Minnesota Wild (2-1-2) 6pts 4th in the Central
2.80 Goals For (16th)
2.20 Goals Against (6th)
30.4% Power Play (5th)
66.7% Penalty Kill (28th)
Top 5 Scorers:
1. #24 Matt Cooke ~ 3G 2A = 5pts
2. #11 Zach Parise ~ 4G 0A = 4pts
3. #25 Jonas Brodin ~ 2G 2A = 4pts
4. #46 Jared Spurgeon ~ 1G 2A = 3pts
5. #22 Nino Niederreiter ~ 1G 2A = 3pts
Top 3 PIM's:
1. #28 Zenon Konopka ~ 17 PIM's
2. #2 Keith Ballard ~ 7 PIM's
3. #4 Clayton Stoner ~ 6 PIM's
Top Goaltenders:
1. #32 Niklas Backstrom (0-0-2) 3.40GAA .849%SP
2. #37 Josh Harding (2-1-0) 1.07GAA .944%SP
Vs.
Buffalo Sabres (0-5-1) 1pt 8th in the Atlantic
1.00 Goals For (30th)
2.67 Goals Against (15th)
9.5% Power Play (27th)
90% Penalty Kill (5th)
Top 5 Scorers:
1. #19 Cody Hodgson ~ 1G 4A = 5pts
2. #26 Thomas Vanek ~ 2G 2A = 4pts
3. #4 Jamie McBain ~ 1G 1A = 2pts
4. #21 Drew Stafford ~ 1G 0A = 1pt
5. #28 Zemgus Girgensons ~ 1G 0A = 1pt
Top 3 PIM's:
1. #57 Tyler Myers ~ 12 PIM's
2. #6 Mike Weber ~ 12 PIM's
3. #9 Steve Ott ~ 9 PIM's
Top Goaltenders:
1. #30 Ryan Miller (0-4-0) 2.29GAA .941%SP
2. #1 Jhonas Enroth (0-1-1) 2.95GAA .912%SP
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Homecoming. Its something almost every community in the United States is familiar with. Its that day at your local high school where they dedicate the week towards school spirit and connect with those students going through High School with those who have long since graduated. Its a reason to get together, and in most places its centered around a parade and a football game. Colleges participate in this sort of societal ritual but its not quite the same. For those alumni coming home its a way to connect with a time in their lives that will in some ways seem so much the same and yet different at the same time. I wonder what will be going through the mind of Jason Pominville as it will be his first 'homecoming' of sorts to the club that once called him its captain. Pominville was drafted by the Sabres, and by all accounts he fell in love with the city and its fans. Minneapolis Star Tribune's Wild beat writer Michael Russo wrote about those mixed feelings in this article here.
Jason Pominville is starting to gel with linemates Mikael Granlund and Dany Heatley and while the line has yet to register a goal since being put together it is still been able to register shots on goal and its only a matter of time before it starts to light the lamp. Wild Head Coach Mike Yeo said that Heatley especially was in need of a 'goal' and felt that people should expect that to happen soon. Luckily for the Wild, the 3rd line, most notably Matt Cooke has brought some scoring to give the team some much-needed secondary punch. The Wild is still waiting for players like Kyle Brodziak, Mikko Koivu, and the aforementioned Heatley and Granlund to make their way onto the goal-scoring sheet. Needless to say there is still a lot of potential offense yet to be heard from.
The Power Play continues to be the engine that has been the pace setter for the Wild's offense. Minnesota's new puck-possession style has yielded the desired effect of giving the Wild a distinct advantage in shots in all of its games. The Wild are averaging just a shade over 32 shots per game while giving up just 21 per game. Assuming those are quality shots it should give your team a distinct advantage each night. The Wild will never be confused for the 1980's Edmonton Oilers in terms of how they light the lamp but the real good trend is they're doing the right things and when you continue to do so you're generally rewarded. Minnesota needs to start creating more quality chances 5-on-5 and they did so on Saturday and hopefully that continues through this 4-game Eastern Conference road trip.
On the injury front, the Wild are going to judge whether or not Niklas Backstrom is healthy enough to play after injuring his knee against Nashville last week Tuesday. Josh Harding has been tremendous, but with his multiple sclerosis the team wants to be careful how much work they place on his shoulders. Darcy Kuemper who played for the Iowa Wild yesterday, giving up four goals on 32 shots in the loss. Kuemper is expected to join the team in Buffalo just in case Backstrom isn't able to go.
If you read The Hockey News' Yearbook, the operative word for the Sabres this season is 'suffering' and they certainly have done that so far as the team has gotten out to a 6-game winless streak. This makes for a classic trap game for the Wild who are feeling a little confident after consecutive victories. Just as it always has been games against the Eastern Conference are a great opportunity to gain ground in the standings without the fear of losing ground. After tonight's game, the Wild travels to Toronto, and then onto Tampa Bay and Miami (Florida). If the Wild's ego needed any sort of boost, is the Western Conference's tremendous level of success against the Eastern Conference of 27-6-3 so far this season. Still, Minnesota better be ready to play because the Sabres are going to be playing with a level of desperation to their game.
I really think this game will be more about how the Wild play than what Buffalo does. The Wild should be able to control the pace of play, and they have the offense to overwhelm Buffalo's defense. Yet if they get off to a slow start and the Sabres can get a goal early and get some confidence then its anyone's game. Hopefully the Wild play to their potential and start off this road trip the right way.
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