The San Jose Sharks got a real scare tonight. And no, it wasn't a mirage you watched (if you did, given the late hour) Saturday night. The Minnesota Wild were really playing that good.
But you cannot give up four power-play goals, a single-game Wild all-time record, and expect to win on the road in the NHL. And so it was tonight at HP Pavilion at San Jose, as the Wild lost to the Sharks, 5-2, in front of 175 Wild fans on the team's official 'Road Trip', and 17,387 Sharks faithful, as Josh Harding made his third consecutive start, and finished by having suffered his first loss in his last 4 games.
The Wild struck first as Owen Nolan tipped the puck off a Guillaume Latendresse shot by Evgeni Nabokov on the power play, then after Jason Demers whizzed one by a screen Harding to tie it at one-all, Cal Clutterbuck's point-blank redirect of Kyle Brodziak's pass in front of Nabokov found twine in the last minute of the first period.
Demers then took advantage of an errant clearing attempt by Kim Johnsson while the Wild were killing off a questionable penalty against Belanger, netting his second of the night thru another screen, 3:15 into the second period, tying the game at 2-2. Later in the second, Joe Pavelski took advantage of a Marek Zidlicky penalty, stepping around Brent Burns like Burns was a statute, and surprising Harding to put the Sharks in front 3-2 at the 16:57 mark.
Six seconds after Robbie Earl was whistled off for interference, Patrick Marleau tallied his first goal of the evening as his blast sizzled by Harding at 13:14 of the third period, for a 4-2 San Jose lead. Just over 3 minutes later, Marleau made sure the Wild had no comeback as he deflected a shot by Dany Heatley into the net for the 5-2 final score.
Next Game: at Dallas, Tuesday, Feb. 2, 7:00 PM, American Airlines Center. (TV: Versus, TSN2, in HD; viewing parties in Twin Cities area; details at Wild.com. XM Radio, Ch. 209)
-- WRT
Saturday, January 30, 2010
Thursday, January 28, 2010
Party Crashers: Wild 1, Avs 0 as Harding shuts out Colorado
Martin Havlat carries the mail as Harding stones Avalanche in Denver
The Minnesota Wild closed out their 2009-10 season series against the Colorado Avalanche with a 1-0 shutout by backup goaltender Josh Harding, and a spectacular 3rd period goal by Martin Havlat, his third goal in his last 5 games, where Havlat shot the puck into the net, while having no less than three Avs players on his back while doing so. The shutout was Harding's fourth all-time NHL shutout.
Harding, who had been injured over the past weekend, was pressed into service when starting goalie Niklas Backstrom developed back spasms after the game vs. Columbus last Saturday night. Harding had played in back-to-back games in his NHL career only once before last night (when he won, 5-2, vs. Detroit) and tonight's game vs. a Colorado team which had won their last six straight at Pepsi Center.
Reports after the game were that Owen Nolan took a puck in the hand during the latter stages of the third period, and that he is listed as of now as questionable. The Wild end their six-game season series against the Avs with a 5 win, 1 loss record.
The Wild start the three-game road trip with two very important points, but the road does not get any easier, as the Next Game is at San Jose, Saturday, Jan. 30, 9:30 PM Central (7:30 PM Pacific) Time, HP Pavilion at San Jose. (Wild TV: FSNorth; Sharks TV: CSN California; both feeds in HD; XM Radio, Ch. 209)
-- WRT
The Minnesota Wild closed out their 2009-10 season series against the Colorado Avalanche with a 1-0 shutout by backup goaltender Josh Harding, and a spectacular 3rd period goal by Martin Havlat, his third goal in his last 5 games, where Havlat shot the puck into the net, while having no less than three Avs players on his back while doing so. The shutout was Harding's fourth all-time NHL shutout.
Harding, who had been injured over the past weekend, was pressed into service when starting goalie Niklas Backstrom developed back spasms after the game vs. Columbus last Saturday night. Harding had played in back-to-back games in his NHL career only once before last night (when he won, 5-2, vs. Detroit) and tonight's game vs. a Colorado team which had won their last six straight at Pepsi Center.
Reports after the game were that Owen Nolan took a puck in the hand during the latter stages of the third period, and that he is listed as of now as questionable. The Wild end their six-game season series against the Avs with a 5 win, 1 loss record.
The Wild start the three-game road trip with two very important points, but the road does not get any easier, as the Next Game is at San Jose, Saturday, Jan. 30, 9:30 PM Central (7:30 PM Pacific) Time, HP Pavilion at San Jose. (Wild TV: FSNorth; Sharks TV: CSN California; both feeds in HD; XM Radio, Ch. 209)
-- WRT
Wednesday, January 27, 2010
At Last: Wild beat Red Wings, 5-2
You know it's a good night for Minnesota hockey fans, when the booing against Todd Bertuzzi stops, as 'Big Bert' becomes totally insignificant.
Yes, that is exactly what happened tonight, as the Minnesota Wild put together one of their better efforts in front of 18,316 at Xcel Energy Center and drubbed the Detroit Red Wings 5-2. The Wild end their three-game homestand 2-0-1, earning 5 of a possible 6 points in the last week, prior to going on their second-to-last roadtrip of three games, beginning Thursday night in Denver.
Antti Miettinen's two first-period goals started things off, but after each the Red Wings would bounce back with Pavel Datsyuk goal to make it even. Then the Wild started to pull away late in the first period, as Andrew Ebbett's tip of a Greg Zanon blast gave the Wild a 3-2 lead after one. No scoring in the second period, but plenty of up-and-down, back-and-forth action as two teams who would rather skate than fight did just that. The third period was a real disappointment to the many Red Wings fans in the crowd, as first Guillaume Latendresse and then Martin Havlat both scored 69 seconds apart, early in the third to give the Wild a nice three-goal cushion as the period wound down. Unlike previous three-goal leads this season, however, this time the Wild did not stop working, even as the Red Wings tried to press the attack.
Josh Harding, who was pulled last week after the first period vs. Detroit for a hip injury, returned and made 26 saves on the night to record his 4th win of the season. With Niklas Backstrom currently having back problems, Harding might just have to start tomorrow night's Next Game: vs. Colorado, 8:00 PM Central (7:00 PM Mountain) Time, Pepsi Center. (Wild TV: FSNorth; Avs' TV: Altitude, both feeds in HD; XM Radio, Ch. 208)
-- WRT
Yes, that is exactly what happened tonight, as the Minnesota Wild put together one of their better efforts in front of 18,316 at Xcel Energy Center and drubbed the Detroit Red Wings 5-2. The Wild end their three-game homestand 2-0-1, earning 5 of a possible 6 points in the last week, prior to going on their second-to-last roadtrip of three games, beginning Thursday night in Denver.
Antti Miettinen's two first-period goals started things off, but after each the Red Wings would bounce back with Pavel Datsyuk goal to make it even. Then the Wild started to pull away late in the first period, as Andrew Ebbett's tip of a Greg Zanon blast gave the Wild a 3-2 lead after one. No scoring in the second period, but plenty of up-and-down, back-and-forth action as two teams who would rather skate than fight did just that. The third period was a real disappointment to the many Red Wings fans in the crowd, as first Guillaume Latendresse and then Martin Havlat both scored 69 seconds apart, early in the third to give the Wild a nice three-goal cushion as the period wound down. Unlike previous three-goal leads this season, however, this time the Wild did not stop working, even as the Red Wings tried to press the attack.
Josh Harding, who was pulled last week after the first period vs. Detroit for a hip injury, returned and made 26 saves on the night to record his 4th win of the season. With Niklas Backstrom currently having back problems, Harding might just have to start tomorrow night's Next Game: vs. Colorado, 8:00 PM Central (7:00 PM Mountain) Time, Pepsi Center. (Wild TV: FSNorth; Avs' TV: Altitude, both feeds in HD; XM Radio, Ch. 208)
-- WRT
Saturday, January 23, 2010
Blue Jackets show why they're 14th in West as Wild win, 4-2
By Wild Road Tripper
The Columbus Blue Jackets showed again tonight why they are 14th in the NHL's Western Conference, and why teams like the Minnesota Wild beat them, 4-2, as in Saturday night's 'Hockey Day Minnesota' feature game, as the Wild played a solid 59 minutes of good, quality hockey. The victory ran the Wild's all-time record on 'Hockey Day Minnesota', to 2-1-1.
But, about that 60th minute; we'll get to that later.
The first 59 were good, solid hockey, punctuated by the two goals of Mikko Koivu, Eric Belanger's surprise throw-in towards tough-luck Jackets goalie Steve Mason, and Robbie Earl showing again why he could be a finisher-in-training for the offensively-beleagured Wild. And, for good measure, Derek Boogaard made short work of Jared Boll, as Boogaard showed again why he is the undisputed heavyweight champion of the NHL. Even maligned defenseman Marek Zidlicky wound up a +3 for the night.
But it was that 60th minute that shocked the 18,173 in attendance, as the Jackets, behind goals by Rick Nash and Antoine Vermette, not only blew Niklas Backstrom's shutout, but closed the gap quickly to 4-2, but the last goal was scored with 3 seconds left in the contest, and the Wild walked away, victorious in regulation time for the first time in a week and a half, but the Jackets late antics (including a Nash-Nick Schultz fight; yes, you read it correctly, folks -- Schultzie dropped the purse!) left a bitter taste in the mouth of Head Coach Todd Richards, as he explained in his post-game press conference.
Jeff Rimer, Jackets play-by-play announcer, wrote yesterday for his blog on Bluejackets.com that the Jackets believe that they are still a legitimate playoff contender. After last night, the two most descriptive words about the playoff hopes of Columbus would be:
Fat. Chance.
Next Game: vs. Detroit, Wednesday, Jan. 27, 7:00 PM Central (8:00 PM Eastern) Time, Xcel Energy Center. (Wild TV: FSNorth; Detroit TV: FSDetroit; both feeds in HD; XM Radio, Ch. 208)
The Columbus Blue Jackets showed again tonight why they are 14th in the NHL's Western Conference, and why teams like the Minnesota Wild beat them, 4-2, as in Saturday night's 'Hockey Day Minnesota' feature game, as the Wild played a solid 59 minutes of good, quality hockey. The victory ran the Wild's all-time record on 'Hockey Day Minnesota', to 2-1-1.
But, about that 60th minute; we'll get to that later.
The first 59 were good, solid hockey, punctuated by the two goals of Mikko Koivu, Eric Belanger's surprise throw-in towards tough-luck Jackets goalie Steve Mason, and Robbie Earl showing again why he could be a finisher-in-training for the offensively-beleagured Wild. And, for good measure, Derek Boogaard made short work of Jared Boll, as Boogaard showed again why he is the undisputed heavyweight champion of the NHL. Even maligned defenseman Marek Zidlicky wound up a +3 for the night.
But it was that 60th minute that shocked the 18,173 in attendance, as the Jackets, behind goals by Rick Nash and Antoine Vermette, not only blew Niklas Backstrom's shutout, but closed the gap quickly to 4-2, but the last goal was scored with 3 seconds left in the contest, and the Wild walked away, victorious in regulation time for the first time in a week and a half, but the Jackets late antics (including a Nash-Nick Schultz fight; yes, you read it correctly, folks -- Schultzie dropped the purse!) left a bitter taste in the mouth of Head Coach Todd Richards, as he explained in his post-game press conference.
Jeff Rimer, Jackets play-by-play announcer, wrote yesterday for his blog on Bluejackets.com that the Jackets believe that they are still a legitimate playoff contender. After last night, the two most descriptive words about the playoff hopes of Columbus would be:
Fat. Chance.
Next Game: vs. Detroit, Wednesday, Jan. 27, 7:00 PM Central (8:00 PM Eastern) Time, Xcel Energy Center. (Wild TV: FSNorth; Detroit TV: FSDetroit; both feeds in HD; XM Radio, Ch. 208)
Thursday, January 21, 2010
Miller Time, but not Buffalo's: Red Wings 4, Wild 3
Eight-round shootout ends after Sabres' goalie's brother scores game-winner: Harding injured?
By Wild Road Tripper
It was not the kind of game that Minnesota Wild fans were accustomed to, against one of the best franchises in pro sports of the last 20 years, but considering they were down two goals with less than seven minutes remaining in regulation time, losing to the Detroit Red Wings in a marathon, eight-round shootout really doesn't seem all that bad.
Yes, the Wild lost their 4th game in a row and their 6th in their last 10 games. Yes, they even let the Wild fans' uber-villan, Todd Bertuzzi swoop in on a breakaway and beat starting Wild goaltender Josh Harding, who left the game after the first period with an apparent hip injury, following a sequence where he had to make two stops on the same breakaway.
The first period was awful to watch, as the Wild defense let Harding down time and again, leaving him be the 'Lone Ranger' at least three times in the period. After the first, Harding was replaced by Niklas Backstrom, who, although letting in two goals himself, could not be faulted for either one, as one was a classic tip-in and the other a wrist shot which frankly had eyes.
Through the shootout rounds they went, back and forth, burning up both benches, but did anyone tell the Wild that Detroit still has probably the deepest bench in the Western Conference? Drew Miller, who scored Detroit's third goal on that tip-in, got the shootout winner in the eighth round to win it for the Wings, who broke their own three-game losing skid.
Yes, it was exciting to see the Wild come back on goals by Martin Havlat and Andrew Brunette exactly one minute apart in the waning moments of the third, but you have to sit back and ask this question, if you are a real Wild fan:
When will this team play a solid, 60-minute hockey game? A game that start to finish, they can point to and say, 'that's the type of play we needed to win tonight', and they'd actually GET it?
When they do that, is when the Wild will start to consistently win. Until then, it's all pointing towards a fire sale at the trade deadline. Or, sooner...
Next Game: vs. Columbus, Saturday, January 23, 8:00 PM Central (9:00 PM Eastern) Time, Xcel Energy Center, for 'Hockey Day Minnesota' (Wild TV: FSNorth (in HD), along with five other hockey games, ranging from Gophers vs. St. Cloud State to a girls' high school game. 16 hours of hockey in all, in one day! Jackets TV: FSOhio; XM Radio, Ch. 238)
By Wild Road Tripper
It was not the kind of game that Minnesota Wild fans were accustomed to, against one of the best franchises in pro sports of the last 20 years, but considering they were down two goals with less than seven minutes remaining in regulation time, losing to the Detroit Red Wings in a marathon, eight-round shootout really doesn't seem all that bad.
Yes, the Wild lost their 4th game in a row and their 6th in their last 10 games. Yes, they even let the Wild fans' uber-villan, Todd Bertuzzi swoop in on a breakaway and beat starting Wild goaltender Josh Harding, who left the game after the first period with an apparent hip injury, following a sequence where he had to make two stops on the same breakaway.
The first period was awful to watch, as the Wild defense let Harding down time and again, leaving him be the 'Lone Ranger' at least three times in the period. After the first, Harding was replaced by Niklas Backstrom, who, although letting in two goals himself, could not be faulted for either one, as one was a classic tip-in and the other a wrist shot which frankly had eyes.
Through the shootout rounds they went, back and forth, burning up both benches, but did anyone tell the Wild that Detroit still has probably the deepest bench in the Western Conference? Drew Miller, who scored Detroit's third goal on that tip-in, got the shootout winner in the eighth round to win it for the Wings, who broke their own three-game losing skid.
Yes, it was exciting to see the Wild come back on goals by Martin Havlat and Andrew Brunette exactly one minute apart in the waning moments of the third, but you have to sit back and ask this question, if you are a real Wild fan:
When will this team play a solid, 60-minute hockey game? A game that start to finish, they can point to and say, 'that's the type of play we needed to win tonight', and they'd actually GET it?
When they do that, is when the Wild will start to consistently win. Until then, it's all pointing towards a fire sale at the trade deadline. Or, sooner...
Next Game: vs. Columbus, Saturday, January 23, 8:00 PM Central (9:00 PM Eastern) Time, Xcel Energy Center, for 'Hockey Day Minnesota' (Wild TV: FSNorth (in HD), along with five other hockey games, ranging from Gophers vs. St. Cloud State to a girls' high school game. 16 hours of hockey in all, in one day! Jackets TV: FSOhio; XM Radio, Ch. 238)
Tuesday, January 19, 2010
What to make of all this...
A column of opinion...by the Wild Road Tripper
Petr Sykora: Gone.
Robbie Earl: Doin' the Limbo.
Brent Burns: No more bells a-ringin'.
Pierre-Marc Bouchard: 'The Bells of St. Mary's', still playing in his noggin.
and, needed for Chuck Fletcher: Tums, Maalox, and Rolaids. (Nobody can take just one.)
Such is the current state of the Minnesota Wild, whose up-and-down season takes more roller coasters than Cedar Point Amusement Parks can offer up. Lose 2, win 2, lose 4, win 4, lose 3, and the ride just keeps on rolling. The question is asked: are the Wild going to be buyers at the trade deadline? Or are they sellers, with eight (count 'em: 8) potential unrestricted free agents (assuming someone either takes Sykora on waivers, or he is outright released)?
And, what other moves do the Wild have in store? I just got done watching a Washington Capitals team, who could REALLY use a big body as a 'rent-an-enforcer' for the upcoming playoffs, especially against another team I saw tonight, the Ottawa Senators. Yeah, those guys. Jarkko Ruutu, Chris Neil & Co. That bunch. How about the Rangers? The Flyers, with Daniel Carcillo and 'Stompin' Chris Pronger on their roster: The second coming of the Broad Street Bullies? The Canadiens and their 'pint-sized' lineup? Brian Burke and the Leafs? Buffalo Sabres?
And what about the West? Everyone needs someone to protect their skill guys in the playoffs. Detroit? Chicago? Phoenix? They all need some beef to protect all that cheese in the lineups.
It's less than 30 days from the mandated Olympic break, when the NHL grinds to a screeching halt for 16 days while the best players compete for their home countries. Dressing rooms are closed Feb. 15-23, and re-open Feb. 24. The trade deadline is March 3rd at 3 PM, Eastern Time. So, in closing, may I put the question out for discussion:
Are the Minnesota Wild buyers? Or are they sellers? Hmmm...
Petr Sykora: Gone.
Robbie Earl: Doin' the Limbo.
Brent Burns: No more bells a-ringin'.
Pierre-Marc Bouchard: 'The Bells of St. Mary's', still playing in his noggin.
and, needed for Chuck Fletcher: Tums, Maalox, and Rolaids. (Nobody can take just one.)
Such is the current state of the Minnesota Wild, whose up-and-down season takes more roller coasters than Cedar Point Amusement Parks can offer up. Lose 2, win 2, lose 4, win 4, lose 3, and the ride just keeps on rolling. The question is asked: are the Wild going to be buyers at the trade deadline? Or are they sellers, with eight (count 'em: 8) potential unrestricted free agents (assuming someone either takes Sykora on waivers, or he is outright released)?
And, what other moves do the Wild have in store? I just got done watching a Washington Capitals team, who could REALLY use a big body as a 'rent-an-enforcer' for the upcoming playoffs, especially against another team I saw tonight, the Ottawa Senators. Yeah, those guys. Jarkko Ruutu, Chris Neil & Co. That bunch. How about the Rangers? The Flyers, with Daniel Carcillo and 'Stompin' Chris Pronger on their roster: The second coming of the Broad Street Bullies? The Canadiens and their 'pint-sized' lineup? Brian Burke and the Leafs? Buffalo Sabres?
And what about the West? Everyone needs someone to protect their skill guys in the playoffs. Detroit? Chicago? Phoenix? They all need some beef to protect all that cheese in the lineups.
It's less than 30 days from the mandated Olympic break, when the NHL grinds to a screeching halt for 16 days while the best players compete for their home countries. Dressing rooms are closed Feb. 15-23, and re-open Feb. 24. The trade deadline is March 3rd at 3 PM, Eastern Time. So, in closing, may I put the question out for discussion:
Are the Minnesota Wild buyers? Or are they sellers? Hmmm...
Monday, January 18, 2010
Dallas strikes back as Stars beat Wild
No Brenden Morrow? No problem. No Jere Lehtinen? No problem. Marty Turco not starting in goal? Fuhgeddaboutit.
The Dallas Stars made up for their suburban cousins -- the Cowboys -- and actually beat a team from Minnesota Monday night, in this case the Minnesota Wild, by a score of 4-3 at American Airlines Center.
The game was yet another evening where the Wild failed to fully show up as the Stars sent waves of forwards at starting goaltender Niklas Backstrom, who was mercifully pulled after the fourth Dallas goal at the 13:37 mark of the second period. Josh Harding came in, and had to try and clean up the mess, made all that much difficult after he was sat on by Dallas' Steve Ott near the end of the second period.
The Wild's anemic offense was supposed to be helped by the addition of Petr Sykora on the wing, but he was relegated to third-line duty (with Andrew Ebbett and Cal Clutterbuck) most of the evening, not the kind of return either the veteran or his Twitter-feeding agent, Allan Walsh, were hoping for. Walsh had been conducting a Twitter campaign to get his client back in the Minnesota lineup, after Sykora was cleared to play following a concussion, suffered in November. Antti Miettinen scored twice for the Wild (one in the second period, once again in the third) to make it somewhat close, but the deceiving nature of the night was underscored after Mikko Koivu scored to make it close, as close was all they would get tonight.
Brad Richards had three assists to lead the Stars, who won their 11th straight game at home vs. the Wild, going back to 2003. The Wild are scheduled to play the Stars again in Dallas, on Feb. 2, again in a nationally-cablecast (might as well be cable only; ask a DirecTV subscriber who is a hockey fan) game on Versus. The loss is the fourth straight for the Wild against a Pacific Division club as well, and will knock them down to no better than 12th in the NHL's Western Conference.
The Wild will now take a full two days off (for the first time in nearly two weeks) until the NEXT GAME: vs. Detroit, Thursday, Jan. 21, 7:00 PM Central (8:00 PM Eastern) Time, Xcel Energy Center. (Wild TV: KSTC-45; Detroit TV: FSDetroit (in HD); XM Radio, Ch. 238)
-- WRT
The Dallas Stars made up for their suburban cousins -- the Cowboys -- and actually beat a team from Minnesota Monday night, in this case the Minnesota Wild, by a score of 4-3 at American Airlines Center.
The game was yet another evening where the Wild failed to fully show up as the Stars sent waves of forwards at starting goaltender Niklas Backstrom, who was mercifully pulled after the fourth Dallas goal at the 13:37 mark of the second period. Josh Harding came in, and had to try and clean up the mess, made all that much difficult after he was sat on by Dallas' Steve Ott near the end of the second period.
The Wild's anemic offense was supposed to be helped by the addition of Petr Sykora on the wing, but he was relegated to third-line duty (with Andrew Ebbett and Cal Clutterbuck) most of the evening, not the kind of return either the veteran or his Twitter-feeding agent, Allan Walsh, were hoping for. Walsh had been conducting a Twitter campaign to get his client back in the Minnesota lineup, after Sykora was cleared to play following a concussion, suffered in November. Antti Miettinen scored twice for the Wild (one in the second period, once again in the third) to make it somewhat close, but the deceiving nature of the night was underscored after Mikko Koivu scored to make it close, as close was all they would get tonight.
Brad Richards had three assists to lead the Stars, who won their 11th straight game at home vs. the Wild, going back to 2003. The Wild are scheduled to play the Stars again in Dallas, on Feb. 2, again in a nationally-cablecast (might as well be cable only; ask a DirecTV subscriber who is a hockey fan) game on Versus. The loss is the fourth straight for the Wild against a Pacific Division club as well, and will knock them down to no better than 12th in the NHL's Western Conference.
The Wild will now take a full two days off (for the first time in nearly two weeks) until the NEXT GAME: vs. Detroit, Thursday, Jan. 21, 7:00 PM Central (8:00 PM Eastern) Time, Xcel Energy Center. (Wild TV: KSTC-45; Detroit TV: FSDetroit (in HD); XM Radio, Ch. 238)
-- WRT
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