| Record | Pts | Div. Rank | G/G | GA/G | PP% | PK% | |
| Minnesota Wild | (13-7-3) | 29 | 1st NW | 2.27 (27) | 2.10 (4) | 14.3% (23) |
84.4% (13) |
| Edmonton Oilers |
(12-10-2) | 26 | 3rd NW | 2.67 (17) | 2.42 (11) | 20.8% (4) | 85.0% (9) |
| Minnesota Wild | |||
| Top 5 Scorers: | G | A | Pts |
| 1. #9 Mikko Koivu | 4 | 15 | 19 |
| 2. #15 Dany Heatley | 6 | 8 | 14 |
| 3. #7 Matt Cullen | 8 | 4 | 12 |
| 4. #10 Devin Setoguchi | 7 | 5 | 12 |
| 5. #96 Pierre-Marc Bouchard | 3 | 9 | 12 |
| Top 3 Penalty Minutes: | PIM | ||
| 1. #16 Brad Staubitz | 39 | ||
| 2. #22 Cal Clutterbuck | 38 | ||
| 3. #25 Nick Johnson | 21 | ||
| Goaltenders: | GAA | SV% | |
| 1. #32 Niklas Backstrom (8-5-2) | 2.09 | .932 | |
| 2. #37 Josh Harding (6-2-1) | 2.10 | .933 | |
| Edmonton Oilers |
|||
| Top 5 Scorers: | G | A | Pts |
| 1. #93 Ryan Nugent-Hopkins | 10 | 15 | 25 |
| 2. #94 Ryan Smyth | 12 | 12 | 24 |
| 3. #14 Jordan Eberle | 8 | 16 | 24 |
| 4. #4 Taylor Hall | 7 | 11 | 18 |
| 5. #10 Shawn Horcoff | 7 | 9 | 16 |
| Top 3 Penalty Minutes: | PIM | ||
| 1. #24 Theo Peckham | 48 | ||
| 2. #94 Ryan Smyth | 33 | ||
| 3. #25 Andy Sutton | 33 | ||
| Goaltenders: | GAA | SV% | |
| 1. #35 Nikolai Khabibulin (9-5-2) | 1.88 | .936 | |
| 2. #40 Devan Dubnyk (3-5-0) | 2.88 | .902 | |
As the old saying goes, revenge is a dish best served cold. Looking at the weather report for tomorrow in Edmonton, it is clear that winter is upon us on the eve of December. While the temps won’t be in the negative digits, it will be below freezing and there will be some light snow. Between the wintry weather and that the Wild are playing in Edmonton, the reception will be far from warm. In fact, the reception should be downright chilly, especially when one considers the fact that the Oilers usually fare poorly when facing the Wild. However, considering the poor play by Minnesota against Edmonton just this past Friday, I worry that the momentum has shifted to Oilers.
While the Wild stumbled on Black Friday, what is the most important thing to get out of this team, is that they have the ability to bounce back. In previous seasons, a 5-2 loss was enough to set the team back for quite a few games. Twice now this season, the Wild fell in a 5-2 loss, but came back and won their next game. Even better, after the first 5-2 loss to the Los Angeles Kings, Minnesota came back and won the next five games. After the Edmonton loss, Minnesota bounced back and got the all important next win against Tampa Bay. Whether or not the Wild can get four more wins to repeat their first comeback after a horrible loss is yet to be seen.
Perhaps what is most crucial about this game against Edmonton goes beyond just getting back that catastrophic loss. This trip to Edmonton can be considered a practice run for the upcoming West Coast road trip. Not only is Minnesota getting ready to head out on the road, they also have to face San Jose and Los Angeles again, teams that the Wild stumbled with earlier this month. Getting wins back against Edmonton, San Jose and Los Angeles would further bolster confidence levels for this team. And the fact that Wild head coach Mike Yeo is wanting to keep things simple for the team, should help the team play well and continue to build confidence rather than cockiness.
All I know is that I hope it is Minnesota dishing out the cold dish of revenge instead of having it served to us. With the taste of winning being sweet, I’d rather not deal with the bitter taste of defeat so soon.
Injury Report:
Minnesota: Guillaume Latendresse (concussion), Marek Zidlicky (concussion), and Justin Falk (chest)
Edmonton: Taylor Fedun (broken leg), Cam Barker (ankle), Taylor Hall (shoulder), Andy Sutton (groin), and Corey Potter (ankle)
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