Microsoft founder Bill Gates once said, “Success is a lousy teacher. It seduces smart people into thinking they can’t lose.” That will be Minnesota’s test tonight as the Dallas Stars come to town after the Wild had pulled off 2 come-from-behind victories in a row. Adversity can sometimes sharpen the mind to get people to do what needs to be done and that is a big reason they were able to break some pretty significant historical trends and pull off two 3rd period comebacks against the Bruins and Sharks respectively. The Wild should be confident going into tonight’s game, knowing that an early game stumble doesn’t always have to result in the team losing the game. So maybe Bill Gates is wrong, because the team now has some tangible proof that hope does exist and that the team knows it can persevere and if it works hard enough it can even come away with a victory.
So with the Wild’s last two games serving as the backdrop, the Dallas Stars make their way to the Xcel Energy Center as one of the most potent teams offensively in the NHL. They now have the talent to match their up-tempo style and try to overwhelm opponents with their firepower. However, they’ve also demonstrated that they’re vulnerable defensively and actually end up giving up (slightly more) than they score themselves. Minnesota has been decent (knock on wood) offensively this season at even strength, will fans be treated to some firewagon hockey and a score akin to what used to almost be routine back in the super scoring 1980’s? Or will we see two clubs playing more of defensive chess match as they wait for the other to make a mistake that they can capitalize on? This is the Wild’s first game against a Central Division foe since playing Colorado the first two games of the season and with both clubs vying for position which team will reign supreme?
1st Period Thoughts: Minnesota was hustling well to start the game, taking every opportunity to direct shots on goal. The Stars tried to counter attack with some speed of its own, as Tyler Seguin pressured Ryan Suter into a turnover but Minnesota was backchecking well forcing the talented Dallas center to settle for a shot from the wall that was blocked aside by Darcy Kuemper with ease. The Wild were looking to use transition to catch Dallas off-guard. Minnesota’s 4th line of Stephane Veilleux, Erik Haula and Justin Fontaine caused some problems for Dallas as he knocked down a clearing attempt down low and he set up Veilleux for a quick shot that was knocked down and covered up by Kari Lehtonen. Minnesota’s speed and hustle was creating turnovers and the top line would have a great chance as Zach Parise stole a puck near the Dallas blueline and he’d drop a pass back to Jason Pominville who wound up and he blasted a shot on goal that was gloved by Lehtonen. Dallas tried to answer back with its 2nd line as Jamie Benn motored around Ryan Suter for a backhand shot that was knocked down and covered by Kuemper as Suter sealed off Benn before he could get any kind of stick on a possible rebound. The Stars and Wild began to trade chances as Dallas nearly cashed in a 2-on-1 as Ales Hemsky and Alex Goligoski as Hemsky made a perfect pass and the former Grand Rapids star fired a shot off the inside of the right post and out. The Wild would try to answer back as Parise raced into the offensive zone where he’d drop it back to Pominville for a slap shot he’d fire wide of the goal. The 2nd line of Jason Zucker, Mikko Koivu and Charlie Coyle had a freat shift on the forecheck where Coyle won a battle along the boards and fed a pass for a Koivu one-timer that drew a rebound that was swept up by Zucker. Zucker patiently skated out in front of the goal before spinning and firing a snap shot that was fought off by Lehtonen. Nino Niederreiter would hook Brendan Dillon in the offensive zone giving Dallas the first power play of the game. The Wild’s penalty killers were aggressive at the start as Zucker decided to turn on the jets and race around Goligoski for a close in chance off the rush that was stopped by Lehtonen who then had to recover quickly as Koivu pounced on the reboubd. Yet just seconds later, Minnesota’s penalty killers would get into a little more trouble as Nate Prosser was given a pretty weak elbowing call as he got tied up with Seguin. The Wild bench was not happy with the call but it didn’t matter as Dallas went on a two-man advantage. On the two-man advantage the Wild stayed in a very tight triangle near Kuemper and the Stars tried in vain to get Minnesota’s penalty killers to loosen up and this lead to two big clears of the zone by Haula. The team would manage to kill off the nearly 1:20 long 5-on-3 power play and then with some strong play defensively that kept Dallas to the perimeter of the ice they’d escape unscathed. Minnesota would go back on the attack with its top line and they’d draw their first power play of the game as Dillon would haul down a breaking Pominville in the Dallas zone giving the Wild its first power play of the game. On the power play, the team was trying to move a little, but overall was pretty static as Stars were denying the slap shot from the middle of the ice. Minnesota would try to set up Pominville on the back door but his shot would miss wide and more or less help Dallas clear the zone ending the period. The Wild were out shooting the Stars 11-8, and while you had to like the pace of play Minnesota had but I think they need to get more people closer to the crease. I thought Marco Scandella had a strong period.
2nd Period Thoughts: The Wild started the period with a little over 30 seconds left in its power play they’d put out its 2nd line of Zucker, Coyle and Koivu and they would work the puck down low driving down the Stars’ penalty killer and opening up some space for Ryan Suter to step into a few one-timers from the point. Still the power play would come up empty (0-for-28), and Minnesota would try to sustain some offensive pressure at even strength. The Stars would have a great first chance as Antoine Roussel got a little space behind the Wild’s defense but he was denied by a sprawling save by Kuemper. Minnesota would regroup and begin to apply some serious pressure on the Stars in their own end as a bad pass by Dallas’ Jordie Benn was intercepted by Granlund who had plenty of space to himself before rifling a wrist shot by a well-screened Lehtonen, 1-0 Wild. The Wild continued to attack and bottle up Dallas in its own end as the 2nd line of Koivu, Zucker and Coyle swarmed over the Stars zone before Koivu set up Coyle for a point-blank range chance that Lehtonen stopped but it would turn into a flurry of activity near his crease. Unfortunately they were unable to bang home a goal. The Wild were really hustling well and winning most of the races to the loose pucks and Dallas was just trying to survive. Jason Zucker would pick up a puck in the neutral zone and then try to turn on the jets as Colton Scevior clearly was hooking him trying to slow him down and he’d move in where he tried to go forehand to backhand that Lehtonen stopped. As the Stars tried to counter attack the Wild’s Charlie Coyle was given a slashing penalty giving Dallas its 2nd power play of the game. Minnesota’s penalty killers were really scrambling as the Stars were moving the puck well but the movement was not resulting into many shots being taken. When they did, Kuemper was sharp and making some key saves to freeze the puck to allow Minnesota to change its penalty killers. The Wild got another big kill and they’d go on the attack and the top line would help add to Minnesota’s lead as Pominville sent a pass out to the point to Mathew Dumba who flung a wrist shot that beat Lehtonen who never seemed to see it. 2-0 Wild. Yet the good feelings would be short-lived as Dallas would answer back just 8 seconds later as Vernon Fiddler fired a shot off the rush that Kuemper misplayed the angle on and just like that it was 2-1. It was a soft goal that Kuemper should’ve had. The Dallas goal also killed the energy of the raucous crowd which had been pulled to a fever pitch with the solid play of the team to that point. Thomas Vanek would try to get involved with a strong play on the forecheck to knock Jyrki Jokipakka off the puck and then send a pass out front to Mikko Koivu for a wrist shot that was stopped by Lehtonen. After Lehtonen’s save, Antoine Roussel tried to goad Nate Prosser to a fight. The Wild would earn another power play as Scandella and Jamie Benn battled for the puck where he held up the Minnesota defenseman. After nearly a minute of struggling to enter the zone the Wild finally got set up and it would pay off as Parise set up Vanek in the slot for a quick shot that beat Lehtonen and Minnesota ended their streak of futility on the man advantage and Vanek’s first tally as a member of the Wild. 3-1 Wild. The Wild were a bit lethargic in the closing seconds of the period after the successful power play and they’d take a penalty as Haula rodeo’d Jason Spezza. The Wild had to feel pretty good about the way they played in that period minus their miscues after their two goals. The team controlled the pace of play and they peppered Lehtonen with shots, out shooting the Stars again 12-6. I’d like to see the team work in Scandella or Brodin more on the power play.
3rd Period Thoughts: The Stars would start the 3rd with nearly a full 2-minute power play. The Wild’s penalty kill did a superb job of keeping Dallas to the perimeter in the offensive zone and using good active sticks to disrupt passing lanes and Minnesota was able to get the early kill with relative ease. Minnesota would go back on the attack and the top line nearly cashed in as Parise made a perfect saucer pass over a sprawling Trevor Daley to Pominville for a tap in attempt that was stopped by Lehtonen. The Wild would earn a power play as Jamie Benn gave a wicked two-handed slash to the midsection of Jason Zucker. Zucker would head for the locker room. On the power play the Wild tried changing up their personnel by putting Dumba on the point and after some great puck movement they’d light the lamp on a low-lying shot by Suter that was redirected perfectly between his legs by Niederrieter and over the shoulder of Lehtonen to make it 4-1 Minnesota. The Wild would go back on the power play a few minutes later as Jamie Benn was called for interference. On the power play, the Wild seemed content to kill some time on the man advantage. The Stars kept hacking away at the Wild’s sticks and on 3 different occasions Minnesota players had their sticks chopped into pieces by Dallas to no call. The Wild would come up empty on the power play and they settle back into a more defensive posture which allowed them to create some turnovers near the Minnesota blueline and they’d frustrate Dallas’ attempts to enter the zone. Minnesota was playing attentive defense and looking for opportunities to counter attack. The Stars were trying to press for a goal late but the Wild were collapsing down near their goaltender quickly and Minnesota would salt away the rest of the game to earn a 4-1 victory as they were treated to a standing ovation by an appreciative sellout crowd.
Darcy Kuemper was a little better than his last start, making some big saves in the early going of the game to keep it close until the offense arrived. Kuemper had 19 saves in the victory. He certainly will want to work on his angles when taking shots off the rush. Defensively the Wild had a great night from Scandella, Suter and Brodin who moved the puck effectively out of the zone and allowing the team to go back on the attack. The Wild’s penalty kill was also rock solid as they stymied the Stars’ normally potent power play. Blocking 23 shots went a long way to frustrate Dallas this evening. Christian Folin looked a bit lost at times tonight.
Offensively, the Wild keeps up its torrid scoring pace and this time they got help from the power play. Wild defenseman were supporting the play all night, pinching in for loose pucks along the boards helping Minnesota sustain its offensive pressure. Its a big reason for their success as well as their tremendous possession numbers. The top two lines really played well tonight, and I felt that really put pressure on the Stars in regards to how they were going to match up defensively. 3 different players notched their first goal which continues the trend of a different hero each night and scoring by committee.
This is an important 4-point swing in the standings which vaults the team into 1st place in the division. The Wild were pretty solid down the stretch as they did not allow Dallas to claw its way back into the game. Wild Head Coach Mike Yeo gave credit to the penalty kill unit that delivered that long 5-on-3 penalty kill. The team played like a quality team where they asserted their dominance over a tired team that had played the night before. It took care of business where teams of the past may have tried to coast into this game and end up disappointed.
Wild Notes:
~ The Wild roster tonight was as follows: Mikael Granlund, Zach Parise, Jason Pominville, Mikko Koivu, Jason Zucker, Charlie Coyle, Kyle Brodziak, Nino Niederreiter, Thomas Vanek, Erik Haula, Justin Fontaine, Stephane Veilleux, Ryan Suter, Jonas Brodin, Marco Scandella, Nate Prosser, Mathew Dumba and Christian Folin. Niklas Backstrom backed up Darcy Kuemper. Jonathon Blum was the lone healthy scratch while Ryan Carter and Matt Cooke are out with injuries.
~ The 3 Stars of the Game were: 1st Star Thomas Vanek, 2nd Star Jason Zucker, 3rd Star Darcy Kuemper
~ Attendance was 19,088 at Xcel Energy Center.
Wild Prospect Report:
D – Tanner Faith (Kootenay, WHL) ~ The big stay-at-home defenseman is not a big point producer, but he did manage to contribute an assist in Kootenay’s 7-3 loss to Red Deer Friday night. He also dropped the gloves as well. Faith has 4 assists, 27 PIM’s and is a -5 in 14 games played this season.
C – Pavel Jenys (Sudbury, OHL) ~ The lanky Czech-born centerman is a bright spot on what has been a rough season for the Sudbury Wolves. In their latest 4-1 defeat at the hands of the Sarnia Sting, Jenys had an assist and 2 PIM’s in the loss. Jenys has 3 goals, 11 points and 11 PIM’s where he was a -4 in 14 games played this season.
D – Dylan Labbe (Shawinigan, QMJHL) ~ The two-way defenseman continues to provide solid minutes for the Cataractes as he chipped in an assist in their 5-3 loss to Quebec. Labbe has 3 goals, 9 points, 15 PIM’s and -1 through 15 games.
LW – Mario Lucia (Notre Dame, H-East) ~ The former Wayzata-star continues to light the lamp for the Fighting Irish as he scored once in Notre Dame’s 3-2 win over Vermont. Lucia has 8 goals, 10 points and 6 PIM’s in 8 games this season.
RW – Lou Nanne (RPI, ECAC) ~ The former Edina-star continues to be an offensive force for the Engineers after registering a goal and an assist in RPI’s 6-1 win over Union on Friday. Nanne leads RPI in scoring with 3 goals, 5 points and 2 PIM’s through 7 games this season.
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