“When I’m enraged, or hittin’ the stage, Adrenaline rushing, through my veins, And I’d say we’re still kicking ass, ooh ah, kickstart my heart, hope it never starts, and to think we did all this to rock, ooh yea, kickstart my heart, give it a start, ooh yea baby,” is a small part of Mötley Crue‘s song Kickstart My Heart. I have to admit, this is one of my favorite songs to get pumped up to; its fast and intense just like the title implies. The Minnesota Wild really gave all of us in the State of Hockey a lesson in just how important intensity can be in a hockey game after their 5-1 domination of the Vancouver Canucks on Thursday night. In one of the best 60-minute efforts in recent memory, the Wild out hustled, out skated and out muscled their arch rival to overcome an early 1-0 deficit to respond with 5 unanswered goals. 45 shots on goal were most shots registered by the Wild in franchise history and the 22 they peppered Vancouver’s Cory Schneider was their most impressive effort since 2009. I am not sure what was said, or what music Minnesota was listening to in the locker room but whatever they did they should replicate that as closely as possible for tonight’s tilt against St. Louis.
If Minnesota can play like that I think any Wild fan would like the chances for the home team tonight. St. Louis is also coming into this game with a victory over the Canucks in their recent memory after prevailing 3-2 last night. St. Louis has a good young core of forwards and defenseman and Davis Payne has the Blues employing a physical, hard-working style of hockey that has caused Minnesota problems in the past. The Wild though are also playing much more physical, and perhaps they are ready to match that intensity the Blues normally bring. Can the Wild keep their momentum going or will the Blues add a sour note to what has been a great week for the State of Hockey?
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1st Period Thoughts: Minnesota had great energy to start the game; and it was the energy line of Kyle Brodziak, Cal Clutterbuck and Nick Johnson that had an excellent shift with good forechecking and taking every opportunity to put shots on goal. Jaroslav Halak found himself busy right away as shots were coming from in close range. The Wild’s rather expensive (salary-wise) 3rd pairing defensively of Nick Schultz and Marek Zidlicky would help relieve pressure as Schultz couldn’t hold the offensive zone. It would take a few minutes for the Wild to re-establish some offensive pressure as the 2nd line of Matt Cullen, Devin Setoguchi and Pierre-Marc Bouchard just failed to click off the rush as a backhand pass by Cullen rolled along the ice to a streaking Setoguchi who slapped a shot up into the netting. Josh Harding would come up huge on a Alexander Steen shot from the slot and managed to pounce on the loose puck for a whistle. The energy level was good; both clubs skating pretty well and as predicted it was pretty physical as both clubs were finishing their checks. The Blues’ big bodied enforcer Ryan Reaves took a big run towards Marco Scandella sending the young defenseman crashing to the ice. Carlo Colaiacovo would hook a forechecking Cal Clutterbuck to give Minnesota its first power play of the game. Minnesota’s best scoring chance on the man advantage came early as Marek Zidlicky stepped into a slap shot that seemed to be on the money but at the last second was tipped wide by a stick. The rest of the Wild’s power play was thwarted by an inability to get into the Blues’ zone. The top line of Mikko Koivu, Dany Heatley and Guillaume Latendresse would create some havoc as some quality play along the wall by Latendresse led to a few more shots on goal from the big French Canadian as well as Heatley. I was very pleased with the effort of Minnesota’s 4th line of Darroll Powe, Colton Gillies and Brad Staubitz who were playing up-tempo and being precisely what you want from your 4th line that being fast and physical. There was not a ton of shots being created by the Wild thus far, but they were working hard and seemed to be more than holding their own in the races for the puck and along the boards. Both clubs registered just 5 shots on goal.
2nd Period Thoughts: The Blues went on the attack right away to start the 2nd period, as Minnesota had its veteran pair of Schultz and Zidlicky and Harding got a little work early. The Wild’s best scoring chance early came from the top line as Latendresse jumped on a puck off the faceoff where he got around a sliding Taylor Chorney for a close-range chance that was stonewalled by Halak. Minnesota’s 4th line forward of Darroll Powe made a nice play to take the puck to the crease where he nearly kicked the puck to himself for another chance before Halak covered it up with his glove. Minnesota would create a scoring chance off the rush as Dany Heatley found Justin Falk stepping up to join the play and the 6’5″ blueliner wound up and blasted a slap shot well wide of the mark. A few moments later, the energy line nearly got on the board as Kyle Brodziak found a little space near the crease and he lifted a shot that was steered aside by Halak. The Blues would try to go on the attack and a big shot from the point by Colaiacovo would be stopped by Harding but create a rebound chance for Ryan Reaves who pushed a shot wide of Minnesota goal. A hooking call on former Avalanche draft pick Kevin Shattenkirk would give Minnesota its 2nd power play of the game. After an initial scoring chance created by a weak backhand shot on goal that stirred up a rebound for Heatley to pounce on that was pushed aside by Halak the power play would be negated as Zidlicky hauled down Vladimir Sobotka. Who knew this would be a blessing in disguise as Minnesota would counter attack after a failed Blues’ rush and it was Elk River’s Nate Prosser blocked St. Louis shot (painfully so) which ricocheted back up Koivu who threaded a pass up to Dany Heatley that went on the attack and he skated in and fired a heavy wrist shot that Halak just got a piece of but not enough to prevent it from crossing the goal line to give the Wild a 1-0 lead. The Blues tried to go on the attack and Justin Falk would try to clear the zone and as he did so he put a puck into the stands that struck a woman in the crowd that forced her to receive medical attention. St. Louis’ power play was surprisingly effective, moving the puck well as they attempted to set up their point men while big bodied forwards tried to screen Harding. Harding was razor sharp, finding ways to see the puck and steer shots away and Minnesota also did a decent job of blocking shots and the result was a big penalty kill. The power play would open up the game a bit as both clubs were trading scoring chances. Cal Clutterbuck used his speed to get to a loose puck in the St. Louis zone where he got off a quick sharp angle shot that was denied by Halak who was hugging the right post. Perhaps out of frustration and perhaps out of a personal vendetta there was a fight between St. Louis’ Scott Nichol and Minnesota’s Darroll Powe. Nichol was being bear hugged by Powe as the smaller Blues forward tried firing a few right hands that were not landing and after about 20 seconds of some ineffective punches the officials moved in and both were escorted to the penalty box with 5 minutes for fighting apiece. The crowd approved of the fight but I think Nichol had the advantage since Powe wasn’t throwing any punches at all. Minnesota would strike late in the period as Heatley disrupted a pass in the neutral zone, and the puck was picked up by Guillaume Latendresse who moved in all alone on a break away before roofing a backhander over Halak to give the Wild a 2-0 lead. The Blues were clearly frustrated so they started to just storm the crease as they tried to work for a cheap goal late in the period; and these attempts naturally caused tempers to flare and a few wrestling matches would ensue. After a small collection of players from both teams (Jason Arnott, Roman Polak, and Jamie Langenbrunner for the Blues and Brodziak, Johnson and Zidlicky for the Wild) would head to the locker rooms early, Minnesota had one last quality scoring chance in the period as Matt Cullen worked a 2-on-1 only to have his wrist shot snagged out of the air by Halak. The chirping between players continued in the closing seconds and I have a feeling the 3rd period could be a little ugly.
3rd Period Thoughts: As I predicted, the ugliness would start early as Guillaume Latendresse would be confronted by Spring Lake Park’s David Backes and both would end up being sent to the penalty box which was now quite full with 6 players in the Blues’ sin bin and 5 for the Wild. Backes would be tagged with a double-minor giving Minnesota an early power play. On the man advantage the Wild had some great passing turned into a quick shot as Devin Setoguchi had to get the puck set before writing a shot on goal that was stopped by Halak. A few moments later it was Pierre-Marc Bouchard hammering a slap shot that trickled underneath the arm of Halak but the puck just curled wide of the goal mouth. Minnesota would come up short on the power play but it was a good start; and the top line would follow up the man advantage with a great shift where they were able to create a few more close in opportunities that forced Halak to come up with some big saves. Minnesota clearly had more jump in its skates because the Blues were just gliding around the ice and the Wild were taking advantage of St. Louis’ lethargy as Cullen stepped around a defender to set up Setoguchi for a one timer that caught the left post and was covered up by Halak. The Blues tried to rally back with its big line of Backes, T.J. Oshie and Chris Stewart and they swarmed near the Wild crease just flinging every shot they could on goal and Harding was scrambling a bit in his crease but Minnesota would keep St. Louis off the scoreboard. Minnesota was taking every opportunity to dump the puck deep and continue to wear on the Blues’ weary legs. Harding still had to be sharp as he made a fine save off a deflection by Jason Arnott. The 2nd line’s speed caused the Blues some problems as Cullen, Bouchard and Setoguchi made a number of nice plays in traffic, but unfortunately for all of their hustle it didn’t yield any shots on goal. Minnesota would relax a bit late, and the Blues tried to pour it on to attempt to make this a one-goal game by just passing the puck into the crease and hoping to get lucky with a bounce or deflection. The Wild were being way too passive in the closing minutes; typified by a near breakaway for Devin Setoguchi who could’ve just stepped into a big shot but instead tried to be cute and pass to Bouchard who had the puck in his skates and the results was a missed opportunity. As karma would demand, the poor decision to be cute would haunt the Wild as the Blues would capitalize late as Cloquet, Minnesota-native Jamie Langenbrunner would jam a shot by Harding to cut the Minnesota lead in half 2-1. With just about 1:20 left to go, the Blues would pull Halak for an extra attacker as they pressed for the equalizer. It was a scrambling last 40 or so seconds and Minnesota would prevail 2-1.
Josh Harding was again rock solid between the pipes for Minnesota, making 30 saves in the victory. As the effort began to relax in the 3rd, Harding came up with some excellent saves with quite a bit of traffic near his crease. Defensively, the youngsters continue to shine. I thought Marco Scandella, Justin Falk, Jared Spurgeon and Nate Prosser were Minnesota’s best defenseman. The Blues forwards were not allowed to run amok in the Wild zone, and a big part of that was the ability of this young group to win races to the puck and staying calm in puck battles along the wall. Schultz and Zidlicky did improve down the stretch, but the Blues were quick to go on the attack when they were on the ice which is interesting since logic would suggest that’s what they’d try to do against the youngsters.
Offensively the Wild were following their mantra of funneling shots on goal throughout most of the 1st two periods; but in the 3rd the team tried to be too fancy and the result was the Blues started to crawl back into the game. Minnesota should learn that lesson. Harding deserved another shutout tonight, and the Wild’s forwards need to realize that they help defensively by putting shots on goal. Matt Cullen continues to fly around the ice, Dany Heatley and Guillaume Latendresse are beginning to heat up while Devin Setoguchi has been a bit cold lately. The Wild’s power play also needs to realize that its at its best when the puck movement is quick and efficient and they are regularly releasing shots on goal to at the very least building momentum for their team. Anything less is counter productive. 26 shots on goal isn’t bad, but they should’ve had more as they passed up on many opportunities to fire the puck in the 3rd period.
It was another solid effort where Minnesota’s hustle really made the difference. The reason the Blues were trying to play rough and tumble hockey was because they couldn’t keep up with the Wild; their skating and their pace was taking St. Louis out of the game mentally, emotionally and physically. The Blues are one of those teams that Minnesota will be battling against to make the playoffs so its another great test that the Wild have passed early this season. It was not a perfect effort; not nearly as good as Thursday’s effort against Vancouver but good enough to win the game. Those are the kinds of wins good teams get and is a very good sign of things to come for the Wild.
Wild Notes:
~ The Wild roster tonight was as follows: Mikko Koivu, Dany Heatley, Devin Setoguchi, Guillaume Latendresse, Pierre-Marc Bouchard, Matt Cullen, Colton Gillies, Darroll Powe, Brad Staubitz, Kyle Brodziak, Cal Clutterbuck, Nick Johnson, Nick Schultz, Marek Zidlicky, Justin Falk, Nate Prosser, Jared Spurgeon and Marco Scandella. Niklas Backstrom backed up Josh Harding. Clayton Stoner was the Wild’s lone healthy scratch.
~ The 3 Stars of the Game as selected by the fans were: 1st Star Josh Harding, 2nd Star Guillaume Latendresse, 3rd Star Nate Prosser
~ Attendance for tonight’s game was 16,917 at Xcel Energy Center.
Wild Prospect Report:
~ LW – Brett Bulmer (Kelowna, WHL) – The 19-year old forward was no doubt disappointed when Minnesota decided to send him back down after a 9-game stint with the big club. Yet, perhaps the stint lit a fire underneath Bulmer who rejoined the Rockets in dramatic fashion, posting 2 goals and 2 assists in Kelowna’s 6-5 shootout loss to the Portland Winterhawks Friday evening. The Rockets have been struggling this season and I have little doubt Kelowna Head Coach Ryan Huska was very happy to have #19 back in his lineup where he has already given the Prince George, British Columbia-native an “A” for his sweater.
~ C – Zack Phillips (Saint John, QMJHL) – As the Saint John Sea Dogs dominate, so does Zack Phillips. Phillips had a goal and an assist in the Sea Dogs Friday night victory over the Baie-Comeau Drakkar. Phillips spoke about some of the naysayers who have knocked him for his skating deficiencies and how he has used that as fuel to train harder and try to improve this part of his game here. UPDATE: Phillips had 2 assists and was a +2 in the Sea Dogs 3-2 win over Baie-Comeau this afternoon.
~ D – Nick Seeler (Muskegon, USHL) – The Eden Prairie-native is starting to find his stride in the USHL as he tries to refine his game before he joins the University of Nebraska-Omaha. The skilled blueliner had an assist and was a -1 in the Lumberjacks’ 4-1 win over the Youngstown Phantoms Friday night.
Houston Aeros Report:
Record: (8-1-0-3) 19pts 1st West Division
Top 5 Scorers:
1. #14 Jon DiSalvatore ~ 4G 8A = 12pts
2. #22 Jeff Taffe ~ 4G 8A = 12pts
3. #17 Casey Wellman ~ 8G 3A = 11pts
4. #26 David McIntyre ~ 6G 2A = 8pts
5. #37 Justin Fontaine ~ 4G 4A = 8pts
Top 3 PIM’s:
1. #25 Warren Peters ~ 34 PIM’s
2. #26 David McIntyre ~ 17 PIM’s
3. #4 Drew Bagnall ~ 13 PIM’s
Top Goaltenders:
1. #31 Matthew Hackett (6-0-2) 2.24GAA .925%SP
2. #34 Dennis Endras (2-1-1) 1.89GAA .928%SP
Recent Score: Houston 4, Hamilton 2
The Aeros just keep finding ways to win, as they rally back from a 1-0 deficit to prevail 4-2 in Hamilton. Houston has managed to register at least a point in their last 8 games, and that is a major reason the Aeros have the best record in the American Hockey League. Head Coach John Torchetti has the Aeros executing the same suffocating system that worked so well last year when Mike Yeo was Houston’s bench boss. The Aeros come at you in waves and the team’s excellent scoring depth makes them a nightmare to match up against. I have a feeling the Wild brass told Casey Wellman to just focus on scoring and the California-born forward hasn’t disappointed leading the Aeros with 8 goals. Defensively, Houston has gotten solid performances out of Tyler Cuma, Chay Genoway, and Kris Fredheim who leads the team with +10. Between the pipes, Houston has had an extremely gifted tandem in Matthew Hackett who is off to a great start. The same can be said for first-year AHL’er Dennis Endras who has looked remarkably comfortable in the crease for Houston. The Aeros host the Toronto Marlies on Sunday.
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