These stats were padded with another chapter when the Vegas Golden Knights defeated the Wild 3-2 in Game 6 Thursday night to close out the series, 4-2.

To add salt to the wound, this stat was posted from the @OptaSTATS account on Twitter/X just before midnight after the loss:

“The Wild are the first team in MLB/NBA/NFL/NHL history to make the playoffs 8+ times in a 10-year span but lost in the opening round every time.”

So yes, Minnesota sports and all that.

“We hear the noise of getting by the first round,” said Wild forward Marcus Foligno. “We understand it. We really felt like we could have done it this year, and that’s the disappointing part, right? But we always want to be a team that has commitment and will and sacrifice and comes together as a family, and that’s what our fans deserve.”

Minnesota Wild fans waved their rally towels at Xcel Energy Center during Game 6. (MHM Photo / Rick Olson)

Writing “same old Wild” and ending the piece here wouldn’t be much of a story. Besides, it’s already been typed probably hundreds of times on social media by diehard and casual hockey fans.

While some of those franchise stats are the same when it comes to the playoffs, this season and playoff series was not the “same old Wild.” It’s okay for disappointment with the overall results – the win/loss record – while also enjoying the good chapters written along the way. Sports offer incredible moments, memories and amazing plays, along with frustration, anger and heartbreak.

“It’s tough,” Foligno said. “I mean, especially when you felt like you deserved better, right?

“It’s unfortunate we just couldn’t get our looks and get our bounces and move on like they did.”

Capitalizing on chances, miscues make or break a series
The loss absolutely stings for the Wild and their fans. Mistakes and missed opportunities are heightened during the playoffs, and this year was no exception.

In Game 4, the Wild had a chance to take a 3-1 series lead that’s eluded the franchise forever. Instead, they lost in overtime after a defensive miscue by Jake Middleton in the Wild’s zone led to the winning goal for Vegas. In Game 5, it was a goal getting overturned on a coaches’ challenge late in regulation of a tie game that will haunt the Wild – and Gustav Nyquist, who was offsides before Ryan Hartman put the puck in the net – for years to come.

Back home for a must-win Game 6, the Wild never led after giving up a power-play goal just 3 minutes, 30 seconds into the game. Vegas was also more opportunistic than the Wild and made a couple of great plays as they finally got production from a couple of their best players – Jack Eichel and Mark Stone.

Brock Faber handles the puck while Joel Eriksson Ek battles with Tomas Hertl. (MHM Photo / Rick Olson)

On the go-ahead goal, Wild defenseman Brock Faber pinched in from the blue line and didn’t get back once Vegas got control of the puck. It created a breakaway for Eichel, a superstar who didn’t miss the net, scoring his first goal of the series for a 2-1 Vegas lead late in the second period.

The Wild were down two goals late in the third but responded 31 seconds later to make it 3-2, the second time in the series the Wild had a quick answer in the third period. Minnesota had a flurry of chances in the final two minutes after pulling Filip Gustavsson for the extra attacker. But the clock ran out on the game and the Wild’s 2024-25 campaign.

The feeling was “raw” after the game for Wild coach John Hynes.

“I thought we worked enough and were playing well enough to be able to continue to push the series,” Hynes said. “Unfortunately, it didn’t go our way. But I commend the guys. This was a really fun group to coach, extremely competitive group, coachable.

“It’s obviously disappointing right now because you feel like you deserve a little bit better, at least in the last few games here, and unfortunately, it didn’t go that way.”

This wasn’t the average Wild playoff series
Vegas won the series with four victories in essentially one-goal games. The Golden Knights won three in a row with a pair of overtime victories and then Thursday’s 3-2 result. Game 1 was 4-2, but that included an empty-net goal just before time expired.

Both Gustavsson and Hartman mentioned the two overtime losses in their postgame comments Thursday. Gustavsson thought a moment before answering that the Wild should have one of those overtime games was a deciding factor. It’s small details in tight games, he added.

“I think years past we had some pretty good teams, but this one, those things we went through, the way we stuck with things,” Hartman said. “This one feels like we could have gone deep.

“We battled. Two overtime losses the last two games, and a close one tonight. Felt like it could have easily gone seven, but we felt like we had what it took to go forward.”

“Credit to them. They found a way to get it done,” said Wild coach John Hynes, following the Game 6 loss. (MHM Photo / Rick Olson)

The Wild were close. They were right there. For many stretches in the series they outplayed Vegas. Gustavsson looked like the better goaltender than Adin Hill at the other end. That’s what was so different about this playoff series for the Wild, and perhaps what will make the loss sting that much more.

Minnesota wasn’t overmatched. The Wild didn’t run into a brick wall of a hot goaltender. They didn’t struggle to score goals and generate offense. Their top players didn’t figuratively disappear. All problems that have plagued this franchise for years in the playoffs.

The only game that looked similar to years past was Game 6, because of the close-but-no-cigar chances the Wild had to score more than two goals. The Wild outshot Vegas 31-23 in the game, but they left so much on the table when it came to finishing off plays. It wasn’t for lack of trying or offensive zone time.

Wild fans have seen the movie before, where a puck bounces one way, a player’s stick is just in the wrong spot, a gaping net is staring at the Wild while the goalie is out of position, but they can’t cash in, for whatever reason. That’s hockey, and no matter how many chances the Wild generated with their season on the line, the puck wasn’t finding the back of the net when they needed it the most.

“You feel a little bit gut-punched,” Foligno said. “It does feel a little bit like that. You’re feeling ‘what do we have to do in order to get by, what’s next’ type thing, that’s the game of hockey. That’s why it’s frustrating to play it, but it can give you the best thing in the world and what we all dream of, and that’s winning the Stanley Cup and that’s our goal and always will be.

“But it feels like we had something a lot better, a lot different this year.”

Hartman, goal scoring and one last moment for Flower
In Game 6, the Wild got two goals from Hartman, who played excellent – and disciplined – hockey throughout the series. He had four assists coming into Game 6 before finally getting a goal that counted with four seconds left in the first period to tie the game 1-1. Hartman also buried the puck from the side of the cage with 3:27 remaining in regulation. He had another great chance off a feed from Kirill Kaprizov earlier in the third period but couldn’t finish the play with a goal; Hartman banged his stick on the end glass in frustration.

Ryan Hartman scored two goals, both in Game 6, and four assists in the six-game playoff series. (MHM Photo / Rick Olson)

Hartman bounced back well this season from an eight-game suspension for roughing in a game in Ottawa in early February. It left a Wild team riddled with injuries all season even more shorthanded at the time. But he was a catalyst for the Wild in this series. Hynes said Thursday that Hartman “grew a little bit” coming back from the suspension.

“I think just his mental focus really when he came back from that coming down the stretch to end the regular season and into the playoffs,” Hynes said. “Just more focused, channeled his energy the right way, played the game the right way, and he had a great playoffs for us. It was really good to see.”

Hynes added that Hartman has a competitive gene which produces an ability and mindset to play his best during a hard playoff series. But Hartman, who’s played in the last five playoff series losses with the Wild, wasn’t interested in focusing on the personal positives of his game.

“I’d rather have been out of the lineup and we’d move on,” Hartman said. “It really doesn’t (expletive) matter.”

Hartman wasn’t the only bright spot in this series. The Wild’s top line of Kaprizov, Joel Eriksson Ek and Matt Boldy combined for 10 goals and nine assists, with Kaprizov and Boldy each scoring five goals. Though they were kept off the scoresheet in the final game, the Wild received the kind of play they needed from this trio. As a reminder, two of those players missed a combined 77 games this season due to injury. Eriksson Ek and Kaprizov each returned to the lineup April 9, with Eriksson Ek scoring four goals while Kaprizov notched two.  

Boldy, who played in all 88 games this season, showed the type of skill and hustle expected of a top-line winger. Eriksson Ek’s presence is felt all over the ice, including with the level of physicality and in the faceoff circle, although he wasn’t able to get a goal in these past six games. Kaprizov is one of the best players in the league and was playing like an MVP candidate before his injury around Christmas.

One of the best plays of the series was Kaprizov’s saucer pass to Boldy up the ice for a goal in Game 2 Boldy called it the best pass he’d ever seen. Foligno quipped during that press conference that it was a “rude” thing for Boldy to say, since he assisted on Boldy’s first NHL goal.

Foligno was another player who threw his weight around in the series, both with hits and offensively. He scored three goals in the series and assisted on Hartman’s first goal of the night Thursday. Foligno came into Thursday leading the league with 38 hits in the playoffs; he finished with 42 hits in six games.

The end of the Wild’s season also marks the end of goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury’s NHL career. (MHM Photo / Rick Olson)

Gustavsson had his own highlight reel of important saves when his team needed it. He played all but the third period and overtime of Game 5, exiting because he was sick. That gave Marc-Andre Fleury one more period-plus of NHL hockey before his expected retirement at 40 years old.

As the traditional post-series handshakes ended, the fans who remained at Xcel Energy Center started a “Fleury! Fleury! Fleury!” chant in appreciation. He gave a brief acknowledgement to the crowd before being the first Wild player to skate off the ice and down the tunnel; the rest of the Wild players and the Vegas players stayed on the ice and offered stick taps to acknowledge the future hall of famer. It was a brief moment shortened by the deflating team loss.

Still, it was an emotional scene for Foligno, though it’s safe to say he wasn’t the only one.  

“You feel for him,” Foligno said. “I think we all pushed really hard for him and trying to extend this as long as we can. The big goal was to go out a winner. That would have been the ultimate sacrifice and ultimate dream going out.

“We’re all very fortunate in this room to have played with him.”

Gallery: Wild vs. Golden Knights

The post Early Exit appeared first on Minnesota Hockey Magazine.

The Wild played well in game one, though Vegas took the victory before the Wild split on the road and then won Game 3 with back-to-back, offense-fueled 5-2 victories. Goal scoring, hits, special teams and elite goaltending, plus an energetic Minnesota crowd. All those boxes are checked in this best-of-seven series, which is knotted at two games apiece.

“It was good playoff hockey,” said Wild winger Marcus Foligno. “It was exciting. We had chances there at the end. … It was a good hockey game.

“This is a series. They’re a heck of a team. Not going to be easy. It was a good game both sides. This is what we expect. … We played a hard game, and it’s got to be the same effort in Vegas.”

The only box the Wild didn’t check off was taking a 3-1 series lead for the first time in franchise history. Vegas got the edge with a 4-3 overtime win in Game 4 after Ivan Barbashev capitalized on a failed clearing attempt by the Wild with just 2:34 left in overtime to score the winner. Vegas took a 3-2 lead halfway through the third period before Wild captain Jared Spurgeon answered just 54 seconds later.

Overtime on home ice also hasn’t been kind to the Wild. All-time, they’re 4-8 at Xcel Energy Center in overtime playoff games, including 0-for-5 since their last home OT victory. That was Mikael Granlund’s diving goal back on April 21, 2014 in game three against Colorado.

But even after losing in overtime Saturday, Wild players and coach John Hynes were positive about the status of the series.

Marcus Foligno skates toward the Wild bench after scoring a goal early in the second period Saturday to give the Wild a 2-1 lead in Game 4. Foligno has scored in three consecutive games. (MHM Photo / Rick Olson)

“Ah man, we’re in a good spot,” Hynes said. “It was a hard-fought battle. We played well again. Game was right in our hands. Both teams competed hard.

“We knew it would be a hard series. Love where we’re at. … We’re here, man. We’ll just keep grinding.”

The Wild will have to grind their way through a familiar script that its fans know all too well when it comes to playoff history, marking the fifth time the Wild have taken a 2-1 series lead only to lose Game 4 and see the series get tied up.

The Wild have never taken a 3-1 series lead in 14 Stanley Cup Playoffs appearances. So far, the Wild are 1-3 in series when they had a 2-1 lead, winning the first round against St. Louis in 2015 but losing series in 2008, 2022 and 2023. They’d like to reverse that trend and make that record a 2-3 mark by winning this series against Vegas.

Can this time be different?
Every series is different, and this one has shown Wild sparks that would indicate the outcome could be a victorious one for Minnesota. The Wild’s playoff history is filled with losses where the team has had trouble scoring goals. Whether it was matching up against a hot goaltender or not, the Wild have struggled to finish plays and ultimately put the puck in the net, despite playing well and generating plenty of scoring chances. The Wild have had their opportunities over the years, failed to capitalize on them, and now it’s been a decade since the franchise has won a playoff series.

Two years ago, the Wild were up 2-1 in the series against the Dallas Stars before losing in six games. After the loss, forward Ryan Hartman offered a common refrain about what was missing to get the win.

Ryan Hartman has one assist in each of the first four games of this series against Vegas. In his last nine career playoff games, Hartman has two goals and seven assists. (MHM Photo / Rick Olson)

“There’s opportunities throughout this series where we could have not necessarily put the nail in the coffin, but we could have separated ourselves a little bit more,” Hartman said, after the series loss in 2023. “We failed to capitalize on opportunities throughout the series.”

So far, the Wild have capitalized on its opportunities this time around, with the biggest exception being in overtime Saturday. The Wild also had a power play about eight minutes into overtime but failed to end the game.

Now the Wild needs to prove that this year and this team are different. Turning this series into effectively a best-of-three means the Wild, a better road team than home team this season, will have to win at least one game in Vegas if it’s going to advance. Foligno, who’s scored a goal in each of the past three games, likes this Wild team as one to chart a winning course this time.

“I like the experience that we have from those previous playoff runs where we’re right there,” Foligno said, after Game 4. “We worked really hard tonight. The way we answered and came back after their goal is the mental toughness that we’ve been showing all year. 2-2 doesn’t scare us.”

The Boldy-Kaprizov connection
This 2025 playoffs stage hasn’t been too big for the Wild’s top players either. The top line of Kirill Kaprizov, Joel Eriksson Ek and Matt Boldy has been a lightning rod for the team’s offense in the playoffs. Having Kaprizov and Eriksson Ek return near the end of the regular season from their lengthy absences due to injury has been the boost the team needed.

The wild’s top line of Kirill Kaprizov, Matt Boldy (left) and Joel Eriksson Ek (right) have combined for 15 points through the first four games of the playoff series against Vegas. (MHM Photo / Rick Olson)

Boldy’s also exploded with his offensive production. He came into series with just two goals in 12 career playoff games. This time around, he’s scored four goals and two assists in the first three games; he was held off the scoresheet on Saturday. He scored both Wild goals in Game 1 and became the second player in franchise history with three consecutive team goals in the postseason, joining Marian Gaborik who accomplished the feat in the 2003 second round series.

Kaprizov, who’s come back strong after missing most of the Wild games since Christmas with a lower-body injury that required surgery, has kept pace with Boldy. He also has four goals and added an assist Saturday on his 28th birthday to bring his playoff points total to eight in four games so far. His 14 career playoff goals are only two shy of Zach Parise’s 16 for the most in franchise history.

It’s all part of that cliché: Your best players have to be your best players.

“Those guys bring it every night, whether the puck is going in or not,” said Wild defenseman Brock Faber, after Game 3. “Just their work ethic on the ice – they’re the hardest workers and the most skilled players. So, when you got two guys who have both those traits, they’re hard to stop and we’re hard to beat.

“It’s definitely fun to watch those guys.”

In net, the Wild have gotten what they need from Filip Gustavsson, too. He made 42 saves on Saturday despite getting tagged with the loss. He made plenty of spectacular saves to keep Vegas at bay throughout the game.

Filip Gustavsson’s 42 saves in Game 4 are tied for the fifth-highest total in the Wild’s postseason history. (MHM Photo / Rick Olson)

Gustavsson was also upbeat and pleased with the effort from the team, even if the result wasn’t there for them at the end.

“You always hate losing,” Gustavsson said. “But you know, hockey’s a team sport. You can have a great day and you still lose. It’s all about the team. You win and lose together.

“I think the feeling in the locker room is very good. Everyone has a lot of confidence right now.”

They’ll need to make sure they pack that positivity with them.  With this series against Vegas tied 2-2 in the present day, the Wild will head back to Vegas trying to buck the historical trends of the franchise’s results.

Hynes said his players are “dialed in,” and there’s a belief in how they’re playing right now. He added that they’ve been resilient all year. They’ll move on to Game 5 Tuesday in Vegas. They feel confident headed into that game, Foligno said, adding that “the road doesn’t faze this team.”

“We had to win two games to win this series this morning,” Hartman said. “It’s still the same way; we’ve still got to win two hockey games.”

Gallery: Wild vs. Golden Knights

The post Win, Lose, Series Draw appeared first on Minnesota Hockey Magazine.

But Joel Eriksson Ek tied the game 2-2 officially with 22 seconds remaining in regulation Tuesday night against the Anaheim Ducks at Xcel Energy Center. That goal helped send the Wild to the playoffs; all they needed was one point in the game, which they achieved when they sent the game to overtime.

With the playoff spot clinched at the end of regulation, starting goaltender Filip Gustavsson wanted a word with coach John Hynes at the bench.

“He came to me and just said, ‘We get in, do you think we could put Flower in?’” Hynes said. “I was like, ‘Yeah, great idea.’”

So, as the teams prepared for the reset before 3-on-3 overtime, backup netminder Marc-Andre Fleury got off the bench and started stretching on the ice. Fans noticed, and the cheers grew louder as he took his place in the crease. The 40-year-old goaltender was coming in cold. But the move was heartwarming.

He was thrown right into the fire, too, as the Wild went on the penalty kill just 18 seconds into overtime, the only Wild penalty of the night.

No worries. The Flower squeezed a vintage performance into the overtime period that lasted nearly the full five minutes. Fleury made five saves in his 4:42 of ice time to earn his 575th career victory. Along the way, he also got some help from his friend, the goal post, with a Ducks shot that just missed. He made sure to thank the post in his traditional way, by giving it a quick tap with his glove hand. Fleury also made a sprawling pad save earlier in the sequence.

Marc-Andre Fleury won his 575th career game on Tuesday night, playing only the overtime period. (MHM Photo / Rick Olson)

“That was just an unbelievable regular season ending to Marc-Andre Fleury’s career,” said winger Marcus Foligno. “To come in and get awarded a penalty, too, to kill a penalty kill, we’re all looking at each other like are you kidding me? I can’t believe the ref called that to just throw Flower under the bus like that. And then to see two poke-check saves and a post and keep playing the puck, too, it was electric and it’s so fitting for the way you can end that guy’s regular-season career.”

His saves helped keep overtime alive, and the Wild eventually won the game 3-2 on a Matt Boldy goal with 18 seconds left. While it’s traditional to mob the player who scored the game winner, Fleury’s teammates mobbed him near center ice.

“I think our fate was winning the game like we did,” said Wild defenseman Jake Middleton. “Maybe it was fate to go to overtime and get Flower in net the way we did, too. What a all-class move by Gus there, too. Very cool.”

A fond memory
Fleury said he was “very surprised,” plus a little shocked and a little worried when he was called upon for overtime.

“I’d been sitting there for a few hours,” Fleury said. “A good talk from Gus, and obviously Hynes let me go in, too. I’m happy I got to go play just a little bit more at home.”

He was a much happier hockey player than six days earlier when he stood in front of his locker stall following another Wild overtime win, but in that topsy-turvy game against San Jose, Fleury allowed seven goals. That game last Wednesday was set up to be his final home start of the regular season in his career. Afterward, he could only take solace in the fact that the team got the important two points, and the emotions of the national anthem, when his three children joined him in the goal crease.

“I think I’ll remember the national anthem and having two points,” Fleury said, after the game against San Jose.

The Wild had a chance to win-and-get-in in Calgary on Friday, but they lost 4-2 and Fleury saw a few minutes in net late in the game when Gustavsson was pulled. That meant Fleury didn’t start in Vancouver the next night either, which was a likely plan, but the Wild still needed the valuable points and went with Gustavsson in net.

It looked like Fleury might not see meaningful minutes or get another shot at a regular-season sendoff. Until overtime, with the relief of the playoff clinch scenario in the bag.

“I feel lucky to have another chance to play in front of them,” Fleury said, of his family in attendance and the Wild fans, who went nuts for his entrance into the game and showered him with “FLEURY! FLEURY!” chants. “Get a win. Not give up seven goals. That was nice, too. Hopefully they remember that time.

Fleury had tears in his eyes by the end of the postgame media session: “It was fun to go one more time out there and play the game I love. That was cool.” 

After the victory, the Wild players and fans saluted Fleury as he stood at center ice with a graphic on the videoboard above thanking him: “Merci Fleury.”

Flower deserves all his flowers. That seems to be the unanimous opinion among Wild players.

“Every compliment, everything that’s been thrown his way, he deserves,” Middleton said. “He’s just one of the best dudes in hockey.

The post Flowers For Fleury appeared first on Minnesota Hockey Magazine.

It took a little extra time, but the Wild got the two points it desperately needed in a 3-2 overtime victory over the division rival Dallas Stars on Sunday at Xcel Energy Center. Here are five rules recapping their latest win:

1. Marco Rossi finished a highlight-reel play in overtime for his 24th goal of the season.

Only 13 seconds into overtime, Matt Boldy was tripped up by Stars’ goal scorer Jason Roberston to put the Wild on a power play.

That gave the Wild a 4-on-3 advantage. Boldy and Mats Zuccarello cycled the puck beautifully, with Zuccarello’s shot tipped in on the back door by Rossi at 58 seconds of overtime.

“Try to be open, and Zuccy is going to find you,” said Rossi, who also recorded an assist in the game.

Boldy offered more on how the winner developed, calling it “an unbelievable play by Zuccy.”

“Great battle on the zone entry,” Boldy said. “They played that about as good as they possibly could. The best I’ve ever seen any 4-on-3 play it. Great battle won there and then to get set up. You give the puck to the best playmaker on the team, and he makes no mistake.”

The Wild’s top line accounted for all three goals. Yes, that’s the top line of Marcus Foligno and Boldy on the wings with Rossi at center.

“Today was a good start to a big week for us,” said John Hynes.

2. Matt Boldy whacks his way to a three-point game.

Dallas took a 1-0 lead early in the game on Robertson’s 34th goal of the season. The score remained the same at the second intermission. But the Wild talked afterward about how they played well, even if the results didn’t always show up on the scoreboard.

“We had a really good game,” Rossi said. “Even the first and second period was good. Maybe the puck bounces didn’t go our way. But we played the right way and obviously go out goals in that third period.”

That started with Boldy tying the game about three minutes into the third period when he whacked the puck into the net as he was falling to his knees in the slot. He got up and emphatically celebrated his team-leading 26th goal of the season.

“Just kind of a bouncing puck that found some free ice, and I just tried to hit it as hard as I could,” Boldy said. “Got lucky it went in.”

Less than two minutes later, Foligno punched in a goal in the crease to give the Wild a 2-1 lead five minutes into the third. Boldy had the second assist on the play, as he did on Rossi’s winner.

It’s the sixth game this season in which Boldy (26-41—67) has scored three-or-more points in a game.

“I thought mentally we were in this game right from the start,” Boldy said.

3. The Wild’s penalty kill did its job.

The penalty kill has taken its fair share of lumps and criticism this season. There was a point where skating down a man might as well have come with an automatic goal for the opposing team, and quickly. Teams won faceoffs in their offensive zones and scored within the first 10 seconds of power plays against the Wild.

By the numbers, the Wild’s penalty kill is still one of the worst. Its 72.2% (54 goals allowed on 194 attempts) mark coming into Sunday’s game ranked 31st in the NHL. That ranking is the same on home ice at 69.1% (25 goals on 81 attempts) before Sunday.

The PK came into play on its New York road trip Friday against the Islanders. The Wild trailed just 2-1 headed into the third period but allowed a goal on the kill for a two-goal margin.

But against Dallas, with a road power play ranked ninth in the NHL coming in, the Wild went 4-for-4. Hynes commented on the Wild’s urgency in the play on the kill, along with strong attention to detail.

“I thought we got saves at the right times from Gus,” Hynes said. “We were strong on our clears. That’s the recipe.”

First, the Wild needed to kill a Boldy boarding penalty only eight seconds into the game. They also killed off two tripping penalties in the third period with 9:05 left in regulation. The Wild’s killers didn’t allow much for the Stars with the man advantage.

“The guys are being smarter with shares and things like that in our zone with the penalty kill,” Foligno said. “So, I just feel like it’s a lot of confidence.”

Unfortunately, about 10 seconds after that first penalty in the third period expired, the Stars tied the game with a shot off Zach Bogosian’s leg. A tie game with 3:27 left in regulation, and this time Brock Faber went to the box for tripping. But the Wild killed that one off, too, and eventually skated into overtime after securing a point.

“The PK guys stepped up when they needed to,” said Wild goaltender Filip Gustavsson. “Three minutes on the clock is not an easy task to do. We needed to have a kill, and everyone did it.”

4. Filip Gustavsson made 23 saves on the way to winning his 30th game of the season.

Gustavsson improved to 30-18-6 this season. He’s remained consistent with his game during this recent stretch the last month or so, as the Wild have relied on him heavily.

While the Wild have struggled to find success on home ice this season, Gustavsson is 17-11-1 at Xcel Energy Center in 2024-25. He’s also the fifth goaltender in franchise history to win 30 games in a season. Devan Dubnyk did it four times, Nicklas Backstrom twice, and Cam Talbot and Manny Fernandez also each won 30 games in a season.

“I wish I could play every game,” Gustavsson said. “It’s something I love to do, and I wish I can continue doing it.”

5. The victory broke a four-game winless streak for the Wild.

Since the start of March, the Wild stepped onto the ice Sunday with a 7-7-3 record, earning 17 points in 17 games as they fight to keep pace in the standings and hold onto a wild card spot.

But a rough road trip out east this past week left the Wild with an 0-2-2 stretch even since their inspired victory over the Washington Capitals on home ice March 27, a game known more for its finish when Alex Ovechkin – who made history by scoring his 895th career NHL goal Sunday – made sure his team shook hands with Wild goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury after the game.

From there, the Wild lost 5-2 to New Jersey, then in a shootout at the Devils’ home, followed by an overtime loss at the Rangers. A rough 3-1 loss at the Islanders on Friday generated some pointed and candid comments from the Wild locker room postgame.

But as Foligno said after Sunday’s game, the Wild needed to stop talking about what they need to do and just show up and play during this crucial time of year, which now has four games remaining in the regular season.

“We’ve just got to show up and play,” Foligno said. “Just sick of the meetings, sick of the motivational speeches. We know we have it in here. It’s just getting our head around it and doing it for a full 60.”

The Wild have 91 points in the second wild card spot in the Western Conference. St. Louis is just ahead with 93 points; the Blues can’t lose lately, having won 12 games in a row. Calgary is chasing the Wild with 85 points. The Wild play at home again Wednesday vs. San Jose.

“It’s been a grind, but we’re excited we’re in the driver’s seat still,” Foligno said. “Our fate’s in our hands.”

The post Rink Rule: Stars vs. Wild appeared first on Minnesota Hockey Magazine.

Two days after watching his team record an impressive victory over the NHL-leading Washington Capitals, the Wild coach expected a repeat performance against the good, but not great, New Jersey Devils.

This would be the 11th and final home game for the Wild in March and a chance to keep the surging St. Louis Blues two points behind them in the wild card race. This version of the Wild — the one without superstar winger Kirill Kaprizov and top center Joel Eriksson Ek — are not talented enough to win on talent alone.

That means they have no choice but to work as hard as they did against the Caps. Everyone seemed to realize this except for one important group: Hynes’ players.

Nico Hischier scored the first of his three goals only 29 seconds into the first period, Paul Cotter made it 2-0 at the 5:46 mark and the Devils never trailed in a 5-2 victory on Saturday at Xcel Energy Center.

That left the Wild 6-4-1 in the 11 home games and tied with the Blues with 87 points. The Wild are technically in the seventh wild card spot because they have a game in hand on St. Louis, but the Blues have won nine in a row and Vancouver is six points behind both teams and has played one game fewer than Minnesota.

Saturday’s effort will be ‘addressed’
No wonder Hynes’ ire was raised by his team offering so little in such an important game.

“I just thought from the drop of the puck we weren’t mentally, physically where we needed to be, and it lasted throughout the game,” Hynes said. “You guys kind of saw the same thing I saw. I’m not going to mince words on it, but we weren’t mentally ready to play, focused (on) the details we need (to be). I think the competitive level that’s required to win wasn’t there. We beat ourselves in so many different ways tonight. It will be addressed, and we’ll be ready for Monday.”

In the remaining 1 minute, 54 seconds of Hynes’ press conference, he was asked four more questions and either said, “It will be addressed,” or, “We’ll address it,” six times.

How will it be addressed?

Hynes, who has been canceling late-season practices to keep his team fresh, kept Sunday’s practice on the books before his team departed for New Jersey to play the Devils for a second consecutive time on Monday.

This is about as close to a meltdown as you’re going to get from Hynes.

Justin Brazeau on the ice against Buffalo on March 22, 2025. He was part of one of the Wild’s best lines against New Jersey this past Saturday. (MHM Photo / Rick Olson)

The fact that the line of Yakov Trenin, Devin Shore and Justin Brazeau might have been the most consistent trio for the Wild was more of an indictment on the other lines than it was a reason to praise the hard-working but not-skilled fourth line.

There is no question that what once looked like it could be a special season has been derailed by the losses of several players at different points, most notably Kaprizov and Eriksson Ek. The two have started skating, but it’s unknown when either might return. Kaprizov has missed the past 24 games and 36 of the past 39. Eriksson Ek, the Wild’s best center, has missed the past 17 games and 18 of the past 19.

However, the Wild’s performance against Washington confirmed that with the necessary effort they can be very competitive. Players talked about that after the Washington win, opening the door for Hynes and everyone else to point out that the loss to the Devils was based more on a lack of effort than anything else.

Juggling lines in a feisty game
The Wild played pretty well in the second period, but they no-showed much of the first and were outscored 3-1 in a mostly lifeless third period. Goalie Filip Gustavsson has been outstanding of late, but at some point he needs help from his teammates.

Hynes juggled the first and third lines, moving Ryan Hartman to the top line to center Matt Boldy and Marcus Foligno. Marco Rossi was demoted to play with Gus Nyquist and Vinnie Hinostroza on the third line. Hinostroza had been so good against the Capitals that he started Saturday as the first-line right winger, but he didn’t stay there.

Hartman and Foligno accounted for the Wild’s two goals, so it wasn’t a surprise that Hynes moved them up from the third line. Boldy, who entered Saturday with three goals and seven points in his past six games, took a dumb slashing penalty with the Wild trailing 3-2 in the third period. Hischier scored 1:02 into the power play to give the Devils a two-goal lead.

In what had been an intense and feisty game, that was the exact type of penalty the Wild can’t take and the fact it came from one of their best players made it even more disturbing.

The Wild have eight games remaining, including a three-game road trip to play the Devils, Rangers and Islanders this week. The Blues’ phenomenal play since returning from the break for the 4 Nations Face-Off means they can’t be counted on to cool off and the Canucks and Flames remain dangerous. The Wild will play in Calgary on April 11 and Vancouver on April 12 in what could be huge games.

Kaprizov and Eriksson Ek might be back by then, but that can’t be counted on. Saturday proved that Hynes also can’t count on his team to show up when it matters most. Will his attempt to “address” this issue work? If it doesn’t, the Wild could be sitting outside of the playoff picture for a second consecutive season.

The post Fired-Up Hynes Addresses Wild Loss appeared first on Minnesota Hockey Magazine.

Looking at the calendar, the game Thursday between the Minnesota Wild and visiting Washington Capitals at Xcel Energy Center could have been the night Alex Ovechkin made NHL history. But he came into the game still needing six goals to pass Wayne Gretzky (894 goals) for the most goals scored by a player in NHL history. So, at the very least he could have scored a goal to get a little bit closer to the milestone.

That didn’t happen either. Ovechkin was held off the scoresheet in his 1,482nd NHL game as the Wild captured a comeback 4-2 victory over the Capitals, snapping their two-game losing streak.

So, about that memorable ending?

After Freddy Gaudreau scored an empty-netter for his second goal of the night to put the game away, and the final horn sounded, the Wild congratulated their starting goaltender Filip Gustavsson on his seventh victory of March. Some of the Capitals players made their way toward the tunnel leading to the locker room. Ovechkin called them back to the ice, and the Capitals lined up near center ice to form a handshake line.

They were led by Ovechkin and waiting for one Wild player: Marc-Andre Fleury.

The Wild goaltender has been backing up Gustavsson more often these days, which is more about the hot-hand of Gustavsson and that the Wild are playing for their playoff lives. So, the Flower didn’t start and didn’t play in Thursday’s game.

“It was a little surprise there at the end. Then Bogo (Zach Bogosian) told me to look back,” Fleury said the next day after practice. “Everybody gets on and we fist bump everybody and went to go see Gus after the game. They were all lined up.

“A little surprise. Little bit… weird, I would say. I didn’t play the game, and then the whole team’s lined up. Very classy.”

Ovechkin mentioned Thursday morning that this game would mark the last time going up against Fleury, regardless of if the legendary goaltender played a minute in between the pipes. It’s been one of many memorable moments this season for Fleury, who is on a one-year contract and will likely retire from the NHL after this season.

The handshake tribute after the game was something the Capitals wanted to do, said Washington coach Spencer Carbery.

“Just paying the respects he deserves and the impressive career,” Carbery said. “He’s done so much. They’ve had so many battles. He’s had so many battles with the Caps, with ‘O’ (Ovechkin). So, pretty classy to be able to send him off and just say how impressive a career he had.”

Fleury was one of Charlie Lindgren’s favorite goalies growing up. Lindgren, the 31-year-old Lakeville North grad who made 17 saves for the Capitals in the loss Thursday, said he loved watching him play.

“The way he competed, the way he battled, just his personality,” Lindgren said. “I never had the chance to talk to him. Heck of a career.”

Wild winger Marcus Foligno also mentioned watching a bit of the Ovi-vs.-Fleury rivalry over the years before the he came into the NHL.

“That relationship is a little bit of a hate-love, but it’s one of those where you just tip your cap to the other guys and the battles that you saw in Pittsburgh and Capitals,” Foligno said.

Ovechkin thought the handshake line was a classy gesture, said Washington first-line center Dylan Strome, especially with their history as opponents.

“They played I don’t even know how many games against each other – I think I saw 47 today, not including playoffs,” Strome said. “It’s one of those things where you’ve got to respect greatness, and Fleury’s been great his whole career.

“I got the chance to play with him in Chicago, and everyone knows he’s one of the best people of all time in the game, so the little respect we can show him at the end of the game I think goes a long way and is well deserved for him.”

Yes, it’s been 47 games between the two. Ovechkin has scored 28 goals against Fleury in that time.

“We had so many battles,” Fleury said. “The Penguins, a few playoff series, even throughout the season, too, with him and Sid (Sidney Crosby). It was always a big deal. It was always a big game.

“I felt very lucky and fortunate I got to play so many games against him, compete against him. Obviously, a tough opponent.”

Fleury added that he was glad for the moment so he could tell Ovechkin it was fun playing against him, because “he’s had such a tremendous career also.”

Wild keeps giving Flower his flowers, too
The moment was special for Fleury’s Wild teammates, too. They stayed on the ice watching the handshake line unfold like the rest of the fans who stayed. Hearing players describe Fleury as “one of the best” they’ve ever played with is a common refrain this season.

“It’s special to have that when you quit hockey someday, that you played with that guy, for sure,” said Wild defenseman Jonas Brodin.

Wild coach John Hynes noted what a great teammate Fleury has been everywhere he’s played. Fleury was a Stanley Cup winner in Pittsburgh in 2009, 2016 and 2017. He also played with Vegas and Chicago before landing with the Wild at the 2022 trade deadline.

Fleury deserves all the accolades he’s gotten, Hynes said Thursday, adding that he’s said that same thing a couple of times in the past.

“He’s been a tremendous competitor to compete against. And obviously the quality of a human being that he is, all those things combined, I think we’re witnessing in part of a hall-of-fame player, a hall-of-fame person. That’s earned the respect not only as a player but I think as a competitor. Which is probably the best compliment you can get.”

The post Hall-Of-Fame Handshakes appeared first on Minnesota Hockey Magazine.

No, this was not an encore performance from Mason Kraft and the Moorhead Spuds boys’ hockey team.

This was the Minnesota Wild getting out to the fastest goal-scoring start at home in franchise history when they jumped all over the Seattle Kraken following an 8:52 p.m. puck drop Wednesday night at Xcel Energy Center. The end result was a 4-0 win.

Here are five rules from the Wild’s second consecutive win on home ice:

1. The Wild scored goals in a 1:42 span, also the second-fastest three goals to start a game in franchise history.

The floodgates opened early for the Wild, the same team that’s had trouble scoring goals across its last dozen or so games. It hadn’t scored a first-period goal in six games, let alone pumping in multiple goals in quick succession. The Wild scored the trio of goals in a span of 1 minute, 42 seconds. That prompted Seattle (30-35-5) to call a timeout and calm things down at the 4:29 mark of the game.

“The plan was to try to come out right away, get everyone involved, and that was a really good start for us,” said Wild forward Ryan Hartman.  

The fastest three goals for the Wild came Jan. 14, 2017 in Dallas when they scored three in four minutes.

The Wild also became the fastest team to score three goals to start a game this season in the NHL. The previous mark was the Detroit Red Wings scoring three by the 5:06 mark on Feb. 23.

The Wild also scored at least three goals in back-to-back games. The last time that happened was sandwiched around the break in February with a 6-3 win against the New York Islanders on Feb. 8 and then a 4-3 overtime victory in Detroit right after the break on Feb. 22.

2. Hartman scored first, Matt Boldy broke out of his slump, Liam Ohgren scored his second of the season.

First, it was Hartman tallying his second goal in as many games. He slid perfectly into the slot, accepted the puck and fired it into the net only 2 minutes, 47 seconds into the game. It’s his ninth goal of the season and third since returning from his eight-game suspension.

Matt Boldy scored an unassisted tally just 1 minute, 12 seconds later to break his 11-game goal drought.

“It’s always fun to score,” Boldy said. “I was happy to see one go in, for sure. Some relief.

“I think the more you build it up, the more stress you create about yourself. You try to stay away from it and keep if off your mind.”

He also added an empty-netter, which gave him 23 goals for the season and putting him into a tie for the team goals lead with the injured Kirill Kaprizov.

Liam Ohgren, playing his first Wild game since Feb. 28 at Colorado, made it 3-0 at the 4:29 mark of the game. It’s the third goal of his NHL career and first at Xcel Energy Center. He’s spent the majority of the season in Iowa, but he also recognized how much it helped when the team got out to such a quick lead.

“When that happens, you’re always on a roll, and you always want more,” Ohgren said. “That’s what keeps the guys going. It was fun.”

3. The game was pretty quiet after the first five minutes.

Unlike the Stillwater vs. Moorhead boys’ state championship game that turned into an exciting 7-6 win for the Spuds, the similarities to the Wild game ended at that 4:29 mark in the first period.

Any late-arriving fans to the late-evening puck drop missed all the action. Beyond the three quick goals, there wasn’t much in the way of excitement. The Wild couldn’t generate much of anything on two first-period power plays. They also went cold in the shots-on-goal department in the final minutes of the opening period and didn’t register a shot in the second until just after the first TV timeout.

The Wild successfully killed off a penalty in the first minute of the second period, going 11-for-12 across the last five games.

Also on the defensive end, Filip Gustavsson made 34 saves in net for his 27th win of the season and fifth shutout. The victory was the Wild’s sixth shutout this season. Gustavsson is 5-2-1 with an NHL-leading .944 save percentage in March.

Wild coach John Hynes likes the consistency he’s seeing from Gustavsson lately.

“It seems like he’s mentally alert and physically he feels good,” Hynes said. “That’s what I like.

“Naturally, the game forces you to be completely engaged and intense, and I thought in tonight’s game he was there when we needed him because we didn’t play a perfect game, but even though we were up with a lead I thought when they had some looks he was sharp and that to me was a really good game by him and then I think it shows you where his mental focus is.

4. The Wild can’t make it through the game without another player getting injured.

The news wasn’t all good on the Wild front. Marco Rossi left the game early in the second period when he took a Boldy shot off his leg. The team announced in the second period that Rossi wouldn’t return after sustaining the lower-body injury. Hynes didn’t have an update on Rossi after the game.

“Hopefully he’s okay, and it’s nothing serious,” Hartman said.

The Wild were already shorthanded (what else is new?) to start the night with Marcus Foligno missing his second straight game with day-to-day status. Marcus Johansson also missed Wednesday because of illness. Ohgren found out he was playing when he got to the rink pregame.

Add Rossi to the mix, and that brings the Wild’s list of players not suiting up quite lengthy:

Kaprizov, Joel Eriksson Ek, Jonas Brodin, Foligno, Johansson and Rossi. It’s another blow for Rossi, whose goal slump reached 11 games including Wednesday.

5. That’s back-to-back Wild wins on home ice for the first time since early February.

The Wild have been a better road team all season, with a 22-10-3 record. Home ice has not been their advantage, for whatever reason. They’ve hovered around the .500 mark at home and have also put up some real lackluster efforts. They were just booed off the ice Saturday in a 5-1 loss to the St. Louis Blues, after all.

But the win against the Kraken improved the Wild’s mark at Xcel Energy Center to 17-15-2, and 3-2-1 on the seven-game homestand that wraps up Saturday afternoon against Buffalo. Coupled with the team’s 3-1 win over Los Angeles on Monday, the Wild won back-to-back home games for the first time since Feb. 6 and Feb. 8 against Carolina and the Islanders.

The post Rink Rule: Kraken vs. Wild appeared first on Minnesota Hockey Magazine.

The Wild went into the break with momentum, defeating Carolina 2-1 on Thursday and securing a comeback 6-3 victory over the New York Islanders on Saturday.

Here are five rules recapping the Wild’s back-to-back home wins before the break:

1. The Wild have won two consecutive games – in regulation – at home for the first time this season.

The Wild came into Saturday’s game with a 12-12-1 record at home. This season has brought some rough outings in the building, including a 5-1 loss to the Los Angeles Kings on Nov. 5, a 7-1 loss to Edmonton on Dec. 12 and a 6-1 loss to Florida on Dec. 18.

Minnesota came home reeling after a 6-0 drubbing in Ottawa followed by a 3-0 loss to the Bruins, so it was no doubt looking for some momentum before the break.

So, what changed over the last couple of games to get a couple of home victories?

“Pucks went in,” Wild captain Jared Spurgeon quipped. “No, I feel like, we’ve had games where we played well here. And it just hasn’t gone our way.”

Boldy said it was just the Wild getting to their game.

“The home record is what it is, I think we know that,” said forward Matt Boldy. “And to be able to turn it around and get those two wins versus two good teams that are playing really good hockey right now is huge for us. And we wanted to go into break on a high note.”

2. Yakov Trenin scores in back-to-back games.

It’s no secret that injuries and jumbled lineups have been a significant running storyline for the Wild this season, and that’s been especially true with superstar Kirill Kaprizov out for multiple weeks following surgery for a lower-body injury. The Wild need to make up that scoring from somewhere, so it’s always a welcomed sight when bottom-six forwards contribute.

Yakov Trenin gave the Wild a 1-0 lead against Carolina less than three minutes into the game, with the puck coming to him out front on a pretty feed from Marat Khusnutdinov. That goal was a sigh of relief for the Wild, after those back-to-back shutout losses.

“It was a very big goal,” Trenin said. “Especially, few games before, we couldn’t get the lead.”

Against the Islanders, he scored again, finding himself in a good spot for a deflection in front of the crease. It turned out to be the game-winner. His fifth and sixth goals of the season gave him a chance to bring out his celly vibes. He threw himself into the end glass after Thursday’s goal, while Saturday’s tally got him to raise both arms in the air in triumph.

3. Vinnie Hinostroza scores a game-winning goal in his Wild debut against Carolina.

Last week, Ryan Hartman was handed a 10-game suspension. The Wild have consistently played shorthanded this season, but they claimed Vinnie Hinostroza off waivers from the Nashville Predators last week. With 388 career NHL games across 10 seasons with six other teams, Hinostroza made his Wild debut against Carolina.

He also became the 31st player to score a goal in his Wild debut. Against a good Carolina team, the Wild were clinging to a 1-0 lead through two periods. But 49 seconds into the third period, Hinostroza doubled the team’s lead, getting credit for a gritty, greasy goal around the crease.

The puck bounced around off goaltender Frederik Andersen’s back and eventually across the goal line as Hinostroza and Marcus Foligno crashed the net. The play was reviewed but the goal stood.

“I kind of felt like it was because I was right there after I tipped it,” Hinostoza said. “But I saw Moose celly, so I don’t know if he got under the goalie there and stuff. Once I saw the replay, I kind of knew.

“It felt like we had a really good game as a line. We had a lot of opportunities, so that was a lot of fun.”

Hinostroza was on the right wing with Foligno and Gaudreau on the third line. With the final 2-1 score, he also became the eighth Wild player to score a game-winning goal in their Wild debut.

Wild coach John Hynes said Hinostroza played well.

“Good speed, he’s tenacious on the puck, his abilities to make some plays and, you know, plays the game smart,” Hynes said. “He did a nice job.”

4. Matt Boldy helped spark a second-period turnaround with 3 Wild goals in a 5:29 span against New York.

The Wild grabbed a 1-0 lead against the Islanders early in the first period on Marco Rossi’s 19th tally of the season, with a primary and pretty assist from Boldy. But the lead didn’t last long. It was 13 seconds before Palmieri tied the game. The game was knotted at 1-1 at the first intermission, but the Islanders came out flying in the second while the Wild looked like it was already looking ahead to the break.

“For us, we knew that that wasn’t good enough, and that that wasn’t going to win us the game,” Boldy said.

It became the Minnesota show, in a way, as Warroad’s Brock Nelson scored 28 seconds into the second period to give the Islanders the lead. Edina product Anders Lee made it a two-goal margin about seven minutes later.

But in the second half of the period, the Wild picked it up. They also benefitted from a tough-luck night for Islanders defenseman Tony DeAngelo.

First, Gaudreau made it 3-2 with 6:39 left in the period with a power-play goal. The shot deflected off of DeAngelo. Then just after the last TV timeout of the period with 2:01 on the clock, the Wild tied the game 3-3 on a goal credited to Boldy after he tipped in a Jonas Brodin blast from long range.

Trenin’s go-ahead goal came 51 seconds later.

“We stood mentally strong,” Trenin said. “We didn’t get down after that third goal. And the power play came up huge, scored a big goal and kept us in the game, give us some momentum.”

The Wild are 22-0-0 this season when leading after the second period.

5. Filip Gustavsson needed a breather.

Goaltender Filip Gustavsson was so spent after the 2-1 victory over Carolina that he was hunched over in his crease as the line of teammates congratulated him for the effort after the win. No, he wasn’t hurt.

“You just try and breathe as much as you can and move and get something to your brain so you can keep focused,” Gustavsson said. “Usually we’re very happy and then talk to each other when they come down. I just had to catch my breath two seconds first there.”

Gustavsson made 38 saves and nearly had a shutout before Carolina’s Sebastian Aho scored late in the game. Gustavsson also kept them off the board in the second period when Jackson Blake had an unsuccessful penalty shot attempt. Gustavsson is 4-1-0 with a 1.40 goals-against average and .954 save percentage in five career starts versus Carolina.

He followed up that performance with 31 saves against the Islanders to take back-to-back wins into the 4 Nations tournament.

For the season, Gustavsson is 22-11-3 with a 2.63 goals-against average, .915 save percentage and three shutouts.

The post Rink Rule: Canes/Islanders vs. Wild appeared first on Minnesota Hockey Magazine.

This will provide a showcase for the NHL to put its talent on display in a highly competitive format that should have playoff-type intensity. So why do I feel conflicted about it?

The answer is simple. Timing.

The NHL season is in its fourth month and the Wild, for instance, will have played 56 of their 82-game schedule when their break starts on Sunday. The trade deadline is a month from Friday (March 7) and the postseason begins in mid-April.

So in the midst of all of this, the NHL is going to have a tournament that runs from Feb. 12 to Feb. 20, creating too long of a break for many players and insufficient rest for the top stars.

Wild sending 5 players to 4 Nations Face-Off
In the Wild’s case, they will be represented by Matt Boldy and Brock Faber on the U.S. team, and Jonas Brodin, Joel Eriksson Ek and goalie Filip Gustavsson on Sweden. Each roster will be loaded with talent that includes guys such as Nathan MacKinnon, Connor McDavid and Cale Makar on Team Canada and Auston Matthews and Matthew Tkachuk on Team USA. That’s only a small sample.

This younger generation of players has been begging for a best-on-best tournament and will be going full speed. But that’s an issue, considering the intensity and pace of these games means it’s likely injuries will happen. Injuries that could sideline key players for extended periods, or cause nagging problems that don’t heal until the offseason.

If I’m an NHL general manager or coach, I wouldn’t be thrilled with the prospect of one of my best players taking part in games that will have a postseason feel, when the actual playoffs don’t start for another two months. That’s not even hitting on the risk of returning to NHL play with a key part of my team sidelined.

This same issue will come up next February as NHL players return to the Olympics for the first time since 2014. As a hockey fan, it will be fantastic to watch. But that doesn’t mean it will be good for the 2025-26 NHL season.

So what’s the solution? There’s a case to be made that best-on-best tournaments and sending NHL players to the Olympics is asking too much. Each team plays 82 regular-season games and last season Florida beat Edmonton in Game 7 of the Stanley Cup Finals on June 24.

So tell me how shoehorning the 4 Nations or Olympics into the schedule best serves the pursuit of a Stanley Cup — arguably the most difficult trophy to win in pro sports. The Canada Cup featured teams from six countries and was held on five occasions from 1976 to 1991. But that was played before training camps opened in a very different era of hockey.

I’m guessing players wouldn’t want to give up time in their offseason to play in such a tournament now, and I can’t blame them. Therein lies the problem. There might be no good time to play a tournament like the 4 Nations — unless you decide the NHL season isn’t the most important thing.

The post Conflicted About The Break appeared first on Minnesota Hockey Magazine.

But Kaprizov did not join his teammates five days later as they reconvened to travel to Dallas for a game that night. Kaprizov had been battling a lower-body injury and the decision was made to shut him down before it got worse.

The Wild suffered another significant loss on New Year’s Eve when defenseman Jared Spurgeon was taken out by a slew foot from Nashville rookie Zachary L’Heureux and had to be helped off the ice.

The Wild had gone 1-1 in their first two games without Kaprizov and beat the Predators after Spurgeon’s lower-body injury. The Wild then went on the road and won back-to-back games against two very good teams in Washington and Carolina before returning to Xcel Energy Center for a 6-4 victory over the Blues.

That put the Wild at 5-1-0 without Kaprizov and 3-0 without Spurgeon. It was the latest impressive accomplishment by a team that had exceeded nearly everyone’s expectations, and had the Wild only two points behind Central Division-leading Winnipeg.

Blue-line depth being tested
But that Blues win came at a steep price. Defenseman Brock Faber took an elbow to the head from the Blues’ Jake Neighbours early in the game and played only five more shifts before leaving. Defenseman Jonas Brodin saw additional time with the minutes-eating Faber out and logged a career-high 33 minutes, 2 seconds. It was late in the game that Brodin remained on the ice for 2:41 and blocked three shots. One of them came off the stick of the Blues’ Colton Parayko and left Brodin hobbling.

He downplayed it after the game but hasn’t played since. Neither has Faber. Not surprisingly, the Wild hasn’t been the same since.

A 6-1 loss to Colorado at home was followed by a 3-1 victory at San Jose. Last Sunday, the Wild lost 4-1 at Vegas and then blew a 2-0 lead in a 5-3 loss on Wednesday to the Edmonton Oilers in St. Paul. The Wild lost second-line winger Marcus Johansson to a concussion in that one when he took an elbow to the head from Oilers superstar Connor McDavid.

There will be no case made that anyone should feel bad for the Wild. Every team loses key players to injury and must find a way to overcome it or get buried in the standings. Wild players have walked the fine line of acknowledging the magnitude of not having Kaprizov and three top defensemen, but not trying to hide behind that as an excuse for now being seven points behind the first-place Jets, only one point ahead of third-place Dallas and three up on the Avalanche.

It’s clear that John Hynes has established what he wants the message to be from his locker room. The Wild coach is very skillful at avoiding any criticism of his players but making it clear there is a standard they are expected to meet.

What’s difficult is judging which players are struggling and which are simply being asked to do more than they are capable of because of the hit to the depth chart. There also are players who are thriving, such as center Marco Rossi. Rossi has been paired with Matt Boldy and Mats Zuccarello on the Wild’s first line and has five goals and 11 points in those 10 games.

Causes for concern? 
As important as Kaprizov is to the Wild, they lost only one game without him but have now dropped three of four without Brodin and Faber. Not surprisingly, goalie Filip Gustavsson hasn’t looked anything like the guy who spent much of the first half of the season near the top of the NHL in goals-against average and save percentage.

Gustavsson registered a 21-save shutout against Carolina in the last full game that Brodin and Faber played. He was lifted in the second period of the Wild’s come-from-behind victory over the Blues after giving up four goals on 18 shots. Gustavsson has given up 15 goals in his past three starts (all losses) for an ugly .850 save percentage. If you include the Blues game, Gustavsson has surrendered 19 goals in four games for an .839 save percentage. His save percentage has gone from .926 to .914 in that time.

Cause for concern or an inevitability when guys like Zach Bogosian, Declan Chisholm Travis Dermott, Jon Merrill and rookie David Jiricek are forced to play elevated minutes because of key losses?

There are a couple of pieces of good news for the Wild. The first is that Kaprizov, Faber and Spurgeon all practiced on Friday, and bottom six forward Jakob Lauko (lower body) could be ready to return from a 13-game absence Saturday against Nashville. Brodin doesn’t appear as close, but the return of Kaprizov, Faber and Spurgeon would provide a huge boost.

The other thing the Wild have going for them is their fantastic start to the season. They went 5-1-1 on a seven-game road trip in October and had 44 points through their first 30 games.

Their start didn’t assure the Wild of a playoff berth, but it gave them a nice head start on making it. Given the current state of their roster, those early-season points might be what get the Wild into the postseason.

The post Injuries Stack Up appeared first on Minnesota Hockey Magazine.