Minnesota Wild (27-26-6) 60pts 5th in the Central
2.76 Goals For Per Game (26th in the NHL)
2.95 Goals Against Per Game (14th in the NHL)
20.8% Power Play (15th in the NHL)
81.1% Penalty Kill (13th in the NHL)
Top 5 Scorers:
1. #11 Zach Parise ~ 23G 26A = 49pts
2. #64 Mikael Granlund ~ 14G 34A = 48pts
3. #20 Ryan Suter ~ 6G 34A = 40pts
4. #12 Eric Staal ~ 17G 20A = 37pts
5. #46 Jared Spurgeon ~ 11G 25A = 36pts
Top 3 PIM’s:
1. #36 Nick Seeler ~ 47 PIM’s
2. #17 Marcus Foligno ~ 42 PIM’s
3. #29 Greg Pateryn ~ 35 PIM’s
Top Goaltenders:
1. #40 Devan Dubnyk (21-20-5) 2.67GAA .909%SP 1SO
2. #32 Alex Stalock (6-6-1) 3.08GAA .890%SP
Vs.
Anaheim Ducks (23-27-9) 55pts 6th in the Pacific
2.20 Goals For Per Game (31st in the NHL)
3.14 Goals Against Per Game (21st in the NHL)
15.2% Power Play (29th in the NHL)
80.3% Penalty Kill (16th in the NHL)
Top 5 Scorers:
1. #15 Ryan Getzlaf ~ 11G 27A = 38pts
2. #14 Adam Henrique ~ 12G 19A = 31pts
3. #67 Rickard Rakell ~ 9G 17A = 26pts
4. #26 Brandon Montour ~ 5G 20A = 25pts
5. #33 Jacob Silfverberg ~ 15G 8A = 23pts
Top 3 PIM’s:
1. #42 Josh Manson ~ 48 PIM’s
2. #26 Brandon Montour ~ 40 PIM’s
3. #15 Ryan Getzlaf ~ 15 PIM’s
Top Goaltenders:
1. #40 Kevin Boyle (1-1-0) 1.51GAA .955%SP 1SO
2. #30 Ryan Miller (5-2-1) 2.64GAA .922%SP
Lines:
Anaheim Ducks
Rakell~Getzlaff~Perry
Sprong~Henrique~Terry
Shore~Grant~Silfverberg
Jones~Kesler~Rowney
Lindholm~Manson
Fowler~Del Zotto
Megna~Montour
Boyle
Miller
Minnesota Wild
Zucker~Staal~Coyle
Parise~Granlund~Kunin
Greenway~Eriksson Ek~Foligno
O’Reilly~Fehr~Hunt
Suter~Spurgeon
Brodin~Pateryn
Seeler~Bitetto
Dubnyk
Stalock
Yes, it’s that inevitable point in this season, where all I want to do is build a blanket fort. It’s time to hide and even forget this season even happened. It’s become a chore to even watch the games let alone write about them. Neither Derek nor I really want to spend the two and a half hours to watch the games, nor the countless hours a week we put into prep. However, since we started doing this years ago, we decided that we accepted the good with the bad no matter how bad or frustrating things would get. We are officially at our breaking point. Yet strangely enough we keep going. Perhaps we’re gluttons for punishment. Perhaps we’ve finally cracked. Perhaps we simply don’t know any better or different. Truth be told though, we’re not alone in this feeling. I think there are many fans that are also at their own personal breaking point as well. If you’re at that point, just be glad you can turn off the television and walk away.
And just as many of you were ready to enter your own personal blanket fort, never to be seen again, you may have quick hopped online. If you are a Minnesota hockey fan of a certain age bracket, imagine your surprise when you start seeing and hearing news that none other than former Minnesota North Stars and Dallas Stars player Mike Modano has been seen around the team. Now, this wasn’t like when Adam Oates was working with certain Wild players on the power play. Oates was invited by those individual players, not by the team itself. Now in the case of Modano, he was spotted in the General Managers box during Sunday’s game. As if that wasn’t a bit of a punch to the gut on some levels, he was also seen at Monday’s practice, sitting with Wild owner, Craig Leipold. That of course it setting off the rumor mill of epic proportions. Some are wondering if this is the writing on the wall for head coach Bruce Boudreau. I certainly hope not, as this team has already had two rookie head coaches in Todd Richards and Mike Yeo. Now, both of them at least had coaching experience in the American Hockey League. Modano does not, so let’s please not go down the ugly road of rookie coach. Others are beginning to wonder if he’s going to be brought in as assistant general manager, a position that is currently held by Tom Kurvers. I personally am just hoping that it was an innocent visit.
There has been an interesting take on Twitter in particular when it comes to how this team has been performing as of late. I personally really like this tweet:
When the @RussoHockey story came out last week that Leipold gave Fenton the green light on selling pieces even if it means missing the playoffs, @mnwild players had 2 approaches:
1) Feel sorry for themselves
2) Prove the Owner wrongSadly, they’ve chosen option #1.
— Brandon Mileski (@BMileskiKFAN) February 18, 2019
https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js
I don’t know about you, but that’s a very damning truth. And Mileski is correct. The players have pretty much picked option one. For the amount of money they are making, even the lowest paid guy, they need to get their butts out of their behinds and get to work. I don’t care that you’re without Matt Dumba and Mikko Koivu. You are still a professional athlete. You still have the ability to play hockey at a high level. You are still in incredible physical shape and shouldn’t look like death warmed over on the ice. But hey, just maybe getting Pontus Aberg back into the lineup will inspire this team. Yes, that was sarcasm.
So here we go, another game another less than spectacular opponent. I pulled up the standings just to see who was sitting behind Minnesota outside of the playoff picture. As of now, Vancouver is just one point behind Minnesota. Here’s the kicker though. The Canucks must be on their bye week as they’re not on the schedule in the next few days. So there go my hopes for a team to immediately bump Minnesota from the standings. You’re probably reading this wonder why would I as a Wild fan want my team out of the playoff picture. Well here’s the reason. I’m tired of the Wild’s mouth pieces continuing to talk about how this team is still in the playoff picture. This is not a playoff team, and hasn’t been one for the longest time. So perhaps since Minnesota keeps losing and Vancouver is off this week, we’ll have to wait on Colorado to change the playoff picture. The Avalanche are currently three points behind the Wild. Unfortunately, their last ten games are much like Minnesota’s so depending on them overtaking the Wild is pretty slim as well. And looking at Vancouver’s last ten isn’t much better. So perhaps the Canucks will come back from their bye week well rested.
We know what needs to happen. I would like to think that the Wild players know what needs to happen. But here’s the disconnect. They know what needs to happen, but whether they can put that need into actual practice, that is the question. And I think that’s the doubt that everyone is having. With how bad things are right now, all I can hope for is that General Manager Paul Fenton actually does what he’s been given permission to do. It is time to bust this team up and move as many pieces as absolutely possible. The deal to move Nino Niederreiter wasn’t enough of an impetus for change. It is time to officially shake this team up. I don’t think it really ever has been. It’s time for a new identity and pack this season up already.
Well, I’m off to my blanket fort.
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