Minnesota Wild (3-2-1) 7pts 2nd Northwest Division
3.33 Goals For per game (3rd in the NHL)
2.33 Goals Against per game (8th in the NHL)
44.4% Power Play (1st in the NHL)
83.8% Penalty Kill (15th in the NHL)
Top 5 Scorers:
1. #7 Matt Cullen ~ 3G 6A = 9pts
2. #9 Mikko Koivu ~ 2G 5A = 7pts
3. #24 Martin Havlat ~ 0G 6A = 6pts
4. #8 Brent Burns ~ 3G 2A = 5pts
5. #48 Guillaume Latendresse ~ 3G 2A = 5pts
Top 3 PIM’s:
1. #16 Brad Staubitz ~ 14 PIM’s
2. #5 Greg Zanon ~ 10 PIM’s
3. #23 Eric Nystrom ~ 9 PIM’s
Top Goaltenders:
1. #32 Niklas Backstrom (3-2-1) 2.32GAA .923%SP
2. #60 Jose Theodore
Vs.
Vancouver Canucks (2-3-2) 6pts 4th Northwest
2.14 Goals For per game (26th in the NHL)
2.57 Goals Against per game (12th in the NHL)
25.9% Power Play (4th in the NHL)
80.6% Penalty Kill (21st in the NHL)
Top 5 Scorers:
1. #22 Daniel Sedin ~ 7G 3A = 10pts
2. #33 Henrik Sedin ~ 0G 9A = 9pts
3. #26 Mikael Sameulsson ~ 1G 5A = 6pts
4. #5 Christian Ehrhoff ~ 2G 2A = 4pts
5. #23 Alexander Edler ~ 0G 4A = 4pts
Top 3 PIM’s:
1. #13 Raffi Torres ~ 21 PIM’s
2. #37 Rick Rypien ~ 19 PIM’s
3. #17 Ryan Kesler ~ 16 PIM’s
Top Goaltenders:
1. #1 Roberto Luongo (1-3-2) 2.92GAA .903%SP
2. #35 Cory Schneider (1-0-0) 0.75GAA .974%SP
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The story almost writes itself as the Minnesota Wild return to Vancouver after what could be called an ‘eventful’ first game between the two teams this Tuesday. One player who will not be in this matchup is Canucks forward Rick Rypien who is still suspended indefinitely and will be meeting with NHL commissioner Gary Bettman and NHL rules czar Colin Campbell at the league’s New York offices today to learn of his ultimate fate (i.e. suspension length). To say its ‘viral’ amongst hockey circles is far too light an acknowledgement. It has literally been the central news item of note amongst hockey-focused radio shows like NHL Network’s Power Play with Scott Laughlin, NHL Live as former players, coaches, execs all chime in with their 2 cents on Rick Rypien’s behavior towards Wild fan John Engquist. Enquist even was interviewed by Scott Laughlin and NHL Hall of Famer Phil Esposito yesterday. It has been reported that he has sought legal councel although some wonder whether it will lead to a lawsuit against Rypien, and when Laughlin asked Engquist he said that he is leaving that decision to his legal representation. When asked for clarification he repeated his earlier answer. Either way, it doesn’t look like this is going to go away all that quietly. Engquist has portrayed himself as an innocent fan who was the unfortunate victim of a player’s anger. Esposito, not known as a person to mince words, told Enquist he did not agree with Engquist’s account of the events, but qualified it with a “well it didn’t happen to me, it happened to you and I’ll leave it at that.” One of the more interesting things is to see how coverage of this event has been in the U.S. and in Canada. In the U.S. it was seen as a minor incident in a sport that many casual sports fans feel is a niche market and not given much aire time. However in Canada, the YouTube clips are like the Zapruder film was for the JFK assassination, where all of the angles and the slightest details are analyzed as people attempt to determine pricsely what Engquist said, or whether he leaned over the rail to berate Rypien or whether Rypien was indeed trying to pull him over that rail and into the tunnel. Either way, just as the Zapruder film has done, there is not likely to be any universal agreement other than the basic truth that an NHL player got into it with an NHL fan. In fact, I am sick of hearing about it but its impossible to ignore as the two teams meet again just days later.
In fact in someways it certainly appears as though its like what you may expect to see in a controversial trial where one group of people strongly believe a harsh punishment is justified, while the other believe little should be done. You can see this rather clearly on the wild.com message boards where a handful of Canuck fans have chimed in on the subject, and while most denounce Rypien’s contact many also blame Engquist and / or the Wild for the incident’s occurance. Most Wild fans see it as fan undeservedly pounced upon by a player who apparently was more than a little angry after being given a game misconduct after pulling away from the grip of an NHL official. Although it must be noted that much of the initial empathy for Engquist has dissipated and with many believing he is posturing for a lawsuit many feel he is crossing a line and making something much bigger than it needs to be. I happen to agree with that sentiment and while Enquist may feel entitled to some sort of compensation for having his jersey ruffled a bit by angry player, it doesn’t mean you sue simply because you can. Afterall, you’re a hockey fan just like I am. I probably would’ve been shocked as he certainly appeared to be when Rypien intially grabbed him but I would not be claiming damages after I recieved a series of high five’s from fellow fans as they escorted me to seats along the glass (which go for about $250 apiece). Enquist should count his lucky stars the arena watched the tape and simply relocated him so he could continue to the watch the game in the arena instead just sending him out altogether which certainly was within their (the Wild’s) rights to do for any reason they deem necessary. But enough about that, there is a game to be played afterall.
The Minnesota Wild are off to a good start on this Western road trip; after winning their second contest of the season against the youthful Edmonton Oilers 4-2. It was not a perfect game with the Wild being placed on the penalty kill 10 times; certainly something they would be smart to avoid against the Canucks whose powerplay is one of the better teams on the man-advantage operating at over 25% efficiency. Minnesota found some secondary scoring from role player Kyle Brodziak who chipped in some crucial goals early to give the Wild a lead that his former team simply could not overcome. Lacking firepower is something you’d expect from a team leaning so heavily on rookies. Tonight it won’t be that way. The Canucks have a terrific tandem in Henrik Sedin and his brother and current leading scorer Daniel Sedin who has already lit the lamp 7 times this season, including two markers against the Wild in their game on Tuesday. Minnesota again will have to focus on keeping the Sedin’s in check, but the good news is that so far (knock on wood) the Vancouver Canucks have suffered from a lack of secondary scoring themselves this season. Making matters worse is that they’ve had inconsistent play from goaltender and former captain Roberto Luongo. He was atrocious against the Wild surrendering 6 goals on just 18 shots, but he played fairly well against the Chicago Blackhawks until the shootout as they fell 2-1 to the defending champion. I have a sneaking suspicion we may see Cory Schneider between the pipes for the Canucks as it will be a battle of backups as the Wild have already announced Jose Theodore will make his debut with the State of Hockey. The former Vezina Trophy winner will really give Wild fans an idea if the team got him for a steal at a fairly reasonable $1.1 million, 1-year contract.
Offensively the Wild have managed to score by committee and seem to be creating some chemistry within their lines. The chemistry of the top line of Mikko Koivu, Andrew Brunette and Antti Miettinen is well established but the rest of the team is starting to gel and the last two games the effort has been there to match this cohesion. The Wild must continue to improve and will be facing a very hungry opponent who is not happy about sitting in 4th place in the Northwest. Minnesota must be disciplined and hopefully they can take advantage of the fact that due to all the penalties the night before that several players (Brunette, Latendresse for example) are somewhat rested. Vancouver fans may be loathe to admit it, but its clear there is a mutual hatred for one another and history has provided a plethora of incidents (Matt Cooke’s spearing of Matt Johnson, Matt Johnson’s vicious hit to Markus Naslund, and the aforementioned event just to name a few) to fuel the fire between the organizations. Enjoy!
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