Turns out the Wild general manager wasn’t even close to being done.

Newly-acquired Wild forward Gustav Nyquist wins a puck battle with now teammate Jared Spurgeon as a member of the Detroit Red Wings in an April 4. 2015 game at Xcel Energy Center. (MHM Photo / Jonny Watkins)

Guerin made three more trades before the 2 p.m. deadline. Winger Jordan Greenway was dealt to Buffalo for a second-round pick in this year’s draft and a fifth-round selection in 2024, and Oskar Sundqvist, who can play center and wing, was acquired from Detroit for a fourth-round selection in 2023.

Those two moves weren’t surprising. The third one, which was reported just after the deadline had passed, was a stunner. The Wild acquired veteran defenseman John Klingberg from the Anaheim Ducks for Andrej Sustr, a 2025 fourth-round pick, and the rights to 2019 sixth-round selection Nikita Nesterenko (Boston College). The Ducks also retained 50 percent of Klingberg’s $7 million cap hit.

Guerin acknowledged even he was surprised by the amount of activity. “I did not think we would get this busy,” he said. “I told my wife that this morning and she called B.S. I guess she knows me better than anybody. I think we got a lot accomplished today. I think we’re better today than we were yesterday and that’s the idea.”

The Klingberg acquisition means coach Dean Evason is going to have some decisions to make on the blue line, especially when Jonas Brodin returns from injury. Klingberg’s skill set could mean that Calen Addison, who has ended up in Evason’s doghouse this season because of his play in his own zone, could be making a return to the press box. Veteran Alex Goligoski also could be the odd man out.

The 30-year-old Klingberg spent his first eight seasons as a standout defenseman in Dallas before signing a one-year contract with the Ducks in July. He had eight goals and 24 points in 50 games with the Ducks and was minus-28 on one of the NHL’s worst teams. Klingberg is considered a defensive liability — and his performance this season was a major disappointment — but the Wild are willing to take a risk and hope he returns to the form that led to a 47-point season in 74 games with the Stars in 2021-22.

Winger Kirill Kaprizov has been a one-man show on offense for the Wild of late — he scored both goals in a 2-1 win on Thursday in Vancouver — and Klingberg’s ability to move the puck from the back end should help the Wild’s transition game. Klingberg also is likely to quarterback the first power-play unit, replacing Addison in that spot.

The Wild’s average of 2.77 goals per game puts them 26th among 32 NHL teams. However, Minnesota is fifth in the NHL in goals against, giving up only 2.66. In winning seven of their past eight, and getting at least a point in each, the Wild have averaged only 2.25 goals per game. Take out the shootout goals the Wild was credited with to secure victories in two of those games and the Wild have 16 goals in that time. Kaprizov has eight of them.

Somebody else, anybody, needs to create offense.

“The blue line has been great,” Guerin said. “Not that our guys don’t move the puck well now, but it’s just that natural offensive instinct, that natural offensive ability (that Klingberg will bring). We like to defend first, but when there’s a play to be made he’s the type of guy that really can make a high-level offensive play.”

Jordan Greenway, seen here in a March 26, 2022 game vs. the Columbus Blue Jackets, is taking his grinding, defensive game to Buffalo after the trade deadline dust settled. (MHM Photo / Rick Olson)

Guerin’s activity at the deadline shouldn’t be confused with a desperation that he had to rebuild the roster. Despite having plenty of salary-cap room as the deadline approached, the Wild will be back in cap hell starting in the offseason and will remain there through 2024-25 because of the buyouts of Zach Parise and Ryan Suter. Guerin knew what he was getting into the day he decided to jettison the pair, so there is no attempt at a pity party coming from the GM.

What Guerin tried to do this week was give his defensive-first team a bit of a boost with some offensive pieces that he will have the ability to move on from when the season ends. Johansson, who spent the shortened 2020-21 season with the Wild before moving to Seattle, is playing on a one-year contract, while Sundqvist and Nyquist (who is currently injured) are in the final seasons of their multi-year deals. All are rentals, but also come at reasonable prices.

Greenway’s departure is addition by subtraction. The fact the Wild received a high pick (which originally belonged to Vegas) in what is considered a deep draft is a big win for Guerin.

The Wild once had high hopes for Greenway but the 2015 second-round selection never consistently used his 6-foot-6, 231-pound frame to his advantage. He was sidelined in training camp and for the early part of the season after having shoulder surgery and things went downhill from there. Greenway was scratched from a January game after showing up late and eventually received a talking to from Guerin about his play.

Greenway, 26, had only two goals and seven points in 45 games this season. His assist in Tuesday’s win over the Islanders broke a 21-game pointless streak and his last goal came on New Year’s Eve in St. Louis. 

The 28-year-old Sundqvist, whose size (6-3, 220 pounds) will help replace Greenway’s, had seven goals and 21 points in 52 games this season with the Red Wings. He has played in 340 career NHL games and has 116 points in eight seasons with the Penguins, Blues and Red Wings and also has 10 points, including four goals, in 36 playoff games.

The Wild deserved some sort of boost, considering their 76 points put them three behind first place Dallas in the Central Division and the Western Conference as the deadline arrived. Minnesota was three points ahead of third-place Colorado, the defending Stanley Cup champion and the team the Wild would face if the postseason began today. 

But Guerin wanted to be careful not to go overboard with his support because the Wild were only four points up on Winnipeg, which holds the second and final wild card spot in the conference.

Joel Eriksson-Ek and Jonas Brodin look on as fellow Swede and new Wild teammate Oskar Sundqvist fires a shot for the St. louis Blues in a Feb. 24, 2019 game at Xcel Energy Center. (MHM Photo / Jeff Wegge)

Guerin made it clear as the deadline neared that he wasn’t going to trade his first-round pick in this year’s draft, or any of his top prospects. He knows that once the Wild emerge from their salary-cap issues, which could happen sooner than expected if the cap increases in the next two seasons, a prospect pool that was voted the best in the NHL by The Athletic could put the organization in a spot to make a run at its first Stanley Cup.

Mortgaging that future for a team that Evason has molded into a shut down unit that would make Jacques Lemaire proud, would not have been wise. Guerin, after all, had high hopes last season after acquiring goalie Marc-Andre Fleury and others at the trade deadline. That Wild team had a franchise-record 113 points — and a far more dynamic offense — and was bounced in the opening round for the sixth time in its past six tries.

The Wild is hoping to end that stretch, and win their first playoff series since 2015, this spring. Guerin’s moves this past week appeared to increase the chances of that happening. “We’re committed,” Guerin said when asked what he hoped these moves showed his team. “Our owner, Craig Leipold, is committed and he’s providing us with the financial backing that it takes to get better. We’re serious. We’re serious about winning.”

Just not at the expense of harming a bright future.

The post Committed to the Cause appeared first on Minnesota Hockey Magazine.

The Wild had a franchise-record 113 points thanks to 11 overtime wins, nine multi-goal comeback victories and an offense that finished fifth in the NHL by averaging 3.72 goals per game. That success — driven in large part by Kirill Kaprizov and Kevin Fiala — enabled the Wild to get away with finishing 16th in the league in goals given up per game (3.04).

Problem is Fiala’s 33 goals and 85 points were now in Los Angeles and the Wild’s attempts to get cute with the puck, and shirk defensive responsibilities, had resulted in an 0-3 start in which they were outscored 20-12. That eventually became a 7-8-2 start before the Wild accepted that other than Kaprizov and Mats Zuccarello, no one else on the roster had the ability to try to make skilled plays.

The Wild have rebounded nicely since a bad loss to Jake Guentzel and the Pens on Nov 17. (MHM Photo / Rick Olson)

Coach Dean Evason finally got this message through after a 6-4 loss to the Pittsburgh Penguins on Nov. 17 at Xcel Energy Center. The Wild have won 14 of 19 games since that time. This includes winning streaks of four and six games.

A 5-2 victory over the host St. Louis Blues on New Year’s Eve put the Wild at 21-13-2 and third in the Central Division with 44 points in 36 games, trailing Dallas (52 points in 38 games) and Winnipeg (47 points in 37 games).

So what is the biggest thing that has changed?

In the Wild’s first 17 games, they surrendered 3.12 goals per game — a higher figure than they gave up last season. That wasn’t going to work since the Wild was only scoring 2.8 goals per game. But Evason’s team has flipped the numbers since their hot stretch began and are now averaging 3.14 goals per game and giving up 2.81. The latter figures puts them 11th in the NHL and the former 18th.

It helps that the Wild have gotten healthy with Ryan Hartman and Jordan Greenway returning and Matt Dumba’s play on the blue line improved after a rough start. Defenseman Jared Spurgeon continues to be an important presence, almost always making the right play at the right time in front of Marc-Andre Fleury or Filip Gustavsson. The Wild also added a much-needed presence to the locker room in late November by acquiring winger Ryan Reaves from the New York Rangers.

Reaves has settled into a spot on the fourth line and while he only has four assists in 17 games since joining the Wild, his large presence (6-2, 225 pounds) accomplishes a couple of things. The 35-year-old winger gives the team the type of personality and vocal leader that seemed to be lacking. On the ice, Reaves’ presence creates extra space for everyone because no one wants to fight a guy who has dropped the gloves 77 times in his 13-year career.

Ryan Reeves has had a subtle, but effective, impact on the Wild since his Nov. 23 arrival from New York. (MHM Photo / Jonny Watkins)

Reaves only fight since arriving on Nov. 23  came against the Red Wings’ Ben Chiarot and that was only because Chiarot was spontaneously sticking up for a teammate that Reaves had crushed. Reaves easily won the fight in a Wild victory, one of 12 he has been around for since being acquired.

The most recent victory — the Wild will play host to the Tampa Bay Lightning on Thursday — was in St. Louis. The Wild have had their struggles against the Blues, including being eliminated by St. Louis in the first round of the playoffs last season, but beat them in St. Louis during the regular season for the first time since November 2018. Hartman, who has only played in 15 games, scored twice to bring his total to four goals and is playing on a work-man like line with center Frederick Gaudreau and winger Matt Boldy. Third-line winger Marcus Foligno and fourth-line center Mason Shaw also returned from injury-related absences in St. Louis.

“I think some teams can be one line, two lines, three lines, we can’t. We’re a four-line team,” Evason said. “Sure, Kirill, Zuccy, Steeler (first-line center Sam Steel) get a little bit more, or Kirill and Zuccy get 20 minutes a night, but after that the distribution of our minutes are pretty even and that’s how we have to play. We want to roll like that. We want to play as a group and a team. The nice thing is the players are committed to that as well.”

The St. Louis win was impressive in part because it came two nights after the Wild lost, 4-1, to the Stars at Xcel Energy Center. Minnesota’s first defeat at home in more than a month was the result of giving up three third-period goals against a more opportunistic opponent. Evason, who had been searching for answers early in the season, had no such problem after this defeat and was rewarded in St. Louis.

“This is a tough building,” Evason said ending 2022 with a victory. “I don’t care what (the Blues’) record is at. It’s a good team, they’re good players, they’re well coached. I think everybody was motivated to see where we’re at and we’re excited with the outcome.”

The post New Year, New Outlook appeared first on Minnesota Hockey Magazine.

Wild winger Kirill Kaprizov started his 2021-22 campaign fresh off a five-year, $45 million deal and then didn’t find the back of the net on the ice in the month of October. Wild fans who were nervous about the superstar’s early lack of production can look back on that and get a good chuckle.

Mats Zuccarello, one of several Wild players to have career seasons in 2021-22, created magic with Kirill Kaprizov for a second straight season. (MHM Photo / Rick Olson)

His linemate Mats Zuccarello said in mid-November that someone told him Kaprizov was “squeezing his stick.”

“He’s still got a lot of assists and played really good,” Zuccarello said, after Kaprizov scored a goal and three assists against Dallas on Nov. 18.

Kaprizov turned in the best single-season performance in Minnesota Wild franchise history. His 47 goals, 61 assists and 108 points all bumped him to the top of the list among Wild players.

Call him Kirill the Thrill or Dolla Bill Kirill, either way, he’s a superstar on this Wild team. He wasn’t done dazzling in the regular-season finale either, when he skated circles around the Colorado Avalanche before passing the puck to teammate Tyson Jost for a goal.

“Yeah, it was a great play by him,” Jost said, following the game. “I mean I’ve seen him do enough for however long I’ve been here, for 20 games. It seems like he does that every single game. I was just battling in front and kind of knew that if I got open, he was going to find me. He made a great play.”

Jost, acquired from Colorado by the Wild for Nico Strum ahead of the NHL trade deadline, isn’t the first player to talk about Kaprizov like this and his ability to feed teammates. Frederick Gaudreau was the benefactor of such a play during a Nov. 18 7-2 victory over Dallas. That time, it was a behind-the-back pass from Kaprizov. Gaudreau said afterward that there’s a good chance Kaprizov knows where you are on the ice, even if it doesn’t seem like it.

It seems almost trite to refer to Kaprizov as the superstar of this Wild team. But he’s lived up to that and then some. Of the long list of franchise records broken this season, Kaprizov’s name is on 10 of those records, along with tying two more individual records.

He was the leader of a 2021-22 Wild team that also is the best one in history, setting records for most wins in a season with 53 and most points in a season with 113. The Wild (53-22-7) edged out the St. Louis Blues for the No. 2 spot in the Central Division and gained home-ice advantage when the two teams face each other in the first round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs this week.

The Wild re-wrote the team record book by tying or breaking 39 individual and 40 team franchise records this season.

(MHM Photo / Rick Olson)

It was a year where teams tried to get back to some kind of normalcy within a pandemic but still saw players go down at various times under COVID-19 protocols. The Olympic break built into the NHL schedule was canceled, making for a whirlwind finish with games every couple of nights or back-to-back for the final two months. The Wild finally got to host the Winter Classic on New Year’s Day, to the tune of way-below-zero temperatures at Target Field.

Still, the Wild found a way to win games with goaltending, depth and a league-best nine multi-goal comeback victories. It was quite the regular season and one that should be remembered fondly for all the highlight-worthy goals and performances. Regardless of what happens in the playoffs.

Can fans enjoy some entertaining hockey games over the course of the season, and still be disappointed if the team fails to win a Stanley Cup or make it past the second round of the playoffs? Yes. Both things can be true.

Besides Kaprizov, the Wild got breakout performances from many players on the roster this year. Let’s start with his linemate Zuccarello, a 34-year-old NHL veteran with nearly 700 career games under his belt. The pair’s chemistry on the ice this year was evident throughout, and Zuccarello shattered his career-highs in assists (55) and points (79) for the season. He set three franchise records, including a record for the most consecutive multi-point games with six from Jan. 24-28.

The center for that top line – Ryan Hartman – is one of the best steals for his production. He signed to a three-year, $5.1 million extension last spring. His first two seasons with the Wild, his goal total failed to reach double-digits. He nearly quadrupled his goal output last year (51 games) and nearly tripled his points when he scored 34 goals, 31 assists for 65 points this season, reaching career-high marks long ago. Early on, he led the team with his four goals in October and finished the year second in goals. A bit of a surprise and definitely falls in the unsung hero category of this year’s team.

With work ethic to match his puck wizardry Kevin Fiala’s value has skyrocketed this season. Can the Wild keep him? (MHM Photo / Rick Olson)

The Wild don’t only have offensive power on the top line, of course. The next biggest name is winger Kevin Fiala, where the chatter surrounding his name this season has gone from “He’s going to be traded, the Wild can’t afford to keep him” to “Man, what are the Wild going to do? Because they *have* to keep him?”

One of his latest bodies of work was a franchise-record five-assist game in a 6-3 victory over the Seattle Kraken on April 22. His four assists in the second period alone also set a record.

“Everything I touched went in, it felt like, especially in the second period,” Fiala said after that game. “So it was a nice game.”

He finished second on the team in points behind Kaprizov and third in goals and assists with his 33-52—85 season. All of those numbers shattered his career-high numbers, too. He’s also gotten hot at the right time lately, setting a franchise record for most points in four consecutive games with 4 goals, 9 assists for 13 points from April 17-22.

Fiala and Hartman also tied for the team lead with seven game-winning goals this season, which is part of what makes Fiala such a special part of this offense. It’s not just the numbers that he’s put up but the type of plays and clutch goals he’s scored or assisted on.

Rookie sensation Matt Boldy injected instant offense into the Wild lineup when he was recalled in January. (MHM Photo / Rick Olson)

On Fiala’s opposite wing is rookie Matt Boldy, who added his name to plenty of rookie franchise records this season after joining the team in Boston on Jan. 6. He scored one of his 15 goals this season in that NHL debut and added 24 assists along the way, too. It was clear right away that once Boldy was called up, he wouldn’t be going back down to Iowa.

Gaudreau has impressed centering Fiala and Boldy. Then there’s the tough GREEF line of Jordan Greenway, Joel Eriksson Ek and Marcus Foligno. The defensive core and goaltending contributed to the various team franchise records as well.

But for all the fanfare around individual milestones and franchise records, it’s not something Wild head coach Dean Evason and the Wild focused on. What they did talk about was how hard it can be to make the playoffs in the NHL, Evason said following the team’s 3-2 overtime victory over Calgary on April 28.

“It’s a grind,” Evason said. “It is an absolute grind.

“So, no, we’re not reflecting on anything. We stay with what we do, and that’s game-by-game and day-by-day. That’s our mentality and we’ll continue to do that through the playoffs.”

Cheers to the 2021-22 #mnwild regular season! Take a look at the many franchise records that were broken this season: pic.twitter.com/fE5ZsRbHGu

— Minnesota Wild PR (@mnwildPR) April 30, 2022

The post Thriving on Thrills appeared first on Minnesota Hockey Magazine.

Minnesota had the tables turned on them Sunday night when former Wild players Mikael Granlund, Luke Kunin and their Nashville Predators teammates returned to Minnesota to pin a second-straight loss on the Wild, putting a damper on an emotional night in which long-time captain Mikko Koivu’s No. 9 was retired. 

Nashville captain Roman Josi scored twice, including a critical power-play goal 1:05 into the third period, and goaltender David Rittich turned away 26 of 28 Minnesota shots to lift the Predators to a 6-2 win before a purely coincidental 19,009 at Xcel Energy Center. Matt Boldy and Jordan Greenway each tallied for the Wild while Minnesota goaltender Kaapo Kahkonen allowed four goals on 23 shots. 

“This is as special a night as possible and it kind of sucks,” Minnesota defenseman Matt Dumba said. “But we’ll put it behind us, have a good night with with our old teammates and celebrate Mikky.”

Mikko Koivu poses in front of his number retirement banner with his mother, Tuire, his father, Jukka, and his children Kasper, Sofie and Oskar on Sunday night at Xcel Energy Center. (MN Wild/photo by Bruce Kluckhohn)

In a moving pre-game ceremony hosted by Bally Sports North’s Wild play-by-play voice Anthony LaPanta, Koivu’s parents and children were on hand along with his brother, Saku, and niece, Ilona. Niklas Backstrom and Kyle Brodziak were among several former teammates in the building but they represented the group on the ice while Wild owner Craig Leipold and GM Bill Guerin rounded out the dignitaries. 

Wild fans watched via the scoreboard video screen as the guest of honor emerged through the wooden doors of the team dressing room, walk the short hallway to the bench and onto the ice as he had done so many times before in uniform. The roar of the crowd crescendoed with each stride until it peaked as he appeared in the arena, acknowledging the fans’ love with waves as he made his way to his seat.

Leipold spoke first and relayed the story of Koivu receiving the captaincy for the first time while Guerin presented Koivu with a custom Rolex engraved watch. Backstrom and Brodziak presented framed montage of images representing Koivu’s career in Minnesota before current Wild captains Jared Spurgeon, Matt Dumba and Marcus Foligno bestowed a new set of custom-fitted golf clubs upon Koivu.

In a touching speech, interrupted several times by cheers and random shouts of “we love you” from from fans, Koivu could hardly have left anyone out as he thanked his family, teammates, coaches, GMs, support personnel, Leipold and, most of all, the fans of ‘The State of Hockey.’

“Having my jersey number retired by the Minnesota Wild is a greater honor than I know how to say … in English or in Finnish,” Koivu said in his speech.

Nashville’s Mikael Granlund and Minnesota’s Jared Spurgeon await the ceremonial puck drop by former teammate Mikko Koivu prior to Sunday night’s game at Xcel Energy Center. (MN Wild/photo by Bruce Kluckhohn)

All fans in attendance received commemorative “Koivu 9” replica banners and Wild players donned special Koivu #9 jerseys for on-ice warmups. 

Koivu dropped the puck for the ceremonial opening faceoff flanked by former teammates Mikael Granlund, now a Nashville Predators assistant captain, and Spurgeon, the chosen heir to Koivu’s Wild captaincy.

Selected in the first round (No. 6 overall) in the 2001 NHL Draft, Koivu scored his first NHL goal Nov. 6, 2005 against Jean-Sebastian Giguere and the Anaheim Ducks. Koivu was named the team’s first full-time team captain on Oct. 20, 2009 and followed that up a day later with a goal, an assist and the shootout winner to beat the Colorado Avalanche. 

Mikko Koivu surveys the landscape during a break in an Oct. 6, 2018 game against the Vegas Golden Knights at Xcel Energy Center. (MHM Photo / Rick Olson)

Koivu became first player to skate 1000 games in a Minnesota Wild sweater on Dec. 1, 2019 when he tallied the decisive goal in a shootout win over the Dallas Stars at Xcel Energy Center. In 1,035 games over 16 NHL seasons (2005-2021), Koivu recorded 711 points (206-505–711) with 594 OIM and a plus-68 rating.  His 1028 games played, 504 assists, 709 points, 2,270 shots and 252 power-play points all rank first in franchise history. 

Koivu finished his career with a brief seven-game stint as a Columbus Bluejacket to begin the 2020-21 season where he registered his final goal and assist. 

The Wild got off to an adrenaline-fueled start, notching the game’s first five shots, but Filip Forsberg netted Nashvilles’s first shot of the game at the 8:24 mark of the first period for a 1-0 Predators lead. Less than five minutes later, however, Wild rookie Matt Boldy pounced on a loose puck along the goal line to Rittich’s left and buried his 12th of the season from a sharp angle with assists from Freddy Gaudreau and Kevin Fiala. 

Wild defenseman Jared Spurgeon battles Nashville’s Mattias Ekholm as Predators forward Eeli Tolvanen lurks behind. (MN Wild/photo by Bruce Kluckhohn)

The 1-1 score held up until near the midpoint of the second period when Josi skated straight up the slot, completely unimpeded, and slipped a backhand shot between Kahkonen’s glove and the top of his left pad at 8:44. But Minnesota answered back at 11:10 with Jordan Greenway’s fifth goal of the year on a power move to the net from the left circle, beating Rittich inside the far post. 

Unfortunately for the the evening’s festivities, it took just 50 seconds for Nashville’s fourth line to answer when Philip Tomasino jumped on a juicy Kahkonen rebound to score into a wide-open net for his ninth of the season.

Evason twice pulled Kahkonen for an extra attacker but that only resulted in an empty-net goals by Forsberg at 17:42 and Nick Cousins at 19:31.

Greenway said, win or lose, the ceremony was a great recognition of what Koivu meant to the franchise.

“Obviously, we would have liked to get the win for him, it would have made the night that much better,” Greenway said. “But when it comes down to it, that’s a once in a lifetime thing you’re able to be a part of and it’s inspirational … Even with a loss, it’s incredible and something that will definitely be celebrated.”

The post A Legacy Lauded appeared first on Minnesota Hockey Magazine.

Sounds like a few ingredients for a letdown, right?

In the end, yes.

The Wild (31-14-3) looked like a different team in the third period, in a bad way, and the night ended in a 4-3 defeat at the hands of the rival St. Louis Blues (22-19-6) Wednesday at Xcel Energy Center. The game-winner hit the back of the net with 23 seconds remaining in regulation.

“It slipped away at the end,” said Wild coach Dean Evason. “Majority of the game, we were real good. Had majority of the play, and we made some mistakes at the end. It’s disappointing, no question.”

For the first two periods, the Wild kept its foot on the gas and generated offensive-zone time, took 1-0, 2-0 and 3-1 leads. But things did not go well in the third period for a Wild team that was one of the first in the NHL to clinch a playoff spot.

“We just kind of get complacent and leave our tendy out to dry,” said Wild forward Marcus Foligno. “It’s a crappy feeling, especially the way you lose with 20-something seconds left on the clock. Yeah, we didn’t do the little things right. They did the little things right.”

Some of those “little things” were puck possession and turnovers.

Jordan Greenway checks Justin Faulk into the boards.  Photo by Rick Olson

The Wild held a 3-1 lead headed into the third period, but the Blues cashed in on their second power-play chance of the game to make it 3-2 about 4 minutes into the period. A bad turnover behind the Wild net by defenseman Matt Dumba led to the tying goal a few minutes after that, leaving 25 alone in front for the goal, although the puck seemed to awkwardly slip off his stick before bouncing past Cam Talbot and into the net.

The loss snapped a seven-game winning streak for the Wild, which feasted on the likes of Arizona, San Jose and Los Angeles. Without a goal on the night, Wild rookie Kirill Kaprizov saw his five-game goal streak come to an end, too.

The Wild looked good to start the game, and through pretty much 40 minutes of play. Talbot, who’s cemented himself lately as the top choice in net, came through with an early pad save on a mini breakaway on Jordan Kyrou to keep the game scoreless. Nico Sturm created a turnover at the St. Louis blue line a few minutes after that to spring Zach Parise for a solid scoring chance.

But no other line’s presence was felt as much as the tandem of Jordan Greenway, Joel Eriksson Ek and Foligno. They were on the ice for all three Wild goals.

Jonas Brodin put the Wild up 1-0 with about two minutes to play in the first period when he fired an off-balance shot from the top of the circles. On the play, Greenway kept the puck in at the blue line, and Foligno fed the puck to Brodin.

Eriksson Ek made it 2-0 only 32 seconds into the second period, putting home a rebound into a wide-open net. Greenway generated that play as well, while Foligno skated right in front of the goal. Foligno kept the momentum going in the second when his wrister from the high slot made it through traffic for a 3-1 lead 1 minute, 2 seconds after the Blues got on the board with a power-play goal.

“Moose and Greener were doing a great job on the forecheck, and I was just trying to read off them and support them,” Eriksson Ek said. “But we’ve got to keep playing for 60 minutes if we want to win like this.”

Even in the third period, Foligno still thought their line played well, continuing their trend throughout the season.

“I thought our line’s been dominant all year,” Foligno said. “It was a good line game by us. I thought we still competed hard.”

Jordan Greenway and Marcus Foligno tangle with a Blues player for the puck.  Photo by Rick Olson

Foligno, with his gritty play, enthusiasm and veteran leadership, is one of the reasons the Wild are a playoff team this year. Foligno was reunited with his line after missing 15 games with a lower-body injury. In his eight games back, he’s scored three goals and three assists.

In addition to his goal and assist on the night, Foligno recorded a game-high five hits in his 16:12 on the ice. Foligno and his linemates feed off each other as a smart, physical, hungry line, he said.

“Ekker’s been a huge part,” Foligno said. “You talk about a two-way forward who can handle everything when it comes to physicality and the offensive side, too, it’s been pretty exciting for him to see how he’s grown into the player he is now. And Greener, too, just taking big strides, those young guys.”  

For his part, Greenway’s two helpers pushed him to a career-high 30 points this season (6-24—30) in 48 games. He scored 8 goals and 28 points in 67 games last season. Greenway also added a physical play late in Wednesday’s third period, bowling over two Blues players at the same time in open ice.

Eriksson Ek officially doubled his career-high goal total from a year ago, bringing his tally for the season to 16 and 26 points, three off his career-high total. Eriksson Ek went down after a collision at neutral ice in the third period, but he spoke with the media afterward and confirmed he’s “good.”

It’s a good thing because keeping Ek’s line together will be key come playoff time, no matter the opponent.

The post Late letdown appeared first on Minnesota Hockey Magazine.

Such is sports life amid a pandemic.

“I’ve said it before, it’s pretty brutal, playing with no fans, especially on what should be a fun, exciting, entertaining, opening night,” said forward Zach Parise. “You miss having the crowd and that noise, so we’re looking forward to getting some people in the stands here.”

In perhaps the most Minnesota touch of all, the sections of seats behind each of the team benches were filled with various high school hockey jerseys that are normally displayed around the suite level concourse.

The venue hasn’t mattered much so far for the Wild, who won their home opener 4-1 over the San Jose Sharks following a successful four-game California road trip.

It was essentially a one-goal game in the third before Kevin Fiala scored his first of the season into an empty net with 1 minute, 16 seconds to play. Jordan Greenway, who already had four assists to his credit this season, added an empty-netter from center ice with 26 ticks on the clock.

“I don’t think we started great, but we were able to battle through, got some timely goals and when it got down to crunch time, we were able to get the job done,” said defenseman Ian Cole.

The Wild called on Kaapo Kahkonen in to finish the second and third periods after Cam Talbot left with an injury. (MHM Photo / Rick Olson)

In the Wild’s net, it was Kaapo Kahkonen who earned the victory, having come in to start the second period after starter Cam Talbot appeared to be in discomfort after a play late in the first period. Talbot finished the period and skated out for the second before turning the net over to Kahkonen.

Coach Dean Evason didn’t have an update after the game but said indications are that Talbot’s injury isn’t serious. Kahkonen said he had an idea he might be going in, after seeing what happened to Talbot.

“It’s more mental, I think,” Kahkonen said, of his preparation. “It’s not easy, but you just have to be ready for anything when you’re a backup goalie in a game.”

Joel Eriksson Ek, the team’s leading scorer, added his third of the season to get the Wild going five minutes into the game. On the dynamic line with Greenway and Marcus Foligno, Greenway put a shot on net and Ek was in front to take care of the rest and jam home the rebound. But the Sharks tied it 1:11 later on a Matt Nieto goal.

Minnesota lads Parise and Nick Bjugstad, in his first year donning a Wild sweater, finally got their names on the scoresheet with Parise’s second-period go-ahead goal Friday. Things had lulled even the pumped-in crowd noise into a bit of up-and-down the ice routine in the second period when Parise fired a blast on the Sharks’ net. Goaltender Devan Dubnyk stuck his left leg out for the pad save.

But on the same shift, Bjugstad fired the puck on net from the slot. Dubnyk didn’t grab it cleanly, and Parise pounced in his office in front of the blue paint for his first goal – and first point – of the season. Both Parise and Bjugstad had zero points coming into the game.

Parise said he didn’t feel guilty about scoring a goal against his former teammate.

The Minnesota Wild and San Jose Sharks played in an empty arena Jan. 22, 2021. (MHM Photo / Rick Olson)

“He robbed me on that first one, so I guess we’re even because I don’t know how he kicked his pad out on that for what I thought was an open-net freebee,” Parise said.

That goal left the Wild heading into the second intermission with something they weren’t used to this season: A lead. They used comeback, overtime victories to win their first two games before getting shut out in their first game against Anaheim. The final game of the road trip was knotted at 2 apiece headed into the third, after the Wild had a two-goal lead.

The first half of the third period was pretty even, with the Wild not able to get much going on its third power play of the game. But really, not getting anything going on the power play has been the baseline for the Wild this season. They’re 1-for-23 in that category, although their first couple of games looked a lot better on the ice with the advantage than the stat sheet indicated.

The Sharks pressured a bit late in the game, but Kahkonen held his ground to get his second consecutive win in net.

Kirill the thrill

There was one other move that should make highlight reels, despite the result. By now the hockey world got quite the introduction to Kirill Kaprizov, who had one of the most storybook NHL debuts ever with his three-point game and overtime winner in the season-opening victory in Los Angeles.

Friday, he dazzled with a move with a little more than 9 minutes to play in the third. Taking the puck into the offensive zone fighting his way through a defender, Kaprizov made an in-between-the-legs move with the puck and fired off a shot. Dubnyk made the save, but it was still a play worth a double-take and a gasp at that talent from Kaprizov.

Dubnyk was impressed, too, and glad he made the stop.

“I can’t believe he made that move,” Dubnyk said. “It’s a nightmare when somebody makes a move that’s that slick and puts it in the back of the net, and then you’ve got 365 days to watch it over and over again on the highlights.”  

Devan Dubnyk returned to play against his old team in Minnesota. (MHM Photo / Rick Olson)

Homecoming for Dubnyk

The Wild saw some familiar faces on the opposing bench. Dubnyk started against his old team for the first time. He propelled the Wild to some successful regular-season runs when he was acquired in a trade a few years ago. He finished his Wild career 177-113-28 with a 2.41 GAA and .918 save percentage in 328 games across six seasons from 2014-20.

Dubnyk took the loss to fall to 0-2-0 with his new team this season.

“I was a little fired up and overthinking stuff,” Dubnyk said. “I just wanted to give the guys a good chance.

“It would have been real nice to win, but it was nice to get it out of the way and feel like we played OK.”

Ryan Donato was also back to play his former team, though his stint in Minnesota was much shorter with his 18 goals and 39 points in 84 games across two seasons from 2018-20. Donato tied for a team-high five shots in the game but also ended up with a minus-3 next to his name.

Both Dubnyk and Donato received the video-tribute treatment on the videoboard at the arena for former players during breaks in the action.

The post Happy Wild homecoming appeared first on Minnesota Hockey Magazine.

Walz, Stalock reflect on Avs rivalry from diverse perspectives

ST. PAUL — A couple of things stand out to former Minnesota Wild center Wes Walz about the 2003 first-round playoff series between Colorado and Minnesota. First, it was a pre-series meeting complete with line combinations against the Avalanche written out on a board.

“It was going to be my line against (Peter) Forsberg’s line, and Jimmy Dowd was going to play mostly against (Joe) Sakic’s line,” Walz said. “We knew going into the series exactly what was going to happen. We were looking at the board, and we were all saying, ‘we can beat these guys.’”

Did the Wild know they were going to come back from the first of two 3-to-1 deficits in those 2003 Stanley Cup Playoffs? No. But Walz knew they could go into Denver and at least be competitive with their rival, and part of that was based on the fact that the Wild had already beaten Colorado during the regular season.

Those 2003 playoffs is something current Wild goaltender Alex Stalock remembers watching at home as a fan.

“I lived that as a teenager,” Stalock said. “And man, that was an incredible run. Every night you sat down and watched those games, every minute.”

The Wild, still a relatively new franchise, didn’t need home-ice advantage to make it all the way to the Western Conference Finals that season.

The first series ended with an overtime, game-seven win in Colorado. It was a season and a series that sparked a rivalry with the Avalanche. Walz was one of the leading scorers for the Wild in the playoffs that year, with 7 goals and 13 points in 18 games behind leader Marian Gaborik’s 9 goals and 17 points.

“I still believe that big rivalries are created through playoffs,” said Walz, now retired and a Wild analyst with FSNorth. “But with Colorado, it’s always just kind of been there. We beat them in 2002-03. There were a lot of spirited games that we played during regular-season games that specific year.

“Why that is, I’m not 100 percent sure.”

Maybe, as he goes on to mention, it was the “astronomical” payrolls of the Wild opponents in those early years of the franchise. Or it was the hall-of-famers on the other bench that got the Wild playing so hard against them because “we were just scared to be embarrassed because they were that good,” Walz said.

Tempers can flare when the Wild and Avalanche meet and they did just that in Game 6 of their 2014 Stanley Cup first-round series on April 28, 2014 at Xcel Energy Center. (MHM Photo / Jeff Wegge)

The playoff history between these two teams includes 2008 when Colorado beat the Wild in six games and then again in 2014 when the Wild once again won with some game-seven, overtime-magic at the Pepsi Center, this time with the winner from Nino Niederreiter. Each matchup with these two clubs has been in the first round of the playoffs. 

“When you’re looking at just a pure rivalry on the ice between different teams, it seems like this rivalry that we have built between Colorado has been something that’s been very real and it feels like it’s been there almost since day one,” Walz said.

The Wild and Colorado have the “rival” label placed on their games because they play in the same division. Colorado is the only team that’s played in the same division as the Wild even dating back to before the NHL realignment 2013-14. The Wild hold a 52-41-11 (29-18-5 at home) all-time record against the Avalanche, the second-most points (115) and wins against any NHL franchise. That record includes a 3-2 Wild victory over Colorado on Thursday.

“We brought up the word ‘rivalry’ before the game tonight,” Stalock said.

But rivalries aren’t what they used to be – “not as mean and dirty as they used to be” – changing over the past 15 to 20 years, according to Walz. With the roster turnover in today’s NHL, it’s more likely that a fan base becomes attached to the history of a particular rivalry rather than it sticking with the players.

For the Wild, only Mikko Koivu is left from the 2008 team that lost to Colorado. Even the 2014 team a few years ago only boasts Koivu, Zach Parise, Ryan Suter, Jared Spurgeon and Jonas Brodin as players that remain.

“There’s players coming and going so often,” Walz said. “You don’t see guys playing in one spot their whole careers anymore. You very rarely see it.”

Recent rivals Ryan Suter and Nathan MacKinnon go head-to-head in a corner battle during Minnesota’s 3-2 win over Colorado on Thursday night at Xcel Energy Center. MacKinnon was limited to a single assist. (MHM Photo / Rick Olson)

But Walz suggests that it’s not so much a rivalry with a certain team as it is a different way of looking at things. The Wild will look at the Avalanche and the specifics of how to beat them, for instance.

“It’s Nathan MacKinnon. ‘How can we try to keep him off the scoreboard to give ourselves a chance to win?’” Walz said.

The Wild didn’t keep MacKinnon off the sheet completely on Thursday  – he had an assist on the first of two Colorado goals from Cale Makar – but the overall goal was accomplished with the Wild win. A little payback for a 4-2 Wild loss in Denver back on Oct. 5.

Mats Zuccarello and Jordan Greenway scored goals 53 seconds apart early in the second period for a 2-0 lead before Makar tied it later in the period. Jason Zucker scored the game-winner about halfway through the third period. Stalock made 27 saves for his second consecutive victory; he’s 5-3-0.

“I think we did everything we could tonight,” Greenway said. “Everyone contributed. Al (Stalock) played great. Everyone did their roles, which led to the win.

With the Wild swimming near the basement on the NHL standings, a playoff meeting between these two might not be on the horizon for a while. Even with a disappointing start to the season for the Wild, momentum can always shift on a dime. Walz remembers that from when the team was staring at three potential elimination games against Colorado back in 2003.

Following the game-four loss, the Wild had a bad practice before leaving for Colorado and “our coaches weren’t happy,” Walz recalled. They had a team dinner/meeting the following night to discuss matters with coach Jacques Lemaire and then-general manager Doug Risebrough, who did 90 percent of the talking, according to Walz. Risebrough talked about his years as a player and winning Stanley Cups with the Montreal Canadiens.

“The one thing that stuck out to me in this conversation, when he spoke for about a half an hour, was how momentum can change a series instantly,” Walz said. “Winning one game can kind of get the ball rolling.

“I remember walking out of the meeting that night in the hotel. Honestly, I’m not just saying this, I really couldn’t wait for the game to start. I wanted to walk over to Pepsi Center that night and play.”

The Wild came back with a trio of 3-2 victories in games five through seven, with the last two coming in overtime on goals from Richard Park and Andrew Brunette.

The Wild haven’t been back to the Conference Finals since 2003.

Perhaps it can serve as motivation for the current Wild team, to inspire the younger generation of kids, like Stalock during that magical run.

“It’s, I think, what a lot of guys in here want to do for the kids watching now,” Stalock said. “They can have the memory and say, ‘I remember when you guys did this.’ So I think that’s our goal.” 

The post Rocky Mountain Rival appeared first on Minnesota Hockey Magazine.

Charlie Coyle plays catch-up in first post-trade visit to the ‘X’

St. Paul — When it comes to Boston slang, “wicked” is a word that might come to mind. But there’s a different “W” word that former Minnesota Wild and current Boston Bruins forward Charlie Coyle kept repeating the past couple of days: Weird.

“It’s just a weird thing,” Coyle said of his first game back at Xcel Energy Center since being traded in February. “The trade happened so fast, and you don’t get to say ‘bye’ to everyone. I had to just get up and go.

“So just to see everyone and catch up a little bit, it’s obviously a weird thing… playing against your old friends, teammates.”

(MHM Photo / Rick Olson)

Coyle made his first return to Minnesota to face the Wild as an opponent Thursday night. With a playoff spot already locked up for the Bruins (49-23-9) sitting with 107 points in second place in the Atlantic Division, they came in and shut out the Wild (37-35-9) by a 3-0 margin. It was the seventh shutout of the season on home ice for the Wild.

Though Coyle didn’t factor in to any of the scoring, he registered two shots on goal in the game and got the video-tribute treatment along with a warm ovation from Wild fans during the first period.

Coyle was traded to Boston on Feb. 20 for youngster Ryan Donato. Both are Massachusetts natives and have worked out together during summers, said Coyle, who added that Donato is “a great kid” with a lot of skill.

Simply looking at the small sample size of points during the rest of the 2018-19 season, the Wild came out ahead on the trade. Donato came into Minnesota firing on all cylinders with points in his first five games in a Wild sweater, including an overtime winner for a 2-1 victory over St. Louis in his Xcel Energy Center debut Feb. 24. Donato has 4 goals and 16 points with the Wild in 21 games (10-15—25 for the season).

Contrast that to Coyle’s slower start in Boston, skating pointless in his first seven games with the Bruins. However, he scored a nifty shootout goal in his Bruins debut, a 2-1 shootout loss to St. Louis. He has just 2 goals and 4 assists in 20 games with his new team (12-22—34 for the season). For the most part, he’s starting to find his groove with the playoff-bound Bruins, Coyle said.

“It’s a hard thing to play consistent every single night and do the same thing,” Coyle said. “Points will come. I don’t think you focus on points too much as long as the team’s winning.

“I just want to play my role, do my part.”

Wild coach Bruce Boudreau referred to Coyle’s on-ice performance as being “consistently inconsistent sometimes, offensively.”

“He’s a guy that you always wanted a little bit more from him,” Boudreau said. “You always thought there was more in him.”

Hockey minds know there’s a business aspect to running teams and making trades. No doubt there are all kinds of factors. It’s abundantly clear how much his teammates and Boudreau wanted to keep him around Minnesota.

“Charlie’s one of the best kids you’ll ever meet in your life,” Boudreau said. “He was perfect as far as personality.

“A solid person and a great player to have on your team.”

Said goaltender Alex Stalock: “He brought a lot to this room, a lot to this organization.”

Coyle appreciated the kind words but was also quick to throw credit toward the Wild organization.

“You’re in such a good environment,” Coyle said. “They kind of set the standard right away. I just follow suit.”

Coyle skated with a variety of teammates in Minnesota this season, including Zach Parise, Eric Staal, pal Jason Zucker and Jordan Greenway, another close friend.

(MHM Photo / Rick Olson)

“We had a pretty good relationship, so being able to play against him will be fun,” Greenway said after Thursday’s morning skate.

The two still talk and help each other with their games, Greenway said, adding that it was special being able to go out for dinner and hang out with his former teammate. Greenaway also declared he wasn’t “going to take it easy on him” once the game started.

“I’m going to give it to him,” Greenway said. “I told him that last night.

“He’s scared. He backed down a little bit.”

Coyle played in his 499th career NHL game Thursday. He has 93 goals and 248 points, playing six-plus seasons in Minnesota before the trade. After playing three straight ironman seasons of all 82 regular-season games, injury woes found Coyle last season. He played just 66 games, scoring 11 goals and 37 points.

He was part of the string of six straight playoff appearances for the Wild, with 15 points in 44 postseason games for the Wild. Now he finds himself in the playoffs for a seventh consecutive season, even though his old friends are out.

“It’s a weird thing,” Coyle said. “You start your year with them, and you always plan on finishing the year, you don’t plan on getting traded. You want to make sure you do what you can to help your team and get to the playoffs, and all of a sudden, you get taken from that.

“You always hope the best for (the Wild). I want them to succeed.” 

The post Strange Days Indeed appeared first on Minnesota Hockey Magazine.

5-year-old trade revived a career and sparked a franchise

By the time Devan Dubnyk signed a deal with Arizona prior to the 2014-15 season, he had accepted his fate in the NHL. He was going to be a backup goaltender. He recalls being grateful to even still be in the league, going 9-5-2 with a 2.72 GAA in 19 games for the Coyotes that season.

Then came Jan. 14, 2015.

The Minnesota Wild acquired Dubnyk in exchange for a third-round pick. It was a move that’s widely known as one of the best trades in franchise history. For Dubnyk, the move to Minnesota was one that he said changed his career and changed his life.

“I’ve talked about it before, it was kind of the perfect scenario coming in here,” Dubnyk said. “When I got traded here, it was just like bonus time. Every 60 minutes I got to play was a bonus.”

Once the deal was done, Dubnyk flew overnight to meet up with the Wild in Buffalo. Then he earned what teammate Zach Parise called “probably the easiest shutout of his life” with 18 saves in a 7-0 Wild victory over the Sabres, making him the first goalie in franchise history to record a shutout and win in his debut with the team. Dubnyk agreed with Parise’s sentiment, saying it wasn’t the most difficult game he’s played.

“We all took a deep breath,” Parise said. “I think things kind of turned around for us there.”

(MHM Photo / Jeff Wegge)

It was just the beginning of a great run for the Wild with Dubnyk as the main netminder; the team went 8-1-1 in his first 10 games, including a six-game winning streak. Dubnyk went 15-2-1 with three shutouts in 19 road starts, and 27-9-2 in 39 games with a 1.78 GAA and .936 save percentage with the Wild that year. The Wild tallied 100 points in a season for the first time since 2006-07 and made it to the second round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs. He won the 2015 Bill Masterton Memorial Trophy and finished third in Vezina Trophy voting.

Dubnyk is 151-85-23 with 21 shutouts in 267 games since coming over to the Wild and is signed through the 2020-21 season. Having the stability in Dubnyk the past few years is always good, according to Parise.

“We were actually laughing about it the other day in the training room, the one year we had Hards (Josh Harding), (Niklas) Backstrom, John Curry, Bryz (Ilya Bryzgalov)… and Darcy (Kuemper),” Parise said. “I mean, there were five.”

The Wild relied on Backstrom and Kuemper in net before the Dubnyk trade.

As much as the trade for Dubnyk may have helped out his individual career, it’s well documented how much spark it provided for the Wild. They were, as Parise put it, “treading water” at the time.

That’s putting it mildly. The Wild went from 16-11-1 on Dec. 16, 2014 to 18-19-5 following a loss to Pittsburgh on Jan. 13, 2015, winning just twice in a 14-game span and racking up five-game and then six-game losing streaks.

The now-32-year-old, 6 foot 6 goaltender has played extremely well for the Wild and is preparing for his third trip to the NHL All-Star Game in the past four years. He entered play Jan. 14 with a 17-15-3 record, .914 save percentage and 2.62 GAA, including a 32-save shutout in Montreal a week before.

“I feel every night he’s been the backbone of our team, you know?” said rookie forward Jordan Greenway, following a 3-2 home victory over Winnipeg on Jan. 10. “We depend on him a lot, and he was great again tonight.”

Wild coach Bruce Boudreau is known for juggling his lines mid-game when things aren’t going well for one reason or another. But at least the goaltender isn’t a position he has to worry about, with Dubnyk in net most of the time or a solid backup in Stalock. Goaltender is the most valuable position in the hockey world, according to Boudreau.

 “When he’s focused and prepared and ready to go from the get-go, and he makes those first couple saves, he gets right into it,” Boudreau said.

Even with such a stellar run that followed when Dubnyk arrived under then-head coach Mike Yeo, Dubnyk said he was able to play in the moment. The crazy run they went on – with five and six-game winning streaks as part of the formula to make the playoffs – never felt crazy, Dubnyk said.

“Again, that’s kind of another part of that perfect storm… I was just excited to be starting again,” Dubnyk said.

Talking to Dubnyk, it seems like perhaps he found his confidence or love for the game again. Once he played two, three games in a row, he was back to wanting to be a starter again, he said. He came in with a “bonus-time” mindset and helped the team rattle off a couple games, which helped the Wild remember how good they were, according to Dubnyk.

“I was able to not think about the improbabilities of us going on a run and making the playoffs,” Dubnyk said. “I was just so excited to get an opportunity to be a starter again and to play well.”

The post Looking Back: Dubnyk’s Deal appeared first on Minnesota Hockey Magazine.

Four-goal second-period blitz shifts momentum Minnesota’s way

St. Paul – Suddenly, we have a series.

In the eyes of many disenchanted Minnesota hockey fans, the Wild looked like they would be unable to do anything in the Stanley Cup Playoffs but absorb four straight playoff losses to the muscular Winnipeg Jets.

Until Sunday night.

With heaps of snow bringing back memories of February — they went 9-4-3 that month — the Wild executed a quick 180 to snuff out the high-flying Jets 6-2 in front of 19,175 at the Xcel Energy Center.

“We got a life, now,” winger Zach Parise said.

After the Jets dominated the first two games in Winnipeg, they grabbed a 1-0 lead on a softy that squirted past goalie Devan Dubnyk 4:50 into the first period Sunday.

“It didn’t defelate us by any means,” Parise said.

Apparently not.

Wild forwards Eric Staal and Jason Zucker celebrate Staal’s first goal of the series on the second period of Minnesota’s 6-2 win over the Winnipeg Jets in Game 3 of there first round Stanley Cup Playoff series on Sunday night at Xcel Energy Center. (MHM Photo / Jeff Wegge)

Mikael Granlund banged in the rebound of a Mikko Koivu shot on a Minnesota power play midway through the first period, and the Wild netted five of the ensuing six goals to pull within 2-1 in the best-of-7 series.

“We needed that — a little pushback on these guys that we knew we were more than capable of,” Dubnyk said. “And we needed to win the game, plain and simple.”

Three games down and things have changed.

“We were good in the first two, and they didn’t like their game,” Jets coach Paul Maurice said. “They were good tonight and we didn’t like our game.”

The win was a team effort for a Wild lineup that at times appeared unable to keep up with the Jets during the two games in Winnipeg.

“I thought we got really good games from our big players,” Wild coach Bruce Boudreau said.

Go down the line: Eric Staal scored his first goal of these playoffs and added an assist, Parise scored his third, Koivu was a force and tallied two assists, Granlund had a goal and an assist, Nick Seeler picked up two assists and a few key blocked shots, Matt Dumba netted the game-winner and an assist, Marcus Foligno got his first goal of the playoffs plus three big hits, and Jordan Greenway bagged his first goal as a pro.

“That shows a lot of good things about our team.” Greenway said. “We got scoring from our top two lines and we got secondary scoring, too. Everyone’s pushing in the right direction.”

Factor in an air-tight defense that blocked 20 Winnipeg shots compared to eight blocks by the Jets and you have the recipe for a win.

Hits — such a factor in Winnipeg — were 26-19 in favor of the Jets but did not seem to faze the home team.

“It’s a physical series,” Granlund said. “It’s fun to be out there — there’s a lot of contact and a lot of emotion.”

Midway through the final period the result became so obvious that some in the big crowd took note of the four-goal lead and the wintry weather and chose to exit the premises a little early for what they expected to be a snow-slowed ride home.

Like the Wild, they could look forward to a rematch two nights later at the X.

One more Minnesota win and the series will come back to the X for Game 6 next Sunday.

The post Wild Push Back appeared first on Minnesota Hockey Magazine.