Wild @ Blue Jackets - 02-02-08 - A View from my Recliner
Happy groundhog day! Gotta love that Punxsutawney Phil. He says 6 more weeks of winter. That's fine with me...I've had about enough of this winter thing.

Great 4-1 win tonite for the Wild. I was able to watch the game tonite thanks to a free preview of Center Ice on DirecTV. The Wild played what at first was a great road game that turned into a great all around game. The skill players stepped up again and the D was very tough.

Goals came from Kurtis Foster (a weak wrister from the blueline in the 1st that G Fredrik Norrena did not see), Brian Rolston (on a great stickhandling sequence from Pierre-Marc Bouchard), Marian Gaborik (thanks to a pretty passing play from Pavol Demitra to Todd Fedoruk to Gabby), and Marian Gaborik (on another great passing play from Demitra to Gaborik to Demitra). The 2nd period unfolded very similarly to the Anaheim game Wednesday, with most of the scoring coming in the middle frame and being stingy in the 3rd.

Jots

• Rolston now has a 5-game goal streak.
• Gabby has 28 goals on the year.
• PMB is going to cost alot to keep on this team.
• Although Niklas Backstrom played a solid game in net, he still gave up some pretty juicy rebounds. I won't be cynical tho. He is playing very well of late.
• It was cool to hear the Columbus play-by-play guys on FSN Ohio. They were very complimentary of the Wild, Lemaire, PMB, Gaborik...everyone was made out to be on top of their games right now. In the 2nd, they kept saying how the team is playing so well right now and firing on all cylinders. You'd think we were the Red Wings.
• Had to watch tonite's game late, as the U. of North Dakota Fighting Sioux fans in my family took over the TV during prime time. UND was at the Minnesota Gophers. Game finished in a 1-1 tie, but it was a very intense game. Multiple players from both teams were involved in skirmishes, including some cheap shots right before the final whistle. UND coach Dave Hakstol was caught by the camera flipping the bird, and UND and Minn players got into a frakus during the final handshake. I love college hockey! Oh, and my Bulldogs beat Wisconsin tonite in OT! Nice!
• Go Giants!

Next on the Docket - Red Wings @ Wild - Tues 2-5-08
Oooooh, looking forward to this game. With the Wild rolling right now, you would think it would be a perfect time to get the Wings. They're finally beating the best teams in the division. But, the Red Wings might be sore from the one we stole from them in Detroit. And alot of times these hyped-up games turn into duds. What to call, what to call...

I'm a homer, so Wild 3 Wings 2.