minnesota Wild 3-6 Los Angeles Kings

This was exactly not the way to start a West Coast road trip. In just over three minutes, the Wild did everything wrong. They were out of position defensively, allowed the Kings to roam free, screened Josh Harding on seemingly every shot and didn't clear anyone from the low slot. The result is that, once again, the Wild found themselves down 3-0 at the end of the first period.

Tonight, there would be no comeback. While Martin Havlat finally got his first goal in a Wild uniform, the Wild had no answer for Ryan Smyth, Anze Kopitar, Drew Doughty and the rest of the Kings. Nick Schultz got the Wild to 4-2 down at the end of the second period with a power play goal, and Kim Johnsson fired a nice shot under the crossbar 6:34 into the third period to get them within one at 4-3, but once again the Wild fell asleep in the defensive zone, allowing Teddy Purcell and Ryan Smyth to score just 36 seconds apart to blow it open at 6-3.

So, what went wrong? Well, Josh Harding can't be entirely to blame, though he was very not good tonight, stopping only 17 of 23 shots. The Wild forwards did their job in the offensive zone, playing a reasonably decent game, getting adequate pressure and scoring three times, but they were nowhere to be found in their own zone. They were almost too aggressive on the forecheck, then couldn't get back to play the proper positioning in the defensive zone. It was as if they worried entirely too much about playing the system correctly, but only one way. Time and again they left it up to the defense to handle the entire job of stopping the Kings and starting the transition.

If they want this new system to be successful, they cannot forget that there are two ends of the ice. Let's hope tonight was an anomaly, because if it wasn't, the sellout streak will end before Thanksgiving.

Oh, and Benoit Pouliot again was absolutely terrible. Seemingly uncaring with and without the puck. His 7:07 TOI was second lowest, with only John Scott (who cannot play forward at all) behind him at 4:13. And as much as they may want to be together, Petr Sykora and Martin Havlat are absolutely terrible together if they don't have the puck.

Hockey Wilderness Three Stars

Ryan Smyth (2 G, 1 A)
Anze Kopitar (1 G, 2 A)
Justin Williams (1 G, 2 A)

Questions to Answer

Will the Wild build on a solid 3rd period? Nope, if anything they regressed below where they were before the 3rd period Tuesday night.
Will Martin Havlat continue to be an assist machine? Havlat is fantastic with the puck and in the offensive zone, but he needs someone who backchecks like crazy because he may be worse defensively (at least tonight) than Marian Gaborik ever was. He needs to be with Koivu and maybe Clutterbuck.
Can the Wild get the Kings monkey off their back (0-4 last season against L.A.) Nope. They cannot handle this team for some reason.
Does Josh Harding begin showcasing himself tonight? Definitely. I think the Florida Everblades scout was drooling.
Can they kick off the West Coast Swing with a win? Nope. Crap fest.

Daily Links: Puck Daddy loves Wild, Twins rub off on Wild, John Scott destroys George Parros and more

nathaneide — Wed, 07 Oct 2009 17:03:59 -0000

Puck Daddy Hockey Rumors Live Chat - Puck Daddy
At 12:00 CDT, Wysh and crew will host a live chat about all kinds of crap. Should be entertaining.

Tuesday's 3 Stars: Richards turns trick; Wild comeback - Puck Daddy
No. 2 Star: Andrew Brunette, Minnesota Wild

Speaking of Wysh, he gives the Wild a nice shout-out, thanks to John Scott's right cross

Fight Video: Down goes Parros, up goes Minnesota over Ducks - Puck Daddy
Occasionally in the NHL, we can surmise tangible proof that fighting has, as the proponents say, "a place in the game" beyond the obvious sideshow aspects. Sometimes it's as a deterrent, and other times it's like this John Scott(notes) fight for the Minnesota Wild against George Parros(notes) of the Anaheim Ducks: It's a team-wide kick in the pants.

Wild Stun Ducks - Our very own BReynolds at Prohockeynews.com
With rainy weather overtaking their pre-game celebration plans, the Wild opened the doors early to a handful of fans to come into the Xcel Energy Center to watch the hometown Twins play the Detroit Tigers on the scoreboard. With the game in the balance entering the ninth inning, the Wild made the call to pull the plug on the Twins game to go to the in-house feed. Boos rained down and most of the crowd made its way to the concourse to finish with the baseball game before worrying about the hockey game in front of them.

Ducks at Wild - 10/06/2009 - NHL.com
The Twins weren't the only Minnesota team to overcome a 3-0 deficit on Tuesday night.

Twin Comebacks
A night of comebacks in the Twin Cities, as Anaheim squandered a three-goal lead, losing in overtime and leaving Minnesota with one point.

Wild catches the fever for opener
This may be the state of hockey, but the Wild didn't mind accommodating dual loyalties on Tuesday. The team unlocked Xcel Energy Center at 4 p.m, more than four hours before the puck dropped on their home opener, so those hockey fans determined to will the Twins into the playoffs could indulge both of their passions in the same place.

Headaches sideline Bouchard
Wild forward Pierre-Marc Bouchard was pulled from the lineup Tuesday night because of recurring headaches and will be evaluated for a concussion, said his agent, Allan Walsh.

SB Nation - John Scott

Minnesota Wild @ Colorado Avalanche: Game Recap

Minnesota Wild 1-0 Colorado Avalanche

Hockey Wilderness Three Stars

Minnesota Wild @ Colorado Avalanche: Game Recap

Minnesota Wild 3-2 (so) Colorado Avalanche

Hockey Wilderness Three Stars

Question of the Day: What to do with Butch?

Minnesota Wild @ Carolina Hurricanes: Game Recap

Minnesota Wild 4-5 (so) Carolina Hurricanes

Hockey Wilderness Three Stars

Minnesota Wild at Tampa Bay Lightning preview

Tampa Bay Lightning Projected Lines

Forward Lines:

Defense:

Other Previews

Trick or Treat? Pens get the former in 2-1 loss to Minnesota

Minnesota Wild vs. Carolina Hurricanes: Game Recap

Minnesota Wild 3-2 (ot) Carolina Hurricanes

Hockey Wilderness Three Stars

How NHL players have grown

Minnesota Wild @ Los Angeles Kings: Game Recap

Minnesota Wild 3-6 Los Angeles Kings

Hockey Wilderness Three Stars

Daily Links: Puck Daddy loves Wild, Twins rub off on Wild, John Scott destroys George Parros and more