Let the blaming begin: Why did the Wild fail?

It's been a tough couple of days for the Minnesota Wild and its fans alike, and it's not going to get any better as the summer wears on. After a season filled with so much expectation and promises, it was over just like that after a 2-1 defeat at the hands of the Colorado Avalanche on Saturday. So many questions remain, and the one that everybody is asking is: Who's the blame for the Wild's failure? I'm going to spread the blame out through the team, from the players to the front office, but I will admit that some are more to blame than others.

1) Jacques Lemaire: Jacques has more Stanley Cup rings in his possession than fingers on his hands, but that hasn't translated into championships here in Minnesota. It's hard to fault a guy that has shown he knows how to win, but he deserves some of the blame. The Wild make one trade at the deadline, Chris Simon, and that was originally to build up our toughness come playoff time. It turns out we didn't need the toughness against the Avalanche, therefore Lemaire decided to sit Simon. Big mistake in my opinion. Watching Simon play these last couple months of the season led me to breathe a sigh of relief; we finally had a guy that went to the front of the net and stayed there in the offensive zone (Todd Fedoruk does that too, but I'm not focusing on him right now). Simon has played in a total of three Stanley Cups, and he has a Cup to his credit, yet Lemaire decides to sit him in the Stanley Cup Playoffs. I agree he may not score as often as he used to, or that we don't really need the tough side of him, but he does what no one else on the Wild does, and that is be physical while also doing your job. How are most goals scored in the NHL? By a player setting a screen and having another play take advantage of that. Chris Simon was the one who set up the screen whenever he got a chance, but Lemaire decides to sit him. And we wonder why the Wild struggled to score this series. Lemaire switched up lines so much and sat guys that could have helped the team that he definitely has to be blamed a little bit.

2) Marian Gaborik: Just to appease most Wild fans, I would have to say that Gabby should be blamed for some of the failure, but I'm in the minority when I say he doesn't deserve too much blame. Gabby is a pure scorer and has proven that in the regular season as well as the Wilds previous playoff appearances. It sucks that Gabby didn't show up in the series against the Avalanche, but is it totally his fault? Gabby played with 4 different centers this year and scored 42 goals, yet he did the same thing in the playoffs, and scored zip. I think that with a consistent center that always played along side him, Gabby could have scored even more in the regular season and definitely gotten going in the playoffs. Either way, a team should never have to count on one player scoring to win in the playoffs.

3) Doug Risebrough: Risebrough has usually had a knack for making good decisions, but this year when it counted, he screwed up big time. Just a month into the season, the Wild lost one of their most reliable centers in Wes Walz. That opened up a huge hole at the center position that was never closed, even as the trade deadline approached. There were rumblings that the Wild might go after a center like Bobby Holik out of Atlanta, and that would have been a fantastic idea. The Wild were a good team most of the season, but acquiring a quality center to play with Gabby and win faceoffs in the offensive zone would have made them a great team. So when we need a center, what does Risebrough go out and get? A forward in Chris Simon (this is not a knock on Simon, I like him and want him to stay with the team). As soon as the trade deadline passed, I immediately questioned Risebroughs commitment to winning. We could have used another solid defensemen as well, but we got nothing. All this while our first-round opponent is out getting Peter Forsberg, Adam Foote, and Ruslan Salei. This made the difference in the series and I believe that most of the blame lies right here on Risebrough.

4) The Team: Usually I don't like to blame anybody other than the players, but this time I think it is split. I always believe most of the blame belongs to the team, since they're the ones playing the game, but again, I split the blame. The Wild actually played a pretty good series, but the better team won. Part of the reason the Wild lost was the defense: not because they were bad, but because they were tired. Once we lost Kurtis Foster to a broken leg, our defense was tremendously weaker. Then just a week before the playoffs start, Nick Schultz, arguably our most consistent defensemen, goes down with an appendectomy that sidelined him until game 6. That left guys like Brent Burns, Kim Johnsson, and Martin Skoula to play upwards of 30 minutes a game with back-to-back games thrown into the series. All that together is a recipe for disaster.

The Wild will undergo a major makeover this offseason, so who knows if they will make it back into the postseason next year. Hopefully with Craig Leipold now taking over as owner of the team, the Wild will be spending some money to bring in some major talent to compliment the talent they already have. Re-signing Gabby would be a good place to start, and then they should go after either Marian Hossa or Brian Campbell. A high-profile player that has proven himself will be the key to bring in, and if it doesn't get done, it will be a disappointment. Now that the Wild season is over, it is time to shift gears to the Twins and the Vikings.

Mikko Koivu quietly becomes one of the most reliable centers in the NHL

Mikko Koivu, one of the few mainstays in the Minnesota Wild lineup, has proven now more than ever why he is one of the best centers in the National Hockey League. Coming off the best year of his short NHL career, Koivu is the epitome of what a center needs to be, even if he doesn't get the recognition he deserves. After a regular season in which he tallied 11 goals and 31 assists, he has already collected two goals and one assist in the Wild's current playoff series against the Colorado Avalanche. In recent years in the NHL, it has become increasingly important to have a good core of centers due to the rule changes that came about after the lockout, especially on a team like the Wild, where coach Jacques Lemaire preaches two-way hockey from his centers. Although currently a little shaky at that position, the Wild are in great shape for the future with Mikko Koivu leading the way.

Koivu has never been one to garner attention; heck, he didn't even start out as a scoring center in the early stages of his career. When the Wild drafted him with their first pick in the 2001 draft, they drafted based on what they saw in the future, not the stats he had accumulated so far. From 1999 to 2004, Koivu collected just 32 goals while playing in Finland, and 11 of those goals came in the 2000-2001 campaign. It wasn't until the Wild finally signed Koivu and assigned him to the Houston Aeros that he blossomed into a real scoring threat. In his first season with the Aeros in 2004-2005, Koivu scored 20 goals to go along with 28 assists, the first time he showed that he had any real scoring threat. That next season, Koivu made it out of camp and on to the Minnesota Wild roster. That year, Koivu played in 64 games and had 6 goals and 15 assists to go along with a +/- rating of -9. Although he showed good signs of progress, the Wild were counting on him to be their number one center, and with numbers like those, that wasn't what he was showing. When the 2006-2007 season rolled around, Koivu looked like he was ready to shed his scoring demons and get on the right track. Koivu had 20 goals and 34 assists that year to go along with a very important +6 rating. Koivu also had his first career NHL playoff goal that season, and proved that he can be a scoring threat as well as a shut-down center. Although Koivu had made good strides during the 06-07 season, it was his most recent season, 07-08, that had the rest of the NHL buzzing.

This season, Koivu totaled 11 goals and 31 assists with a career high +13 rating, but those numbers came in only 57 games. On November 17th in a game against the Vancouver Canucks, Koivu tried to skate past Vancouver's Mattias Ohlund in the neutral zone. Koivu brought his arm up in a bid to get around Ohlund, but Ohlund thought it was a blatant elbow to the head. Ohlund quickly reacted and took a brutal two-handed swing at Koivu's leg, breaking a bone in it and sidelining him for 24 games. With Koivu primed for a breakout season, this injury was a huge blow to the Wild. Luckily, the Wild recovered and Koivu came back and continued his scoring to propel the Wild to their first Northwest Division title. Although it is easy to look at stats and put all your eggs in that basket in terms of importance, it is the intangibles that Koivu brings to the table that make him among the great centers in the game right now.

Jacques Lemaire is all about defense. Although most teams and coaches around the league believe it slows the game down, Lemaire's style led the Wild to a division championship. His system is one that focuses on shutting down opposing offenses before worrying about scoring your own goals. The defense is taught to clamp back and cut off the forecheck, while the forwards are taught to find space and take a shot if they have one (unfortunately the Wild could still use some help in that department). This leaves the center to take on both roles, yet all within the top of both ends faceoff circles. While the centers in Lemaire's system are told to focus more on defense, when they get into the offensive zone, they are supposed to stay behind the top of the faceoff circles in order to be able to transition more fluently. That is exactly what makes Koivu so good at what he does. Although largely unnoticed, Koivu has become one of the best two-way centers in the game, creating a myriad of scoring chances as well as playing a brilliant neutral zone game and having a great backcheck. Koivu is usually playing on the Wild's checking line beside forwards Stephane Veilleux and Branko Radivojevic, and there is no question as to what his job is: shut down the other teams top line. The beauty of Koivu's game is that he can do that all while being able to rush up the ice and score on his own, or get the puck in the opposing zone so that the next line can create chances. It can't be an easy thing to do as a center, having your main job be defense. But Koivu knows his role and has shown vast improvement the last couple of seasons, a big relief to a team that is a little weak at center. This season, with the way Koivu has been playing, Lemaire has been inserting him into both the checking line and the top line, sometimes playing him alongside Marian Gaborik. When playing alongside a playmaker like Gaborik or playing on the checking line that doesn't get a whole lot of recognition, it's unfortunate that Koivu doesn't get the attention he deserves.

Most people that know of Mikko Koivu most likely know of him because of his brother: Saku Koivu, the captain of the Montreal Canadiens. But there is no doubt that soon enough Mikko will gain the spotlight from his older brother. Although largely unnoticed by the rest of the league, you would think that such an important player would be more known throughout Minnesota, a state that lives and breathes hockey, but unfortunately that isn't the case. Even in his home arena, Koivu is rarely recognized as one of the three stars of the game unless he had a couple goals or a couple of assists, but what Koivu brings to this team is so much more to that. Watching Koivu all year, I have seen two main points that stand out in his game: He doesn't make mistakes (ever); and he has some of the best moves you will ever see. Most goaltenders in the Western Conference can attest to the fact that Koivu has one of the sickest penalty shots around. His moves during games may not be the ones that end up as top plays like Alex Ovechkin's or Sidney Crosby's, but his are just as effective as anybody elses. Koivu has never been one to seek out attention. He seems content to be playing on a team that has more recognizable players such as Gaborik, Brian Rolston, and Pavol Demitra. But as his game continues to get better and better, there is no doubt that one day he will garner the attention that he deserves in the form of All-Star selections and Hart trophys.

All stats courtesy of TSN

Wild continue to fight through injuries

The Wild has officially been bitten by the injury bug at the absolute worst possible time of the season. With Nick Schultz (appendectomy) and Kurtis Foster (broken femur) already out for the rest of the series with Colorado (Schultz is slated to appear sometime during the second round, assuming the Wild get that far), the Wild are lucky to be tied at one game a piece heading into the games in Denver.

The injury list seems to be growing day by day, although the most recent injuries are not preventing players from sitting...yet. Martin Skoula has been playing on a bum leg for the last couple games, making our defensive corps even weaker, and Branko Radivojevic is said to be nursing a leg injury of his own. Radio's injury, although kept under wraps pretty good, seems to be the most serious. He is actually in jeopardy of sitting for game 3. Wild coach Jacques Lemaire seems adamant that Radio will be sitting on Monday, but General Manager Doug Risebrough is in disagreement stating he is "day-to-day." It wouldn't be beneficial to lose a forward like Radivojevic, but at least the Wild could adjust accordingly. If Radio were to sit, it would open up a spot for Chris Simon, who I think should have been in the first two games anyway (3 Stanley Cup appearances and 1 ring? That experience should be out there). On defense, it's a whole different story. Already being two defensemen down, it is imperative that our defense stays intact from now on.

Since Schultz went down with his appendectomy, many beat writers around hockey have been writing the Wild off (including Minnesota's own Michael Russo) and saying that the series is now Colorado's to win. Obviously being a huge fan of the Wild, I disagree. My prediction of course has something to do with how much I root for Minnesota, but I also approach the series realistically. Losing Schultz is huge, no doubt, but the Wild have enough adversity to get through it. Since he went down, guys like Brent Burns, Kim Johnsson, and Keith Carney have all stepped up and filled their roles just like they should. The Wild have plenty of experience on the blueline, and although guys will have to log more than 30 minutes of ice time, defensemen Petteri Nummelin put it best: "It's the playoffs, you never get tired." If the Wild can get off to a good start in Denver, there chances of advancing are greatly improved, and if they advance and get Schultz back healthy, there's no limit as to just how far they can go.

Wild drop a tough one, down 1-0 in series

With a crowd in excess of 19,000 screaming fans, the Wild put forth a brilliant effort, but in the end it was the experience and poise of the Colorado veterans that sunk them. Joe Sakic scored just over eight and a half minutes into overtime to send the Wild faithful home without the expected victory.

The Wild played outstanding hockey for the first two periods, and it is definitely something to build on. They were getting their shots, connecting on hits, and making great passes, but it took a long time before bounces started coming their way. The Wild dominated the first period where they out-shot the Avalanche 11-2, most of those shots coming on the powerplay. Although they didn't connect on either PP opportunity, the Wild had a ton of momentum to build on going into the second. The first period was played with intense physicality, and it was definitely fun to watch. The Wild came out swinging, and it was apparent right from the get-go. Todd Fedoruk, Derek Boogaard, and even Martin Skoula were throwing guys into the boards from the opening whistle. Going into the second frame, the fans had every reason to believe the Wild would be the first to strike, but it didn't go that way.

Although it was fairly obvious from their first period powerplays that the Wild weren't having much luck, the second period brought about even more unfortunate bounces. It didn't take long for the Avalanche to capitalize on a Wild mistake after the drop of the puck. Just 1:29 into the second, Sakic carried the puck through the neutral zone and sped up the left side. Following close behind him was Minnesota-native Kurt Sauer, who took a beautiful drop-pass from Sakic and shot top-shelf to give the Avalanche a 1-0 lead in the game. The Wild continued to dominate the game for the next ten minutes, but again nothing was falling for them. After coming close multiple times, the Wild got another unlucky break when Ryan Smyth took a pass from Jeff Finger and fired one past Niklas Backstrom to put Colorado up 2-0 with the second starting to wind down. The Wild continued to pepper Colorado goalie Jose Theodore, but Theodore was holding strong, turning away all 9 shots the Wild had in the second. Down by 2 going into the locker room after two strong periods, the Wild may have been down, but they were far from out.

Again the Wild came out swinging in the third, and it didn't take long for it to finally pay off. The Wild took advantage of a good bounce when Mikko Koivu threw the puck in front of the Colorado net and the puck bounced off of an Avalanche defender and past Theodore to cut the Colorado lead to 2-1 just over 3 minutes into the period. With the momentum back in hand, the Wild went at it again. Knowing they could get one past Theodore seemed like it gave them confidence, and that confidence paid off again just 3 minutes later when Todd Fedoruk camped in front of the net and took a pass from Petteri Nummelin and then backhanded it past Theodore to bring the Wild into a tie with the Avalanche. After the game-tying goal, the Wild seemed to go into their "shutdown" mode, where they try more to prevent a goal then to score one. It ended up working for most of the period, but towards the end it almost cost them. With the Avalanche deep in the Wild zone and pressuring Backstrom, a big pile gathered in front of the net and Wild defensemen Keith Carney was caught covering the puck inside his own crease, therefore giving the Avs a penalty shot. Taking the shot for Colorado was Ryan Smyth, who was 3 for 4 in his career in penalty shots, and in net for the Wild was Backstrom. Smyth carried the puck in and made a move to Backstroms right. Backstrom followed him and threw his leg down to block Smyth's "shot," which wasn't a shot at all, just a little bit of a push of the puck which Backs threw aside to keep the game in a 2-2 tie. The remaining 3 minutes or so of the game remained deadlocked, but the Avs definitely had more chances. Going into overtime, it was obvious the game could go either way.

Once OT started, both teams seemed to have new life. Everybody had their legs back, and the game was moving fast once again. Each team had their chances, but neither cashed in, at least not right away. At the 11:11 mark of the 4th frame, Sakic parked himself in front the Wild net and waited for a shot. That shot came from Ruslan Salei, who fired one that bounced off of Martin Skoula's skate and right to Sakic's backhand. Sakic fired the puck home and sent the Avalanche back to their hotel with a 3-2 victory and a 1-0 series lead to work with.

This was a very entertaining game to watch, but unfortunately it didn't turn out the way I was hoping. I damn near had an aneurysm multiple times during the game, including Fedoruk's game-tying goal and Smyth's penalty-shot miss. Although I would like the Wild to win games by a comfortable margin the rest of the series, if the games keep going like this it will definitely be one of the more interesting series of this years playoffs.

NHL Playoff predictions

Sorry for the long hiatus, I've been busy with work recently and am just now getting time to write anything.

With the NHL playoffs starting tonight, I figured I'd post my predictions on who I think will advance and who I think will be bounced. I'm not going to get into too much explanation with the series, just a couple of reasons why I think each team will move on.

Western Conference:

(1) Detroit Red Wings vs. (8) Nashville Predators-This really isn't a true playoff series in my opinion. I do enjoy watching the Preds every so often when the Wild face them, but against the Wings, they have zero chance of moving on. Detroit is powerful on all sides of the puck and they have the experience needed to zip past Nashville and move on without a hitch.

Prediction: Detroit in 5 games

(2) San Jose Sharks vs. (7) Calgary Flames-This is a very interesting matchup to start the playoffs. The Sharks are an absolute beast of a team and after watching them manhandle the Wild all season long, I like the way they're built. But Calgary is not a team that will succumb under the Sharks enormous firepower. With a guy like Jarome Iginla scoring goals and Miikka Kiprusoff preventing goals, this will be more of a challenge for San Jose than I believe they think it will be.

Prediction: San Jose in 7 games

(3) Minnesota Wild vs. (6) Colorado Avalanche-The Wild are coming into the postseason on a hot streak, and I don't see it ending anytime soon. Even with the loss of our most consistent defensemen in Nick Schultz, the team will be able to rally together and run through Colorado without much of a problem.

Prediction: Minnesota in 6 games

(4) Anaheim Ducks vs. (5) Dallas Stars-This is another series that will be entertaining to watch. The Ducks are a very physical team and are the defending Stanley Cup champions, but the Stars have plenty of talent on their team too. If guys like Matt Niskanen and Marty Turco can come up big, I can see the Stars easily handling the Ducks. Although I would love to see the Ducks advance so that the Wild could get a chance to play them, I just don't see them doing much.

Prediction: Dallas in 6 games


Eastern Conference:

(1) Montreal Canadiens vs. (8) Boston Bruins-This is truly a 1 vs. 8 matchup. The Canadiens have dominated the Bruins all season and are the best team in the East right now. The Bruins are just not experienced enough to get past a tough Montreal team that consists of guys like Alexei Kovalev and Saku Koivu.

Prediction: Montreal in 4 games

(2) Pittsburgh Penguins vs. (7) Ottawa Senators-Just like the Bruins/Canadiens matchup, this won't be much of a series at all. The Senators started the season 15-2, one of the best starts in NHL history, and barely held on to a playoff berth. The Penguins on the other hand have many young guys looking to make a huge impression on the league by guiding this team to the Cup. With the right mix of young guns and experienced veterans, the Penguins are one of the teams to beat in the East.

Prediction: Pittsburgh in 5 games

(3) Washington Capitals vs. (6) Philadelphia Flyers-This is a really hard series to predict. The Capitals captured the division crown on the last day of the season pitting them against a tough, gritty Flyers team. Although I love what Alex Ovechkin has done this season, I do think that the physical play of Philly can shut him down enough to do what they need to. I'm not a fan of the Flyers by any means, but I have to go with my gut.

Prediction: Philadelphia in 7 games

(4) New Jersey Devils vs. (5) New York Rangers-Both of these teams are solid, but I like the scoring punch of the Devils more. Zach Parise will come up huge in the playoffs, and Martin Brodeur will shine like always as the Devils take this series fairly easily.

Prediction: New Jersey in 6 games

Western Conference Semifinals:

(1) Detroit Red Wings vs. (5) Dallas Stars

Prediction: Detroit in 6 games

(2) San Jose Sharks vs. (3) Minnesota Wild

Prediction: Minnesota in 7 games


Eastern Conference Semifinals:

(1) Montreal Canadiens vs. (6) Philadelphia Flyers

Prediction: Montreal in 6 games

(2) Pittsburgh Penguins vs. (4) New Jersey Devils

Prediction: Pittsburgh in 6 games


Western Conference Finals:

(1) Detroit Red Wings vs. (3) Minnesota Wild

Prediction: Minnesota Wild in 6 games


Eastern Conference Finals:

(1) Montreal Canadiens vs. (2) Pittsburgh Penguins

Prediction: Montreal Candiens in 6 games


STANLEY CUP FINALS:

(3) Minnesota Wild vs. (1) Montreal Canadiens

Prediction: Minnesota Wild in 6 games



I'm sure it was quite predictable that I would choose the Wild to win it all, but I can't go against my hometown team. I honestly believe they have the stuff this year to make a huge run, as long as they can band together and beat the teams like San Jose and Detroit.

Wild kick it into gear, send Canucks to fourth straight loss

With just 4 games remaining in the regular season, the Minnesota Wild are getting hot at the right time. Mikko Koivu had a goal and an assist and Niklas Backstrom had 28 saves en route to a 4-0 win over the Vancouver Canucks. The game featured everything a Wild fan could want: a dominating win by a team that had been struggling to score, a brawl in the middle of the third period, and a wicked performance by Backstrom that propelled the Wild to victory.

The Wild jumped out to a 1-0 lead quickly in the first period when Pierre-Marc Bouchard took a beautiful pass from Benoit Pouliot and blasted a slapshot past Roberto Luongo from the top of the circle at the 11:37 mark of the period. That was just the beginning of a scoring barrage that lasted for a period and a half. It took only 6 more minutes for the Wild to score again, and this time it was Mikko Koivu who cashed in for the Wild. With Koivu in possession of the puck deep in the Canucks zone, he threw it across the left circle to Brian Rolston, who passed it back to Koivu who in one fluid motion deked Willie Mitchell out of his breezers and lifted the puck past Luongo at the 17:21 mark of the first. That was it for scoring in the first period as the Wild wound down one of their best periods of play in a long time.

The second period started off with the Wild dominating again, but it took until the 8:28 mark for them to sneak one past Luongo again. Pavol Demitra carried the puck behind Luongo, looking to dump it off to Marian Gaborik. Gabby came streaking behind the net and took the puck to the sidewall where he passed it across the middle to a streaking Brent Burns who shot it home to give the Wild a 3-0 lead. Exactly 5 minutes later, the Wild put the dagger in the hearts of the Canucks. After a broken play in the Wild zone, Gaborik gathered the puck and used his speed to skate down the rink on the right side with just one man in front of him. Gabby looked to his left and saw Todd Fedoruk streaking with him, giving the Wild a 2 on 1. As Gabby crossed the blueline, he slowed down to allow Fedoruk to catch up, and threw the puck across the ice to Fridge as he held on long enough for Luongo to make the first move. Fridge hit the top shelf to give the Wild the 4-0 lead, and all the insurance they would need. After that fourth goal, Curtis Sanford came in for the depleted Luongo, who had given up all 4 goals in less than two full periods.

After 4 goals for the home team, you'd think the fans would be happy at that, but what happened at the 9:43 mark of the third really made the fans excited. Up to this point, there hadn't been many penalties in the game, not like the usual Vancouver/Minnesota matchups. But about halfway through the third, that all changed. After an attempted spear by Alex Burrows, Bouchard reacted with a retaliatory slash that could be heard around the arena. As soon as Bouchard hit Burrows, all hell broke loose. All 10 players on the ice reacted in a split second, and soon, 10 pairs of gloves and 10 sticks were on the ice. Players were being held back by one another, and Burns soon got tangled with Nathan McIver. After Burns pounded McIver, Bouchard squared off with Burrows. Neither got any real punches off, and they were split before anything else got started. It took a good 10 minutes for the penalties to be handed out, and this is how they went:

Alex Burrows: Fighting Major (5 minutes) and a 10 minute match penalty for intent to injure

Nathan McIver: Fighting Major (5 minutes)

Brent Burns: Fighting Major (5 minutes), instigator (2 minutes), unsportsmanlike conduct (2 minutes), and a 10 minute game misconduct

Pierre-Marc Bouchard: Fighting Major (5 minutes) and a slashing major (5 minutes)

With all that settled, the Canucks ended up with a 4 minute powerplay, but that was soon shortened to just over a minute after Henrik Sedin took a penalty for interference just after the melee ended. The Wild continued their dominance for the rest of the game, and ended up with the much-needed big win they had been looking for for a month. If the Wild continue to play the way they did tonight for the rest of the season, there is no doubt they will make it deep into the playoffs.

Wild run out of gas, fall to the Red Wings

The curse of the Red Wings hits the Wild again.

After flying out of the gate Tuesday versus Detroit, the Wild looked like they were on their way to a rare victory over the conference leading Red Wings, but it seems fate was working against them yet again. After jumping out to a 2-1 lead, the Wild gave up the tying goal with less than 2 minutes to play, and eventually fell in overtime. After getting blown out by the Red Wings in their two meetings earlier this season, the Wild finally stole a shootout victory over them back on January 10th, and they were hoping to shift some of that momentum to this game. The Wild played what turned out to be their best two periods of the season until ultimately running out of gas in the third. Niklas Backstrom played a strong game between the pipes, and Brent Burns handled the puck well at the blueline, but at the end of the night, it wasn't enough to take down the goliath that is Detroit.

The first period started out very promising as the Wild promptly took control of the game and fired shot after shot on Dominik Hasek, but Hasek held strong until his team caught the Wild offguard when Johan Franzen fired home a wristshot at the 9:58 mark of the first to put the Red Wings ahead 1-0. The Wild were playing strong, though, and it didn't take long for them to respond with a goal of their own. Brian Rolston took the puck behind Hasek and, without anybody challenging him, walked up in front of the net and danced around Hasek and banked a shot behind the goalie to tie the game. The Wild continued to play a strong period and ended up out-shooting the Red Wings 13-6.

After the break, the Wild remained the dominant team and once again was outplaying Detroit in every aspect of the game. The normal finesse game of the Red Wings was being broken up by good defensive plays and hard hits. The Wild finally pulled ahead when Pavol Demitra got behind the Detroit blue-liners and fired a slapshot from just outside the left faceoff circle 5:30 into the period. Things got a little testy in the second when at the 9:48 mark Aaron Voros got clocked into the Detroit bench and quickly retaliated with a punch that resulted in two roughing calls. The Wild promptly went to work with a brilliant penalty kill that gave them all the confidence they needed heading into the locker room after the second.

All season the Wild had been lights-out heading into the third with a lead, but when it's a one goal lead versus the best team in the NHL, nothing is a gurantee. The third started out completely different from the first two periods; the Wild were on the defense most of the period right from the get-go. After getting lucky on numerous occasions, the Wild finally let their lead slip with just 1:20 left in the game. Daniel Cleary crashed the Wild net and threw the puck at Backstrom, who blocked the puck easily but then made the mistake of pushing the puck into the corner. Cleary again took control of the puck and took a bad-angle shot that just slipped through the outstretched Backstrom. That quickly took the energy out of the Xcel as well as out of the Wild. The home team limped through the remaining minute and took the game into overtime where they were guranteed at least one point. It didn't take long for the Red Wings to take advantage of the depleted Wild, and Brent Lebda connected on a beautiful pass from Henrik Zetterberg just 1:37 into the fourth frame to give the extra point to Detroit.

This loss was especially hard to swallow considering how well the Wild played the first 40 minutes. This was easily the best I've seen the Wild play Detroit for many years, and I hope they can look at this game and take a little bit of confidence out of it. They played well, and this loss was nobody's fault in particular, the team just collectively ran out of gas. The Wild have a tough stretch coming up next, so let's hope they can continue to build on their success they've had the last handful of games. The Wild will be taking on the Dallas Stars and the New York Islanders at home and then going on the road for the St. Louis Blues, Edmonton Oilers, and Vancouver Canucks. Hopefully the Wild can take some positive out of this game against Detroit and continue on their road to the playoffs.

Wild win, move back into first

After a disappointing loss to the Flames just two nights ago, the Wild were looking for a game to show them they still belonged at the top of the Conference. In their last game before the All-Star break, the Wild outlasted the Colorado Avalanche 3-2 in a win that put them back into first place in the Northwest Division. Pavol Demitra scored his 10th goal of the season and Niklas Backstrom made 28 saves to pace the Wild against a depleted Avalanche lineup. Without stars Joe Sakic, Ryan Smyth, and Paul Statsny, Colorado kept the game close, but in the end it was the healthy team that took home the W.

Todd Fedoruk got the Wild on the board first as he scored on a nice tip-in from a pass right down the middle from Demitra just five and a half minutes into the contest. After escaping defenders in the neutral zone, Demitra skated down the left boards and shot a pass across the ice to Fedoruk, who was streaking down the middle waiting for the tip. Just 8 minutes later, the Wild doubled their lead when Marian Gaborik found Brian Rolston sneaking up the middle of Colorado's zone. Rolston held the puck for a second, and then blasted a patented Rolston slapper past Jose Theodore, who was just hoping to get a piece of the puck. The Wild thought that they would be able to close out the first with a two-goal lead, but former Wild forward Andrew Brunette connected on a wrist shot to get the Avalanche back within one with 28 seconds remaining in the period.

The second period opened quickly when Marek Svatos found Wojtek Wolski with a wide-open net to put Colorado back even with the Wild just two and a half minutes into the frame. Both teams had their chances after that goal, but Theodore and Backstrom held strong for their teams. The Wild finally cashed in at the 13:41 mark of the second when Demitra caught a pass from defensemen Kurtis Foster and scored the eventual game-winner on a wrist-shot from just inside the slot. The rest of the game featured shots back and forth, but nothing to show for it, leaving the Wild with the edge 3-2.

This was a huge win for the Wild, going into the All-Star break beating Vancouver and Colorado within 4 days is big at any point in the season, especially now. It is imperative the Wild figure out what they need to work on and fix it going into the home stretch of the season. Every game from here on out can decide whether the Wild end up with the 3rd seed in the playoffs or if they miss the post-season completely. Hopefully the Wild can use the momentum they picked up with this recent road trip and use it to their advantage. Most of the Wild now get a few days off to recuperate and be with their family. Gaborik will be traveling to Atlanta to partake in the All-Star Game festivities (he is slated to be part of the inaugural Breakaway Challenge). After the break, the Wild get right back to work taking on the Anaheim Ducks at home before traveling to Columbus and then coming right back home to take on the Red Wings, Stars, and Islanders.

My Three Stars for game #50 in Colorado:

1) Pavol Demitra

2) Wojtek Wolski

3) Todd Fedoruk

Craig Leipold takes over majority share of Wild

This is major news for the sporting world in the state of Minnesota. As a tried and true Wild fan since their inaugural season back in 2000, I hate to see Bob Naegele go, but from what I've read about Craig Leipold, it seems as though this decision is for the best. Leipold, the founder of the Nashville Predators and former owner of the team, takes over as the majority owner of one of the most successful hockey teams in the NHL. Leipold sold the Predators in November of 2007 citing rising operating costs and bad fan attendance (yet another argument as to why there should not be teams near or below the sun belt), and claims to have lost upwards of $70 million while owning the team. I can definitely see why this guy decided to get out of Tennessee and come up to the State of Hockey.

Leipold won has won the respect of virtually the entire hockey world while working to bring a salary cap and other restrictions on teams so that small-market teams can compete with the big boys. I'm assuming that Leipold, looking to make a splash in his first season with the Wild, will do his best to lock up future superstars that the Wild have (Pierre-Marc Bouchard and Nick Schultz), and trade guys that are on the down-swing of their careers (Brian Rolston and Pavol Demitra). The Wild are currently a good team, but in the wicked competitive Western Conference, they really need to figure out how to get more defense and one more superstar into this city to really be a team to be reckoned with (maybe Mike Comrie?). Just over halfway through the season, the Wild are sitting at a very uncomfortable 48 points, barely good enough for the 7th spot in the conference. With the second half of the season already upon us, it is imperative the Wild focus on defense to be able to stay afloat for the playoff race. I believe that Leipold will do his best to make the Wild a better team, and I think that he is a guy that is willing to take a chance on a big trade or a big signing to see how it may work out (Peter Forsberg in Nashville). Hopefully Leipold will do what he needs to do to make the Wild a perennial contender within two or three years.

Skoula sits, Wild win...Coincidence? I think not

After a disappointing loss at the hands of the San Jose Sharks a few nights ago, the Wild were looking for a way to bounce back in to the win column. They found that way in the form of quick scoring and solid defense against a good Dallas Stars team. After failing to keep the momentum against the Sharks, the Wild jumped out to an early 3-0 lead and never looked back, en route to a convincing 6-3 win versus the Stars.

Marian Gaborik had two goals, and Brent Burns added three assists to propel the Wild to a win over a Dallas team that demolished them two weeks ago with an 8-3 defeat. The Wild got into some trouble early when Brent Burns was called for interference just 3:44 into the game. The Wild were able to stifle the Dallas powerplay, which had been connecting on 20.5 percent of their chances this year, before Brian Rolston took a penalty at the 8 minute mark of the first, this one also for interference. Looking at the prospect of giving up the first goal of a game for the sixth time in a row, the Wild responded in a big way when Pavol Demitra flipped the puck out of the neutral zone to a streaking Gaborik who caught Marty Turco committing early. Gaborik backhanded the puck over a sprawled out Turco to put the Wild up 1-0 with only the second short-handed goal for the Wild this year. Less than two minutes after the Wild scored first, Demitra cashed in with a goal of his own when he wristed a shot past Turco and into the back of the net. It took the Wild just another two minutes to score yet again, this time it was Pierre-Marc Bouchard who joined the scoring frenzy to put the Wild up by 3 goals in the first period. That third goal by the Wild was enough for Stars coach Dave Tippet to pull the plug on Turco and replace him with backup Mike Smith. The Stars would answer back with a goal of their own only a minute after the Wild, but Gaborik extended the lead again with another goal with just 1:30 left in the first.

The second period started off fairly even as the Wild and Stars traded shots before the Wild finally scored again with a goal from Eric Belanger. Belanger received a beautiful pass from Gaborik and Belanger, using the perfect screen Aaron Voros was setting up, rifled the puck past Smith to put the Wild at a comfortable 5-1 lead. The Stars would respond with two consecutive goals in the second period to get the game to 5-3, but that's as close as they would get. Mark Parrish nailed the coffin shut with a goal with less than 4 minutes left and the Wild came away with a 6-3 victory.

The most notable aspect of the game was the absence of Martin Skoula at the blue-line. After a series of articles written in the local paper about Skoula the last few days, Jacques Lemaire may have been feeling a little bit of pressure to sit Skoula to see what happens. The Wild fans have been clamoring for Skoula, who has now sat a total of 2 games while in a Wild uniform, to be benched in favor of a better defensemen such as Keith Carney or Kurtis Foster. Tonight, Carney was the lucky recipient of the ice time and he proved that he still has some game (at least more game than Skoula). Lemaire has shown an infinite amount of confidence in his seasoned blue-liner, but what he sees in Skoula is something that pretty much everybody in the State of Hockey is missing. Lemaire says that Skoula uses his big size to his advantage, yet the last time I saw him intimidate a player with his size was...I can't even remember. Guys skate right around Skoula and usually that leads to a goal. I do not believe it is coincidence that the defense was good tonight with the absence of Skoula; I feel the blue-line is much safer without him there. I don't know what stat Lemaire is looking at, but what I look for in a defensemen is his +/- ratio. A player gets a + if he is on the ice when his own team scores; a player receives a - if he is on the ice when the opposing team scores. Let's take a look at the defensemen on the Wild and compare that stat:

Brent Burns: +2
Kim Johnsson: -6
Kurtis Foster:-4
Petteri Nummelin:+2
Nick Schultz:-3
Keith Carney:+7
Sean Hill:-4
Martin Skoula:-13

That stat is pretty telling. Generally when a coach plays a guy that is terrible on either side of the puck, it means he adds some sort of threat on the other side. When Skoula plays, he is at the very least a liability on defense and he adds absolutely no scoring threat whatsoever. What Lemaire sees in him, I have no idea. Carney on the other hand, a seasoned veteran who is a career +163, sits pretty much every game. And even though Foster is a -4, he adds a scoring threat that is pretty much unmatched by any of our other defensemen (minus Brent Burns), yet he's been a constant healthy scratch. I am glad to see that Lemaire, whether he took the articles and the fans reaction to heart or not, finally did what every Minnesota Wild fan was looking for: giving Skoula the heave-ho. Now the only thing that would make it better would be for Doug Risebrough, the Wild General Manager, to let Skoula go for good.

Wild mount furious comeback against Oilers

Nearing the end of the second period with the team down 4-1 Saturday night, the fans at the Xcel Energy Center were so quiet that they could have heard a stick drop on the ice. Luckily for the fans, the Wild had other ideas about the remainder of the game. Wild Center Eric Belanger looked down the bench at his teammates and one thought popped into his mind: We can still win this game.

"We just knew, you know?" said Belanger after the game. "We just knew we were going to win this game."

It took the Wild nearly 10 minutes to get themselves back into the game after being down 4-1, but on this night, the Wild knew it was their game to take. With just over 2 minutes left in the second frame, Brian Rolston fired home a wrist shot to cut the Edmonton lead in half. Going into the locker room, the team felt as though it had a great chance to get themselves back into this game. Wild coach Jacques Lemaire was relieved the Wild were able to get a goal to close out the second period.

"Four to one would have been tougher than 4-2," Lemaire said. "The way we were playing, that's what we were hoping for, a goal at the end of the second."

It took the Wild less than 5 minutes into the third period to get them within a goal. Mark Parrish placed a perfect pass right to the stick of Marian Gaborik who shot it home past Edmonton goalie Dwayne Roloson just 4:44 into the third period. From there, the Wild just settled back and waited for their chances. After giving up double-digit shots in each of the first two periods, the Wild gave up only 6 in the third, limiting the Oilers scoring chances with much-improved defense from guys like Sean Hill and Petteri Nummelin. After spending most of the third period in the Edmonton zone, the Wild finally cashed in again to tie the game at 4 exactly 10 minutes after their third goal. Brent Burns took control of a Pierre-Marc Bouchard rebound and poked it home for his career-high 8th goal of the season. From there, the Wild tried to end the game before it got to overtime, but were unsuccessful. The Wild knew that they had the Oilers on the ropes, and they weren't about to let it slip away.

The Wild got started right away in overtime when Gaborik took the puck and split the defense on his way to the goal. Edmonton defensemen Steve Staios, realizing that there is no way they could catch up to Gaborik, did the smart thing and hooked Gaborik to give his team a chance to kill off a penalty. Unfortunately for the Oilers, the Wild were not going to let this game get away. The Wild quickly took control of the puck and moved it around the Edmonton zone. After about a minute of passing, Rolston found the puck and slid it over to Bouchard, who in turn flung the puck out to Nummelin who then took a wicked snap shot to send the Wild out with a bang. It was the first time in franchise history the Wild had come back from a 3 goal deficit in the Xcel Energy Center, and only the second time they had done it in any venue.



OK, so I wrote that trying to be fairly nice to the Wild when re-capping that game. The truth is though, it was a horrible game, aside from the fact that they won. I'll admit it was a hard-fought game and a great comeback, but the way the Wild played in the first two periods, there was no way they deserved to win that game. The Wild should be counting their lucky stars after this game in which they gave up two short-handed goals (which had never been done against the Wild), played absolutely awful defense, and only managed 7 shots on net in the second period. I refer to the Wild's defense as "absolutely awful" simply because I could not find any other words to express how dismal they really are. There is not one defensemen right now that is playing anywhere near where they need to be. Brent Burns is letting guys get behind him, Sean Hill is making terrible mistakes with the puck, and Martin Skoula...is Martin Skoula. I truly and honestly do not know why on earth Lemaire feels the need to put Skoula into the game. He can't hit, he can't block a shot, he can't stick-handle, and he can't skate. It's honestly like watching a guy that's been skating for maybe a couple months, and this guy is playing in the NHL, logging more than 20 minutes a game. Everybody on the defense needs to be more aggressive in order to cut down the opponents scoring chances. Now I'm not going to pretend like I know what is best for the team, I trust Lemaire and I trust the rest of the coaching staff, but after watching the Wild every year since their inception, I can tell what is and what isn't working with this team. When the puck is in the neutral zone and our defensemen is 10 feet away from the puck, and the opponents forward is 15 feet away from the puck, why would we let the other team take the puck and skate it into our zone? The idea just seems ludicrous to me, yet I see it every game. If we don't have our defense go after that puck, the other team is going to get it, do a little dance around our defensemen, and shoot and score. If we go after that puck, at the very least we can disrupt the play they are trying to set up and maybe get possession of the puck again. It seems so easy yet so hard when watching this club struggle. And yes, even with this recent comeback win, I am still calling the Wild a struggling team.

Mark Parrish is finally doing what he was brought in here to do last year: stay in front of the net, and don't move for any reason. We have four other guys that are there to back him up. If we can keep possession of the puck, Parrish has to be the one to stay in front of the net to screen the goalie, as well as be there to pick up any rebounds. And when Parrish isn't out on the ice, somebody else has to step-up and do the same thing. Aaron Voros, the one good constant on this team since he was called up, has been doing that, and it has paid off dearly for him. Voros, playing in only his 23rd game of the season last night, has recorded 7 goals and 6 assists this year. That's more goals than Pierre-Marc Bouchard who has 6 goals in 38 games this year. The Wild have so many things to work on if they want to become a top contender in this league. It is easy to see what makes a team dominant in today's NHL. Look at the Detroit Red Wings: The ultimate passing team that isn't afraid to get pushed around in front of the net. Their finesse style of play may not be able to be matched by the Wild, but there are plenty of aspects of the Red Wings game that the Wild can try to mimic and become a better team with. It's the same thing with the Vancouver Canucks. The Canucks play a brand of hockey that virtually no one else can copy: They have the perfect mix of hard-nosed players to go along with skill players and they have one of the best goaltenders in the league. I'm not in favor of the Wild taking a page out of the Canucks dirty plays book, but there are definitely many parts of Vancouver's play that the Wild need to look at if they want to become a top contender in the West.

Again I bring up the point of the Wild not having their top center, Mikko Koivu. But the way they are struggling right now, offense is not my main worry. Eventually Koivu will make his way back into the lineup, lines will get shifted back to the way they were, and the scoring will come easier. It is the defense that worries me right now, and it is the defense that should be worrying the coaching staff of the Wild. The Wild have plenty of top-tier defenders in Brent Burns, Nick Schultz, and Petteri Nummelin, but none of them are playing up to their potential, or even anywhere near their potential. There are no trade possibilities for the Wild, nor do they have any solid defensive prospects down in Houston. That leaves the only option for the Wild on the guys that are carrying the load now. They need to be more aggressive when dealing with the puck, and they need to start taking more shots and getting the puck at the net. If they don't start doing that soon, they could very well fall out of the top 8 in the conference.

It's Wild on top of the Western Conference

It seems like just yesterday that the Minnesota Wild were playing mediocre hockey, not being able to complete a pass or score a goal. They bottomed out in San Jose, where they fell behind quickly and couldn't catch up. It was frustrating as a fan watching the Wild struggle so mightily when I knew they were capable of so much more. After that dismal showing in San Jose, the Wild had a few days to collect themselves before heading to Anaheim to face the Ducks. The Wild were desperate to get something going, and by the way they played that night, they were ready for it. The Wild swiftly broke out of their scoring slump and dropped 5 goals en route to a 5-2 win. With a new bounce in their step, the Wild finished their swing through California with a game in Los Angeles. Although the Wild couldn't stay hot with the goal scoring in LA, Josh Harding played stellar in goal to lead the Wild to a 2-1 win over the Kings. The Wild were cautious not to get ahead of themselves while on this short two game win streak, but they knew that they had to keep the confidence they had to be able to continue playing well.

The Wild headed home to take on the Nashville Predators on December 18th, three days after their close game in Los Angeles. The Wild, still in a bit of a scoring slump, knew that they needed to score early and often against Nashville to have a chance of winning. Unfortunately, it was the Preds that got going much sooner than the Wild had hoped. Jason Arnott scored for Nashville at the 8:50 mark of the first period to set the tone for the first 2 periods. The rest of the first period came and went quietly, but the Wild didn't play their best, putting them at risk for a defeat. The second period was a little better, yet the Predators again got on the scoreboard with the Wild missing out. The Wild went into the locker room a little disappointed; they had played a good two periods, yet Nashville was being rewarded with tip-in goals. After the way the first 40 minutes of the game went, it was fairly apparent the Wild were ready to break out, and break out they did: three goals in the third, the last one coming with just over a minute left, to propel the Wild to their 3rd win in a row.

Now riding high with a legitimate winning streak, the Wild faced the New York Rangers on Thursday night. The Rangers, although not particularly hot their last ten games (4-5-1), are always a team that can light the lamp on you. Luckily, the Wild had other ideas for this night. The Rangers got on the board first when Michal Rozsival found the back of the net just over 9 minutes into the game. Just 3 minutes after that goal, the Wild responded with one of their own. Gaborik scored the first of his FIVE (yes 5) goals on the night, beating Henrik Lundqvist with a wicked snap-shot after a beautiful pass from Pavol Demitra. Soon after Martin Skoula took an ugly tumble in the Wild zone (and by ugly I mean he looked like a first-time skater), Nigel Dawes scored for the Rangers to get them within striking distance. The Wild were quick to extinguish any hope for a New York comeback when Pierre-Marc Bouchard scored 3 minutes after to put the Wild again up by 2. The Wild finished the game with two more Gaborik goals to win the game 6-3. Although the Wild were again back on the winning track after a 4 game winning streak, that was put on the back-burner for a while. Thursday night belonged to Marian Gaborik and his historical 5 goals.

Gaborik's night was the first time in over 11 years that any NHL player had recorded 5 goals in a game, and the first time anybody had done it in Wild franchise history. Gaborik also assisted on Bouchard's goal, giving him 6 points on the night and making him the toast of Minnesota. So impressed were his teammates with his effort that two of them carried him off of the ice. Gaborik was definitely on all night; he was zipping up and down the ice like there was nothing to it and scoring so effortlessly that he could have easily recorded 6 or 7 goals on the night. After being stuck in a slump for a good six weeks, it was great to have a four game win-streak going and to have such an exciting game during the streak. Now the Wild are not-so-securely in second place in the conference, yet still in control of the standings. The Red Wings have a fairly comfortable lead in the West, but one decent slide by them can open up the door for the Wild to sneak into the number one slot in the conference. Tomorrow will be a good start on their quest to catch Detroit, since they face the Wings at the X. The Wings are obviously the superior team in the West, they have too much fire-power to go along with stellar defense and goal tending, but if the Wild can shut down their top line of Pavel Datsyuk and Henrik Zetterberg, they have a very good chance of winning the game.


Yet another big game coming up for the Vikings on Sunday as they take on the Washington Redskins at the Dome. With a Vikings win and a Saints loss, the Vikings guarantee themselves a playoff birth. It's been an interesting season for Minnesota fans, to say the least. When the Vikings stumbled out of the gate to a 2-5 start, the whole Vikings contingent of fans was hoping for a good draft pick for next year. Now that the team is 8-6 and looking very promising, it's once again exciting to watch this team. Adrian Peterson is still lighting up the field at will, and Tavaris Jackson has looked great the last 5 games or so. Now that they have something to play for, I find myself getting very into the games again. With the way they are playing recently, I can honestly say I believe that the Vikings could give the Cowboys or Packers a run for their money in the playoffs.

Another day, another blow-out

The Minnesota Wild are now officially slipping into the bottom echelon of the worst teams in the Western Conference. After hoping the Wild would be able to answer Jacques Lemaire's call and step-up their game Tuesday night, they instead played yet another terrible game where there was virtually no passing, defense, or scoring from Minnesota.

It didn't take the Sharks long to get the scoring going for them when Joe Pavelski scored a mere 2 minutes and 39 seconds into the game. The Wild played a decent rest of the first period, not surrendering any more goals and out-shooting the Sharks 10-8 in that period. Unfortunately, that was the end of any hope for the Wild. I have no idea what Lemaire said in between the first and second periods, but it looked like the Wild would have nothing of it. The Sharks came out shooting in the second period and ended up scoring a total of three times in 13 minutes to put the Wild completely out of reach, en route to a 4-1 win.

With the Wild's complete lack of hustle and aggressiveness, it's hard to say when the Wild might snap out of this funk. The can't score goals to save their lives, and they can't play defense to make up for the goal shortage. Two days ago, Jacques Lemaire called out his skill players to tell them they had to step up in a big way if the Wild were to be successful. I don't know if the players had Lemaire's words go in one ear and out the other, or if the simply cannot step up their game enough right now. Through 30 games this season, the Wild are sitting at 16-12-2, just barely good enough for 6th in the Western Conference. In those same 30 games, the so-called "skill" players such as Pavol Demitra, Pierre-Marc Bouchard, and Brian Rolston all have 20 points or less, with Demitra sitting at the bottom with a measly 14. Meanwhile our defense has combined for a +/- of -9, with the ever-disappointing Martin Skoula sitting at -8. Comparing that to a mediocre team like Anaheim whose defensemen are a combined +5, I think we can say the Wild's defense is a little less than stellar. Now I'll be the first to admit that the Wild are definitely hurting without Mikko Koivu. With Koivu out, that shuffles the whole lineup around, forcing Demitra to stray from his normal forward position into the center slot, thus pretty much killing any chance he has of scoring with the way Lemaire plays the center position (never stray past the opposing face off circles). But there is no reason that even without Koivu the Wild should be doing this bad. They have scored 2 goals or less in 4 games in a row, and 16 total games this year. I agree that when Koivu comes back they will score more, but unless they can get Niklas Backstrom his confidence back too, the Wild are stuck in the middle of the tight Western Conference.

From here, Minnesota's schedule does not get any easier. They face the Nashville Predators (11th in Western Conference), the New York Rangers (6th in the Eastern Conference), and the Detroit Red Wings (1st in the Western Conference) all in four days in the middle of December. I wish I had some ideas to throw out that I think would help the Wild, but unfortunately, I'm drawing a blank. The simply need to have every player step up like they were at the beginning of the season and play the game of hockey. The season is more than 1/3 gone, and I would hate to see the Wild keep sliding down the standings with the high expectations that they had going into the season.

The Wild's next game is on Friday night, where they will be facing the hated Anaheim Ducks. This would be a very important win, not only because it would put them back in the win column, but because Anaheim is a team that, after last years post-season, I would assume every Wild player would love to beat.

Be sure to check out the big black eye that will hit Major League Baseball tomorrow (Thursday) at 2:00 o'clock when the Mitchell Report comes out highlighting what George Mitchell found in his long investigation into steroids in Baseball.

My how the momentum has shifted...

It was a mere 4 weeks ago that the whole state of Minnesota was ragging on Brad Childress, praising Adrian Peterson, and thinking that the whole Minnesota Vikings season was going down the drain. That was following a 34-0 drubbing at the hands of the Green Bay Packers, and things were looking pretty bad. Since then, not only have the Vikings gone 4-0, they have beaten opponents by an average of more than 20 points per game. Now at this point the Vikings have their fans thinking playoffs, and if they keep playing the way they have been lately, they can definitely go pretty deep in the postseason.

The most recent game that the Vikings dominated was in San Francisco against the 49ers, where they easily handled the Alex Smith-less Niners 27-7. The Vikings defense was spectacular yet again with 2 interceptions and 3 fumble recoveries (unfortunately their defense wasn't enough to get the win for me in fantasy this week). The positive sign for this weeks game was the fact that AP was held in check, carrying 14 times for only 3 yards, but the Vikings used the second head of their two-headed monster to carry the load. Chester Taylor carried the ball 8 times for 101 yards and a touchdown, and Tavaris Jackson looked solid for the fourth consecutive week in a row with short, effective passes that moved the chains down the field.

The Vikings set the tempo of the game early on when big Kevin Williams picked off Trent Dilfer and returned it 18 yards to the house just 14 seconds into the game. From there on, the Vikings were in total control. The Vikings now control their own road to the playoffs. If they can defeat the Chicago Bears next week, the Washington Redskins in two weeks, and the Denver Broncos in the final week of the season, the will secure a playoff spot. Like I mentioned before, when (yes when, not if) the Vikings make the playoffs, if they can keep the motivation they have right now, they will be one dangerous team to face.

While the Vikings are tearing up the field, Minnesota Twins GM Bill Smith is holding strong in his efforts to get the maximum value for his Ace Johan Santana. While a lot of fans are clamoring for Santana to be traded soon so that the drama will go away, I applaud Smith for keeping his cool and not settling for anything less than the best. Now I, as much as the next die-hard Twins fan, would love to have the Twins sign Santana long-term, but I have come to terms with the fact that Carl Pohlad will not shell out the $100+ million that Santana is asking to keep him, so I'm OK with Smith being patient with this whole ordeal. I am still personally getting over the Hot-Stove week with all the different scenarios and trade rumors (that whole week consisted of sitting at the computer and refreshing every baseball-related web page waiting for the trade to happen). The Twins are definitely going be a different team next year, but I really do feel that they are getting better and better with every trade or little roster move. Bill Smith has already proven he knows what he is doing, and as anxious as I am to get this trade over and done with, I am happy that Smith has shown that he is as stubborn with this trade as Jacques Lemaire is when it comes to giving Martin Skoula ice time.

The Minnesota Wild are going back and forth again in the win-loss column, so let's hope they can extend their current winning streak of one (1) with a win tomorrow night against the San Jose Sharks. The Wild are in the middle of a pretty brutal road trip (Detroit, Columbus, San Jose, Anaheim, and Los Angeles), and if they were to get their season back on track, this would be a good trip to do so on. Mikko Koivu is still out with a broken bone in his leg stemming from the ridiculously illegal hit by Mattias Ohlund a few weeks ago. Until Koivu comes back, I fear the Wild may be hovering around mediocrity.

Let's Play Hockey

So the Wild are officially back on track after a 5-2 victory over the currently hopeless Edmonton Oilers. With Gaborik and Demitra out, and Dominic Moore not quite ready to take the ice, the Wild were forced to shift defensemen Petteri Nummelin up to a forward position. Although the shift wasn't ideal, it couldn't have worked out any better. Moving Nummelin up quickly paid dividends when he shot a perfect pass across Edmontons zone setting up Mark Parrish's first goal of the night just 5 minutes into the game. From there, the Wild powerplay just picked apart the Edmonton penalty kill scoring a total of 3 power play goals in just the first period. Although Niklas Backstrom was not tested very often in net at the beginning, he made the saves needed to give the team confidence going into the locker room.

The Wild came out in the second period even faster than they did in the first, scoring just 3:21 into the period. The Wild and Oilers finished the period switching goals, and at the end of the second period the score was 5-2. With the game already in hand, all the Wild needed to do was prevent any scoring opportunities in the third period, and that is exactly what they did. Shutting down the Oilers in the final frame led to the Wild coming out with a victory. Parrish ended up with two power-play goals, Nummelin ended up with two big assists, and Kurtis Foster chipped in a goal and an assist. All around it was a game the Wild desperately needed.

So now to an article I caught on espn.com this morning. Todd Bertuzzi, who to me is a guy who should never have stepped back onto the ice after his incident with Steve Moore back in 2004, apparently offered to settle the $15 million lawsuit brought on by Moore by paying him $350,000. Seriously, that number isn't a joke. He wanted to give the guy who's career he ruined not even 1% of what he's asking for. I don't know if he was purposely trying to insult Moore, but whatever his intent was, it made him look like even less of a man. What he did back in '04 was totally dirty and should not have happened, and the punishment handed down to him was just a slap on the wrist. Thirteen games and the playoffs for ending a 23 year-olds fairly promising career? You have go to be kidding me. When I read this article today, I just kept thinking that I couldn't wait for the Ducks to come to town so Boogey can beat the crap out of him on the ice. If you want to read the article, here's the link for you:
http://sports.espn.go.com/nhl/news/story?id=3096818

Also going on last night was Monday Night Football. The Steelers and Ravens were supposed to be playing a Football game, but it looked more like the Steelers were playing a team of kids. The Ravens commited 4 turnovers on the night, including 3 fumbles in the first quarter, en route to a 38-7 pounding by the Pittsburgh Steelers. Ben Roethlisberger looked unstoppable in the first half, tying a Steelers record by throwing 5 touchdown passes in the half. Big Ben finished the game with 209 yards and 5 touchdown passes with no interceptions and a perfect quarterback rating of 158.3. The Steelers defense also looked unstoppable, especially James Harrison, an undrafted free agent signed by the Steelers after they released pro-bowl linebacker Joey Porter. Harrison finished the night with 2 1/2 sacks, 2 forced fumbles, 1 fumble recovery, and an interception. Those numbers are wicked for an entire defense, much less one player. Even though it was a blowout, it was a good game to tune into during the breaks of the Wild game.

The only thing really that I can think of that is going on tonight is the Timberwolves host the Orlando Magic. Everybody's been hating on the Wolves this year, thinking they won't be able to recover from the departure of KG and the arrival of a lot of young guys, but I think that we should reserve judgement until we get a good look at these guys. Sure they have started 0-2, but like I said, they're a young team and they need some time to adjust to eachother. Plus, Randy Foye isn't even playing, and he is one of our top guys. I'm not saying the Wolves are gonna win 50+ games this year, but I do think they will exceed most peoples expectations.

Unfortunately with all the games going on last night I had to miss a new episode of Heroes, so I will have to catch that online some time today. I'm hoping it answers more questions than last weeks episode, I really thought they were going to clarify some things and it turned out to just be more questions. Either way, it is still one of the best shows on TV right now and I hope the writers end their strike soon so that the season doesn't have to end prematurely at the beginning of December.