Minnesota Wild (3-2-1) 7pts 2nd in the Central
3.17 Goals For Per Game (14th in the NHL)
3.17 Goals Against Per Game (19th in the NHL)
9.1% Power Play (28th in the NHL)
94.4% Penalty Kill (3rd in the NHL)
Top 5 Scorers:
1. #11 Zach Parise ~ 2G 3A = 5pts
2. #20 Ryan Suter ~ 1G 4A =5pts
3. #12 Eric Staal ~ 3G 1A = 4pts
4. #3 Charlie Coyle ~ 2G 2A = 4pts
5. #25 Jonas Brodin ~ 1G 3A = 4pts
Top 3 PIM’s:
1. #7 Chris Stewart ~ 19 PIM’s
2. #3 Charlie Coyle ~ 18 PIM’s
3. #11 Zach Parise ~ 8 PIM’s
Top Goaltenders:
1. #40 Devan Dubnyk (2-1-1) 2.52GAA .912SV%
2. #35 Darcy Kuemper (1-1-0) 4.00GAA .871SV%
Vs.
Boston Bruins (3-2-0) 6pts 5th in the Atlantic
3.00 Goals For Per Game (16th in the NHL)
2.60 Goals Against Per Game (8th in the NHL)
10.0% Power Play (25th in the NHL)
90.0% Penalty Kill (11th in the NHL)
Top 5 Scorers:
1. #63 Brad Marchand ~ 3G 6A = 9pts
2. #88 David Pastrnak ~ 4G 3A = 7pts
3. #42 David Backes ~ 2G 2A = 4pts
4. #28 Dominic Moore ~ 2G 0A = 2pts
5. #33 Zdeno Chara ~ 1G 1A = 2pts
Top 3 PIM’s:
1. #42 David Backes ~ 11 PIM’s
2. #33 Zdeno Chara ~ 9 PIM’s
3. #63 Brad Marchand ~ 6 PIM’s
Top Goaltenders:
1. #40 Tuukka Rask (3-0-0) 1.67GAA .947SV%
2. #35 Anton Khudobin (0-2-0) 4.10GAA .849SV%
When we were kids, there wasn’t much that really interfered with having fun. Okay, let me step back a bit on that. When I was a kid there wasn’t much that got in the way with having fun. I enjoyed school, so that didn’t get in the way. About the only thing I can think of that interfered was perhaps if company came over and a favorite show like Knight Rider or The Dukes of Hazzard was on television, so you couldn’t watch it. For you 20-somethings and younger out there, we didn’t have DVRs or Hulu to watch it later after company left. If you ever managed to figure out how to program your VCR, you might be able to watch it later, but that was about the only option. You didn’t have a job (beyond your daily/weekly chores) or those kinds of responsibilities to get in your way, and you simply just lived life. These were also the days where for the most part, parents weren’t helicopter parents, and you were free to go outside and play as much as you want, as long as you were home in time for dinner (or it was starting to get dark). You were encouraged to go outside and play…and you did and you enjoyed it. As an adult, adult responsibilities often get in the way of having fun. Your job, housework, appointments are always there. You simply cannot put them off for another day.
Right now, my job has me working until 8:30pm or later if I get caught on a long call. So in this early part of the season, I’m missing good portions of the games. Considering how things have gone the past two games, that might almost be a blessing. Especially looking back at Sunday’s game. I was able to catch part of the game during my last break of my shift, just as Zach Parise was awarded that goal by the War Room in Toronto. At that point in the game there was still a chance that the team could bounce back and make something of it. I was pretty busy during the remainder of my shift, so I couldn’t look at the score, so imagine my dismay when I saw the result at the end of the game. I (along with many other fans) get the feeling that the bench, especially certain veterans, are still trying to run the show. Trying to set up one (or two) players on a regular basis is not a recipe for success. Last I looked, hockey was a team sport. The focus should be that everyone tries to score (well within reason). There are occasions where taking a shot simply to take a shot is not the wisest decision. Yet it’s even more foolhardy to make risky passes to a player who is not in a position to even score.
So now that Parise got goal #300 out of the way, I’m sure we’ll see a new person to continually set up. Considering tonight’s opponent, will it be Boston-area kid Charlie Coyle they continually pass the puck to? This is a team that sentimentality shades decisions both on the ice and in the front office (you know, drafting the Minnesota kid when there are better options. Can you say AJ Thelen?). I’m sure Anthony LaPanta and Mike Greenlay will constantly remind us during the game that Coyle is from the Boston area. They’re almost as bad as Pierre McGuire when it comes saying the same things over and over again about where a player is from. At least in McGuire’s defense, he’s broadcasting on a national level, so he’s going to get people watching that aren’t fans of either team. In that case, the anecdotal drivel is his job. However in the case of LaPanta and Greenlay, they are pretty much only broadcasting to Minnesota fans. We know this info, and we don’t need to be told time again and again.
Hopefully tonight is going to be one of those night’s where I’m disappointed that I missed pretty much the majority of the game. But somehow, I don’t think that’s going to be the case. Fortunately (or unfortunately, depending on how this season goes) starting Saturday, I’m back to shifts that end at 4:30. I just hope the team gives me something worthy of celebrating the fact that I’m back to day shifts.
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