While there are still rumblings throughout the fan base across the country about the boring trap, a defense first style of play, the Wild has found a way to put up six goals against
With the team four points out of first place, and only five out of last place in the tightest division in the league, there are reasons to not only celebrate but reasons to fear the worst.
For the past three seasons, the Wild has been the picture of inconsistent play. This season is no different. With the team showing it is capable of scoring six goals in a game, the Wild can come out the next game and put up only three shots on goal in the first period.
The Wild can make an opposing team’s backup goalie look like Martin Brodeur. Brent Burns, arguably one of the best defensemen in the NHL, has been moved to forward to compensate for injuries, and Pierre-Marc Bouchard has all but disappeared after signing a long-term deal over the summer. Owen Nolan has been productive, but only in between stints on the injured reserve list.
One top of all of this, Marian Gaborik, the team’s all time leader in nearly every offensive category, has played just two games this season. It was reported recently in the Star tribune that Gaborik has started practicing with the team, something that has not happened since mid-October.
Add it all up, and the negatives are nearly overwhelming. Yet somehow, the team is still near the top of one of the divisions. Looking at the positives to the season thus far, it becomes apparent that this team wins using the team’s first ideology, and by playing within the system.
Despite the teams offensive rollercoaster ride, the majority of the games have been the tightly played type of game. This bodes well for the team. That is the type of game the Wild are built for. One-goal games will make or break the season for the Wild, and right now, it seems to have the team has the pieces to win more than it loses.
Mikko Koivu has begun to show just what he is capable of. After years of toiling as the shut down checking center, Koivu has been given the reigns of the offense. He is more than capable of being one of the best two way players in the league. With a team leading 29 points (10 goals, 19 assists), Koivu has shown he has both scoring and play making ability, in addition to pulling shut down duty. Against the Penguins and Capitals, his line held Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin to one shot on goal and no points. He also helped hold Alexander Ovechkin to just one point.
Wild goaltender Niklas Backstrom. Photo courtesy of Minnesota Wild
Niklas Backstrom has shown he needs to be mentioned in the conversation of who is the best goalie in the league. His numbers (112 games played, 70 wins, 2.19 goals against average, .923 save percentage) compare fairly evenly with Martin Brodeur’s (165 games played, 98 Wins, 2.20 GAA, .913 save percentage) over the past three seasons. The Wild tried to give backup Josh Harding a chance to shine.
Backstrom has been an absolute wall this season, having only one truly bad game against the Avalanche, but most would attribute that game to poor team defense rather than to Backstrom’s performance. Backstrom is in the final year of his contract and if the Wild are smart, they will begin renegotiating sooner rather than later.
Other off-season acquisitions have shown that the fan uproar was much ado about nothing. Antti Miettinen is second on the team in scoring (7 goals, 14 assists), Andrew Brunette is third (9 goals, 8 assists), Marc-Andre Bergeron is fifth (2 goals, 13 assists), and Marek Zidlicky is sixth (4 goals, 9 assists). As mentioned earlier, Owen Nolan has been a strong presence when he is able to play, with five goals and five assists in just 17 games played.
For the Wild, the focus has got to be on getting a consistent effort each and every night. It has dropped all three games to division rival Vancouver already this season, and has split the season series with the Avalanche. The Wild have yet to face the always dangerous Calgary Flames and the Edmonton Oilers. The Wild have shown that they can shut down two of the best teams in the East in
With the circus atmosphere surrounding the Marian Gaborik ordeal in the national media, until recently, it was an almost a non-story in the local media here in
At the same time, the team needs to find a way to work Gaborik back into the mix until there is a resolution to the contract or he is traded. Adding a capable goal scorer may help the team, as long as it does not revert to past season performance and relies on Gaborik to do the majority of the scoring.
While we are only a little over a quarter of the way through the season, it is clear that the Wild are going to be an interesting team to watch yet again. With inconsistent play comes some excitement about which team will show up on a given night. There is some excitement surrounding the team lately when listening to the fans and local media try to wrap their heads around what is going on with the team.
The Wild starts a much more difficult schedule going forward through the end of December and into January. The next month and a half will hopefully give a better picture of what this team is capable of, and bring some resolution to the Gaborik saga.
However, don’t wager too much of your paycheck on either one happening. After all, the economy is not doing very well, and this is still the Minnesota Wild were talking about here.
The author can be reached at bryan.reynolds@prohockeynews.com
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