Just a great game @ the X tonight. Wild come back from 2 goals down not once, but twice, tie it up with a minute left in the game, take it to the shootout sudden death round, and get their 4th win in a row, 5th in the last 6 games, and have at least a point in their last 6.

The #1 line was just excellent tonight. Koivu 2 goals, Miettenin 2 goals (plus a SO goal), Brunette 3 assists. That’s exactly what the Wild need in order to contend.

Now I’m not going to get all gushy and predict Stanley Cup here, so here is the question…is the team’s recent play the real deal? They’re scoring more. They’re winning faceoffs like crazy. The ridiculous defensive lapses have all but vanished.

Could our Wild squad have a shot at the playoffs?

Ok, calm down. Gotta keep it rolling. They’ve shown flashes a couple times this season, and have gone into the tank only to lose 3 in a row. And they’re going to have to win in regulation eventually. But right now I’m not going to be picky. 2 weeks ago I made no time to watch the Wild. Now there’s reason to pay attention.

Props to Todd Richards for hanging in there, and to Chuck Fletcher for making some moves that seem to have sparked the squad. Shout out to tonight’s crowd at the X, representing with a loud ovation for Mikko’s individual effort to kill the Duck’s PP in OT, for standing for most of the OT and SO, and for being a force again.

Perhaps this winter won’t be as cold as we had expected.

So I've adopted a new word. Picked it up mostly from the Twitter, and I know I'm late to this party, but that's pretty standard for me. I've hesitated to use it but if I'm ever going to use it, it's going to be now.

In case you've been checked out on some exotic island the last few days, you know that Minnesota has been the center of the sports universe over the last 5 days or so. A couple months ago, it looked like a pretty sweet weekend. Gophers v. Badgers at TCF Bank Stadium Saturday, Twins final series at Metrodome the whole weekend culminating with a celebration after the final game Sunday, Vikings v. Packers on Monday Night Football at Metrodome, and the Wild home opener at Xcel Energy Center on Tuesday. 5 great days of Minnesota sporting events in the Twin Cities.

Then the stretch became huge.

Brett Favre signed with the Vikings and the matchup with the Packers at Metrodomebecame huge. The Twins were two games back of the Tigers in the Central division entering play on Friday. We all know what happened there - the Twins swept Kansas City, tied the Tigers, and forced a playoff game at Metrodome. That game was scheduled for Tuesday, and the Wild opener suddenly became the forgotten.

And then the stretch became EPIC.

Favre, Jared Allen, and the Vikings dominated the Packers on Monday and 60,000 Vikings fans left Metrodome elated. On Tuesday, Twins v. Tigers was a nail-biting, stomach-churning affair for both sides. The Twins battled back from 3-0, took a 4-3 lead, got down 5-4, went to extra innings, eeked out of numerous jams, and somehow, someway, walked off as Central Division Champions in the 12th inning. 54,000 Twins fans at Metrodome went banana sandwich. Metrodome is not yet ready to give this team to Target Field.

All that was left was the Wild, just hanging out over in St. Paul, in front of the team of 18,000 (barely), opening their home season with a new coach and new identity. Time to switch gears.

Don't Forget About Us!
I flipped the Wild game on after I'd had my fill of watching Twins players jumping (I mean dancing), spraying champagne, and otherwise adding to their hangover that will make it tough to play well against the Yankees tomorrow. It was the start of the 2nd period, where it was 0-0, and what I saw did not look good at all. The Wild looked out of sorts again, similar to the season opener v. the Blue Jackets. The lack of flow turned quickly into a 3-0 Duck lead. The Duck goals included one from Saku Koivu, which had to drive a bit of a dagger into Mikko and the Wild.

Then EPIC intervened. The 3rd period was a complete reversal of the 2nd. Suddenly the Wild were attacking, sustaining pressure, and getting the puck on Duck G JS Giguere. Mikko Koivu broke through with a powerplay goal from Martin Havlat and Andrew Brunette 6 minutes in. Petr Sykora fired a pretty snap shot past Giguere 6 minutes later, from Havlat and Eric Belanger to make it 3-2. With just over 2 minutes left in regulation, Belanger tied the game, beating Giguere 5-hole from the left circle on the PP, assisted by Havlat again and Brent Burns. And in the overtime, Andrew Brunette cleaned up a loose puck for the game winner - once again on the PP, assisted by Belanger and Kim Johnsson.

The Wild completed the most EPIC 5-day stretch in MN sports history with an equally EPIC comeback. One that we likely would never have seen under the old regime. Andrew Brunette said after the game that they wouldn't let the Twins out do them tonight, and the Team of 18,000 went home as elated as everyone else did over the EPIC stretch of MN sports.

Next
Twins v. Yankees from Yankee Stadium on Wednesday 5 PM TBS...Oh yeah...this is a Wild blog.

The Wild travel to the LA Kings (Thursday 9:30 PM FSNorth HD). The Kings are 1-1 after beating the Sharks tonight and Kings are scoring a few goals in this early season, so the Wild defense will be challenged to continue fine-tuning their offensive system while keeping the Kings scoring chances down. I still think it will take some time, Kings 4 Wild 2.

Man, what a day. Just finished watching the Wild’s season opener because I had other things on my mind today. Like my last baseball game at Metrodome, the Twins trying to run down the Tigers, becoming a temporary White Sox fan, and…well I guess that’s it.

I watched tonight’s 2009-2010 Wild opener on the DVR, and while it was a bit non-descript, one thing is clear: This is a new brand of hockey.

New Style
This a different kind of hockey from the Jacques Lemaire style that we saw for the first 8 years of the Wild’s existence. It just had a different feel. Actually, JL would probably have keeled over if his Wild played this sloppy. But sloppy is as sloppy does…we will likely see alot of this type of play throughout the season as new coach Todd Richards instills his brand of hockey. There weren’t a ton of great scoring chances in either direction, but it just felt so much looser than a typical Wild hockey game. It’s clear we’re in a new era of Wild hockey.

Andrew Brunette scored the lone goal for the Wild, and it was a pretty goal, set up by Mikko Koivu and Martin Havlat, as he deked Mason and slid it in short side conjuring memories of his goal that ended Patrick Roy’s career in the 2003 playoffs.

Other than that, the Wild didn’t sustain much pressure tonight. They were outshot 39-33, and it didn’t feel like they had that many shots.

That’s about all I’ve got for tonight; I’ve got Twins on the brain. I still believe the franchise is better for this change. It will pay off eventually.

An Aside
Wow…as I finish up this post, the Calgary Flames just beat the Edmonton Oilers on a misplay by Nikolai Khabibulin with 40 seconds to go. Bad bad way to lose a season opener in your home arena.

Next
Home opener Tuesday v. the Anaheim Ducks. Too early to throw out predictions really, but the Ducks lost their opener to San Jose 4-1. This game may be even more difficult to pay attention to…if the Twins and Tigers end in tie after tomorrow’s 162nd game, they will play game 163 at Metrodome on Tuesday.

How bout instead, Twins win, Tigers lose on Sunday…

Working on tonite’s post during the game, sort of live blogging but not really cause I’ll be mixing in dinner, baby time, and trying to figure out who to use for web hosting for a site for my dad. And because I’m not going to post it until after the game is over.

I’m excited for this game v. Toronto mostly because we don’t see the Leafs that often. Also because it is a team the Wild should beat. Also because I’m enjoying a tasty Goose Island IPA. Sit back, relax, and read my takes as they happened.

1st Period

• Why did Mike Greenlay just yell “BOOM!”?
• Caaaaaal Cluttttterbuck scores! Just a weak wrist shot from the right boards that Leaf’s G Justin Pogge simply missed. Bonus because we got to play “Caaaaaal Cluttterbuck” with Baby Girl. She loves it! Anytime we say his name she laughs so hard…it’s the cutest ever! I love when he scores.
• Beauty save by Wild G Niklas Backstrom on a Leafs shorthanded 2 on 1.
• Eric Belanger just split between 2 Maple Leafs and went in alone on Pogge. He didn’t get off much of a shot, but I can’t remember ever seeing Belanger split 2 defenders.
• Owen Nolan ends the period with a nice opportunity in alone on Pogge, but he’s old so the Leafs d-man caught him and he didn’t get a shot off.
• 1st intermission interview with Caaaaaal Cluttttterbuck!!!

Good period overall for the Wizzy. Multiple opportunities and the shots Toronto got were not too threatening. Quick break for dinner, Baby Girl’s bedtime, and for wifey to watch a little 90210.

2nd Period

• Starting the 2nd about a half hour behind on the DVR. Sweet…no commercials.
• Moorhead’s own Jason Blake ties it up for the Leafs about 5 minutes in. The puck sort of found Blake’s stick off a Wild skate and Backstrom did all he could to stop it but he couldn’t get his stick down far enough.
• The 2 Wild players with the most hyphens in their names team up to give the Wild the lead back just a minute after the Leafs goal. Marc-Andre Bergeron pinches in and takes a nice pass from Pierre-Marc Bouchard from behind the net.
• Hey! PMB can score goals too! He one-times a quick pass from Belanger past Pogge to put the Wild up 2. Belanger is on fiya!
• It’s on! Owen Nolan after a loose puck where I thought he should have shot, drops a pass pack to Mikko Koivu who finds Andrew Brunette on the other side of the net and he has a wide open net to bury the puck into. 4-1 Wizzy!
• Ugh. Wild play-by-play guy Dan Terhaar just asked color guy Mike Greenlay what it means when the puck makes a loud noise when it hits the goalie. Really?
• Little fisticuffs between Caaaaaaaal Cluttttterbuck and Ian White after a little bit of a push into the boards on Cluttttterbuck and the 2 teams came together to exchange pleasantries.
• PMB scores his 2nd of the nite on a breakaway! 5-1!

3rd Period

• I’d love to see the Wild keep up the pressure in the 3rd and not go into the defensive shell. We’ve given up way too many leads this season.
• Owen Nolan scores into a gaping net from way deep on the goal line. Marek Zidlicky to Brunette to Nolan to a vacated net. 6-1! Save some goals boys!

That’s about it. Great win and a great start to the 2nd half of the season.

Jots

• Tonite was Andrew Brunette’s 500th straight game played. Only the 4th NHL player in the last 16 years to get to 500 consecutive games played.
• What if PMB starts scoring consistently???
• What was with the Wild’s passing tonite? Seriously, if they passed like that in every game…

Return of the Fight for…the Playoffs
How things change in a year. Last year this segment was called the Fight to Hang the 1st Banner. They won the division, and then were bounced in the 1st round of the playoffs. This season it is just a fight to finish in the top 8 of the Western Conference. Gotta live in the now, so here goes.

At time of this post the Wild are in 10th place in the conference, 2 points out of the playoffs. As I mentioned in an earlier post, the next 3 weeks are critical if the Wild will make a run in the standings. Spots 5 thru 12 are separated by only 6 points. The Wild could conceivably finish as high as 5th with a nice run, or they could wind up playing golf in April.

Next
Wild are off until Friday, before taking on the Oil in Edmonton. The Oilers are losing at time of this post 7-1 to Buffalo at the 2nd intermission. The Oilers are 2 points ahead of the Wild so Friday will be a big game.

Coyotes @ Wild - Thurs 11-13 - View from the Recliner
Remember 2 weeks ago when the Wild went 0 for 10 or something like that on the PP v. Montreal? Tonite was the inverse if that game. The Wild scored all 4 of their goals on the PP including 2 5-on-3 nasty one-timer goals by D Marek Zidlicky. Those goals were Zidlicky's 1st MN Wild goals. Andrew Brunette and Eric Belanger scored the other goals for the Wild and Wild G Niklas Backstrom was solid again en-route to a shutout; 4-0 final.

The Wizzy pretty much dominated the game from the start and did not let the 'yotes in the game. Apparently the long layoff and line-shuffling that coach Jacques did paid off. Although I did find myself grumbling a few times when they didn't finish scoring opportunities. I was a little worried early that it could be one of those games we dominate but lose because we lack finishing ability. But the powerplay clicked and Phoenix kept putting us on the powerplay.

Brent Burns returned to the lineup at forward and Owen Nolan played the entire game. Nolan had a very strong game. He had a ton of chances and I hope he cab stay healthy for a while to give the Wild some scoring depth.

Andrew Brunette quietly has 6 goals already. 30 goals from Bruno this season would be huge.

Wild take on the Columbus Blue Jackets Saturday nite at the X. It's a game they should win and hopefully we'll see them string a few wins together and build some momentum going into December.

Wild @ Thrashers - 10-14-08 - View from My Recliner
Wild win 4-2 tonite, in front of about 13 people at Phillips Arena in Atlanta. All told the Wizzy played a pretty good game. Another slow start, but they got it going thanks to a bevy of power play opportunities.

Antti Miettinen
It’s early, and the sun shines on the blah blah sometimes, but Antti Miettinen sure seems to have some offensive promise. From what I remember he would show flashes in Dallas, but never was consistent. Well, he had both the game-winning and insurance goals for the Wild tonite. His 1st goal was on a semi-breakaway where he held off Thrasher D Mathieu Schneider and roofed a backhander over Thrasher G Kari Lehtonen. His 2nd goal came on a pretty give and go 3 on 2 with Wild F Andrew Brunette. He also had an assist on Bruno’s PP goal in the 1st period for a 3 point nite. Hopefully his new start in Minny is the key to realizing his potential.

Marian Gaborik Sighting
Gabby played a very strong game tonite. He had a handful of good scoring chances, and he scored a fabulous goal in the 3rd that gave the Wild the lead at 2-1. Brunette, Mikko Koivu, and Gaborik were pressuring as a Wild powerplay expired. Koivu got the puck to the front of the net where Schneider got control of the puck for Atlanta. Gabby lifted Schneider’s stick from behind and in one slick motion fired the puck past Lehtonen. And suddenly, I found myself really wanting Gabby to sign with the Wild.

Jots

• Andrew Brunette got his 1st goal of his 2nd tour of duty with the Wild on the PP in the 1st period.
• I am really falling in love with Marc-Andre Bergeron’s shot from the point. There are so many ways to score goals when you have defensemen that can shoot the puck…deflections, screens, rebounds, not to mention they can just go in, as happened in Saturday’s opener.
• James Sheppard is really starting to look like a hockey player. He is so much more noticeable on the ice, and he seems so much more confident this season.
• Possible injury issues already. F Pierre-Marc Bouchard is having back issues and has been flown back to the Twin Cities to rest. The Wild will for sure be without him for the final two games of the road trip. F Owen Nolan left in the 1st with some sort of lower body injury, prompting the Wild to call up Cal Clutterbuck from Houston. If these are lingering injuries, it could mean trouble for the Wild.

Next on the Docket – Wild @ Panthers – Thurs 10-16-08
The Wild should never lose to the Florida Panthers. Wild 3 Panthers 1

Time to dust off the blog a bit. Alot has gone on since I last posted, after some team other than the Wild skated around with Lord Stanley's Cup. The league is knee-deep in free agency. My thoughts on the things that come to mind so far...

Brian Rolston signs with New Jersey
I know we'll miss his big slapper and we'll have to replace his consistent 30 goals, but this doesn't dissappoint me too much. I enjoyed watching Roli, but I also remember getting pretty down on him throughout the season. He would disappear for strings of games at a time. He led the movement the players had to have the "optional" practice which I never really bought into. So while this is a loss, I'm not devastated.

Andrew Brunette Returns to Wild
I'm all about this signing. Bruno was a fan-favorite when everyone's favorite GM that isn't Kevin McHale let him go 3 years ago. Bruno had 3 good seasons in Colorado, he openly spoke about how much he missed Minnesota, and the deal to bring him back in free agency was done quicker than Chris Simon deciding to leave the country. Brunette can dish the puck...hopefully often to Gabby on the powerplay.

Wild Trade for Marek Zidlicky
Wild gave up a prospect and a draft pick, but they get another offensive defenseman to compliment Brent Burns and Kim Johnsson. Put it this way...do you want Pterri Nummellin or Marek Zidlicky?

Wild Trade for Marc-Andre Bergeron
I don't know much about Bergeron, but the Wild only gave up a 3rd round pick. If he will replace Keith Carney, sounds good to me.

Wild Lose Todd Fedoruk and Aaron Voros
Fedoruk signed with Phoenix, Voros with New York Rangers. While they were both lightning rods at times last year, they were bit players. There's a reason Fedoruk was on waivers and Voros was in the AHL. They can be replaced.

Pavol Demitra? Marian Gaborik?
So Pav has not signed anywhere so far. All the speculation said he would be going to Vancouver, but if it hasn't happened yet maybe that has cooled. It does not sound like the Wild have much interest either way and I'm fine with that. Demo had a bad year in 07-08.

With Marian Hossa signing a 1-year contract in Detroit another of Gabby's best buddies is not available for the Wild, and that will have an impact on Gabby's decision on re-upping with the Wild. This next year is the last in his existing contract. If Gabby resigns here this offseason I'll be shocked...which means expect this to be his last season in Minny.

Wild Loses Kristian Huselius to Columbus
Huselius went to Columbus for just under $5 M a year. How does the Wild lose a player to Columbus??? Marian Hossa didn't want to play here either. I'm getting an inferiority complex.

Chris Simon Goes to Russia
We'll miss ya Thugnation.

Well, that's what comes to mind as of right now. Look for more-frequent posts as free agency rolls along. We're only about 2 months or so from training camp. Also, don't be alarmed if I hijack this blog with a little Twins talk. Twins are on fiya, and suddenly the White Sox don't lose.

Oh, and my wife will be going into labor any...day...now...so look for more on that when I have news to share.