Marian Gaborik checked the rest of the way out of Minnesota on the first day of free agency, ultimately signing not with Vancouver as rumors persisted, but with the New York Rangers – the team he had his 5-goal game against. Yeah, good luck with that. MSG is where overpaid individual stars go to get injured and underachieve.

But this left Chuck Fletcher with a big hole. With all of his injury and attitude issues, obviously Gabby was the biggest talent. What would Doug Reisbrough have done? Likely nothing. But the new guy looking to make a name found someone interested in playing in Minnesota. Someone who needed a place to play after his team signed Marian Hossa. A guy who is a frequent Twitterer (@martinhavlat). Marty Havlat was probably the Hawk’s most talented player until the new kids arrived in the last couple years. He scores in pretty ways. He now has needed playoff experience, reaching the West Finals last season with the Hawks and scoring 5 goals during their run. And the biggest thing that makes him better than Gaborik in my eyes…he wants to be in “Minny.”

He may not have the same speed or talent, but I believe a team attitude will be so much more valuable to the Wild in this season and even more in the next few seasons. On a line with Mikko Koivu – there’s a lot of potential. I gotta believe he’s a 30-goal scorer if he stays healthy (yes, there’s injury baggage here too).

The Wild also went hard at Mikko Koivu’s older brother Saku. He did not sign with them, instead signing with the Anaheim Ducks. Sounds like the biggest reason he didn’t sign was he didn’t want to interfere with what Mikko has going on here. Mikko has turned into the #1 leader on this team and Saku apparently wanted to stay out of the limelight – allow Mikko to run the team. Pretty noble thing, but unfortunately it leaves the Wild a little short at center (pun intended, if Pierre-Marc Bouchard sees alot of time at the position). We will need to watch how that plays out.

Overall the team is improved personnel-wise over last season. It’ll take some time for them to gel, and possibly one more signing next summer, but I like the direction so far.

Coming next: Step 4 – Finally Roll Out an Alternate Jersey

This one really takes the cake. From the Does this Really Surprise You Bureau, unrestricted free agent and rehabbing Wild F Marian Gaborik met the press yesterday on a little conference call. During this call he said, and I’m paraphrasing, that during his rehab he hasn’t been watching the team’s games, he mentioned that he he is a free agent July 1, and he expects he will be back toward the end of the month, while the Wild have stated a return much sooner than that.

Are you kidding me? Is there any more proof that he does not want to be here? Ish. We’ll miss your offense Gabby, but we won’t miss your attitude.

Wasn’t that a Tesla song? They had more songs than “Signs” ya know…

Wild put together a very nice game tonite in Colorado. Niklas Backstrom got the shutout in net and Owen Nolan scored both Wild goals and the Wizzy win 2-0. Tonite’s game is how I envisioned the Wild needing to play to make the playoffs. Gritty on offense and very strong defensively. It helped that the Avs are not very good right now and can’t score goals, but we’ll take ‘em where we can get ‘em. And just like that the Wild are starting to look like a team that could make some headway.

FSN color guy Mike Greenlay made an interesting point. Actually I think it was a question from a fan via text message, but Greenlay answered it. It just might be that with Marian Gaborik having surgery tomorrow and now the team knows he will be out for most of the season, they now know they don’t have him waiting in the wings to “rescue” them. Each player knows that they need to get their job done and step up their games. The Gabby thing isn’t hanging over their heads anymore. So hopefully now they know what they need to do to beat teams. I harp on the the fact that the Wild are not very talented up front, especially without Gaborik, but if you think about it, a few of the Wild forwards have not lived up to expectations this year. Pierre-Marc Bouchard needs to find himself. James Sheppard has developed slowly (although he’s been good of late). Benoit Pouliot is back on coach Jacques’ bleep list. Andrew Brunette hasn’t scored in quite some time. Add to that the fact we’ve got a bunch of kids from Houston trying to play NHL hockey. It’s easy to see why it’s been a tough go the last month.

But the recent play of Owen Nolan has me fired up. If he can stay healthy, he gives this team grit, leadership, and a sense that they can persevere. Keep the “C” on Koivu, keep Nolan with the “A” and I think we’ll see the Wizzy build some character they will once again make us proud.

And if not, then we go after Risebrough. At least this fan is watching again.

Team USA
I am clearly not a great hockey mind. After recapping the USA v. Canada game in the WJC yesterday, and pontificating that the US could beat Canada if they played again, the US squad laid an absolute egg in today’s 1st quarterfinal game, losing to Slovakia 5-3. The US goalie was soft, letting in a couple goals from 10-15 feet out, and after being stopped on a couple breakaways and a penalty shot early, they could not muster enough to catch Slovakia, who was in command for the majority of the game. Another disappointing showing for USA in the WJC.

Groin-Gate 2009
It has been confirmed that Marian Gaborik will have surgery on his hip on Monday, a procedure that will have him missing 10-14 weeks. He could return just in time for the end of the regular season, which could be the start of the playoffs, or most likely the end of the year for the Wild unless things turn around in a hurry. Gabby may have played his last game in a Wild sweater.

Bulldog Bites
Minnesota Duluth beat Massachusetts Lowell 2-1 tonite in the Shillelagh Tournament…something in Illinois. That extends UMD’s unbeaten streak to 8 games, a nice surprise in this season. UMD will play Notre Dame Saturday nite.

I’ve been meaning to put up a random post for about 5 days now. Long layoff for the Wild gives me a chance to muse about things I normally wouldn’t write about. But alas, Wild play tomorrow, so here is said post.

Wild v. Lightning
I had no game recap for Saturday’s game v. Tampa Bay. We went to a  nice Oktoberfest party and I didn’t get to see any of the Wild’s 1st game v. Barry Melrose and Wes Walz. Apparently I didn’t miss much. The final was 1-0 Wild in a shootout, with Antti Miettinen scoring the SO winner.

Special Feature Coming Soon
I have family in the Dallas area, and my cousin Matt is a big Stars fan. We’re going to work on a new feature for this blog for the 4 Wild/Stars games this season. The Wild are in Dallas next Wed Oct 29th and Matt is planning to go to the game, so look for my recap as well as a recap guest post from him. We’ll try a couple other things throughout the season as well for the games v. the team that I believe should be our biggest rival. If they would just realign the divisions…

Gabby
Alot has been written in the mainstream media over the last few days about Marian Gaborik. Mostly the steam is that he is on the trading block because it does not seem that the team will be able to sign him. There are basically 2 sides to the Wild faithful on this issue…1 that says good riddance because he is an overpriced injury-prone prima donna…the 2nd that says we need Gabby in a Wild sweater to be successful.

I, like most under the Libra zodiac sign, tend to waffle. I see both sides to the argument and on any given day I might think if Gabby is gone we won’t score enough goals and we’ll miss the playoffs for the next 3 years. The next day I’ll be hatin’ on Gaborik and looking forward to the day the soap opera is over. But regardless of how I feel, Wild fans better get used to the idea of a Wild team without it’s superstar for the 1st time since it’s inception.

NHL.com
If you haven’t yet, head over to NHL.com and check it out. I have been very impressed with its redesign. The feature stories are interesting. In-game stats are elaborate on NHL Gamecenter. They do a great job of highlighting the game and its players. You can watch the highlights of every goal over the last 3 years, and the NHL Network Online application collects the best features from each team’s website. NHL.com is one thing I think the league is doing right in the marketing department.

KFAN’s Jeff Dubay
I’m not going to get into any speculation or anything here, but I did want to send out positive vibes to Jeff Dubay of KFAN’s PA and Dubay show. I have listened to PA and Dubay for probably around 7 or 8 years and I was disappointed to hear about the recent charges against Puff. I’m not going to pretend that I know what he is going through, but I do hope he pulls through OK and we can get back to hearing him on the FAN talkin’ hockey, Twins, and everything else Minnesota sports.

Tampa Bay Rays
Am I the only one rooting against the Rays in the World Series? The Twins should be the only under-achieving team winning in a bad stadium. FYI, they’re down 1-0 to the Phillies as of right…about…now.

Next on the Docket – Wild v. Sabres – Thurs Oct 23rd
Sabres are 5-0-1, Wild are 4-0. Something’s got to give…unless it goes to overtime. Should be a pretty fast-paced game. I’ll go with the Wild, 4-3.

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

Avalanche @ Wild - Western Conference Quarterfinals Game 5 - View from Section 209
No, I wasn't in mourning or anything...this post was late because I got home at midnite-thirty last nite. Also because I wanted to detach myself a little bit from the game. As most of you know, Wild lose 3-2 to Colorado in game 5 to take a 3-2 series lead in a game that the Wild absolutely dominated for 2 periods. Shots on goal were like 30-15 (give or take) after 2 periods. Jose Theodore was a freaking rock and kept the Wild off the scoreboard save for a 1st period powerplay goal by Pierre Marc Bouchard. The 2nd was such a fun period for the fans. The X was so loud, but every "aaaah" turned into "oooooh" instead of goal horn. It was very emotional and disappointing from a fan standpoint. I had troubles thinking about what I wanted to write. So, here it is.

Let's start with my keys for the Wild to win from the previous post...let's see which ones happened.

• Thugnation plays smarter - Yep
• Wild score in 1st or 2nd period - Yep
• Gabby gets at least a point - Not so much
• Thugnation plays smarter - Yep
• D-men get their wind back - Only Til the 3rd
• Sean Hill doesn't fall over - Didn't fall over, but took a penalty that led to the go ahead goal
• Jose Theodore actually allows goals - Theodore was even better
• Thugnation plays smarter - Yep
• Crowd is off the hook - Yep

Unfortunately listing Thugnation's mild manner 3 times wasn't enough to overshadow the things that didn't happen. Gabby is now trying too hard, attempting to create what isn't there and fanning on one-timers to open nets. Adding Eric Reitz into the defensive corps was a good move and he played well, but in my opinion it should have been for Sean Hill, not Pterri Nummelin. Because Sean Hill is old and can't keep up with most forwards, he had to hook someone after a defensive-zone turnover. And Jose Theodore has clearly made a pact with someone unsavory as he is stopping everything that the Wild throw at him.

The crowd at the X was great. From the opening video on it was bonkers. So loud. The Wild finally get a 1st period goal, but it was to tie the game, not the 1st goal of the game. In the 2nd, they played so well, they pressed so hard, but they couldn't get anything by Theodore. What Theodore didn't stop hit the posts. The puck was in the Avs zone for what seemed like the entire period. It seemed they had finally gotten one by Theodore when Pavol Demitra fired one past Theodore from the blue line on the rush, but someone, I'm not even sure who it was, skated into the zone before Demo got the puck past the blue line. Go from pandemonium to what is going on in the crowd. Grrr.

In the 2nd intermission, the place just didn't have a good vibe. Everyone was so into the 2nd but to not score...definitely came down from a high. They put Caps v. Flyers 2nd OT on the video board (and on the ice...that was cool) and I'm not sure who was paying attention, but I was, and there wasn't alot of flow to it. When the boys came out, instead of the whole place loud, cheering, waving towels like before the game and before the 2nd period, it was only a handful of people. The place just seemed drained, and so did the Wild. Mikko Koivu turned the puck over in the defensive zone, that led to the Hill penalty, and the Avs scored on the powerplay. So you're thinkin...ok...there's time left to tie it up...but Paul Stastney broke out of his scoring drought in a big way with a pretty top-shelf backhand to beat Backstrom, and that was all she wrote. The Wild were barely able to get the puck in the Avs zone the rest of the period. Brian Rolston's goal from the point off a faceoff with 2.5 seconds left added to the frustration. It was your typical hockey gods laughing at the irony of too little too late after playing a great game. The hockey gods are interfering way too much in this series - Andrew Brunette scored his 3rd of the series tonite too.

Fight to Bring the Cup to St. Paul
They're really going to have to fight now. Avs lead the series 3-2. Wild need to win the next 2 to continue the fight.

Next on the Docket - Wild @ Avalanche - Sat 4-19-08
Do or die. Win or go home. Play hockey Monday or dust off the golf clubs Monday. Which will it be? If the Wild can play remotely like they did in the 1st and 2nd last nite you would think eventually a couple would go in. Gabby has got to get lose. If he does, we might see the floodgates open and it would be on for game 7. In what could be my last prediction of the season: Wild 4 Avs 1

Flames @ Wild - 4-3-08 - Envious View from Recliner

Thanks to Wild.com for the beauty logo!

In a game I would have absolutely loved to attend, tonite the Wild finally beat Calgary, 3-1, and in doing so wrapped up the Northwest Division championship. The Wild will finally hang their first championship banner in the Xcel Energy Center rafters at the home opener next season, and with a little smile from the hockey gods, maybe it will be joined by a couple more.

This game was so hyped, by everyone from Kevin Faulness and the Wild Pondcast, to Mark Parrish on PA and Dubay on KFAN, to the every one of the Wild Blogs. Regardless of the possibility of letdown, we let down our guard and bought in to the hype. Regardless of the possibility of jinxing the team, we all predicted a win and a NW division title. And, this time, the Wild absolutely lived up to the hype.

The Wizzy played a very solid game tonite. After giving up an early powerplay goal and withstanding some shaky defense early, they tied it shortly after with a Pavol Demitra to Todd Fedoruk powerplay goal of their own to tie it up. After that, the Wild pretty much dominated. They put on some good pressure, specifically after Stephane Veilleux was leveled by Dion Phaneuf. Brent Burns was all over Phaneuf, and the Wild had an edge the rest of the game.

They didn't score in the 2nd, but most of the time the puck was in the Flames zone.

In the 3rd, it was on. Marian Gaborik chipped a puck by the Flames defenseman to go in from the left circle and fired a nasty wrister by Flames G Mikka Kipprusof for the 2-1 lead. Gabby scored again, but the refs horribly waved off the goal, saying that Kiprusoff had the puck covered and that he was "about to blow the whistle." Seriously, the puck was never covered by Kiprusoff and slid over the goal line. But, even after review, it was waved off. That could have been bad news, but Gabby rescored the goal with somewhere around 5 minutes left in the game, on the powerplay, and the Wild kept the Flames from anything remotely resembling a scoring chance the rest of the way.

Oh, and Jacques Lemaire won his 500th game tonite. What a sweet way to get that milestone victory.

Shoutout to the Crowd at the X
I mentioned earlier that the crowd was a key to this game, and I've been on the Xcel crowd most of the season for waiting for something to happen before they got into the game. Tonite, the crowd was excellent and it came across loud on the 45. Probably the loudest "Let's Play Hockey" for the opening faceoff I've ever heard, an early "Let's Go Wild" chant, lustily booing the waved off goal, and all the way through to the standing ovation with 2:30 left in the game, the crowd really stepped up tonite. Props to anyone that was there in person.

Fight to Hang the 1st Banner
Banner will be hung in October.

Fight to Bring the Cup to St Paul
Aaah, new theme. With only 1 game left in the regular season that doesn't have much meaning, the Wild can now focus on the playoffs. Winning the NW division locks them into the 3rd seed in the Western Conference. Depending on what happens in their last game of the year, our 1st round matchup could be Colorado, Calgary, or even Nashville, and I think an outside possibility of Dallas. I'm not really concerned with who it winds up being, because I believe that when this team is confident it can beat any team. So bring on game 1 at the X.

Next on the Docket - Wild @ Avalanche - Sun 4-5-08
As mentioned, this game doesn't mean too much. I do think it is important for a couple reasons tho. 1st, to avoid injuries. 2nd, to avoid a letdown and keep up the intensity to head into the playoffs. 3rd, because it could be a playoff preview. I think they'll probably rest a few guys, and I think there's no way they totally avoid a letdown. Avs 4 Wild 1

Avalanche @ Wild - 3-30-08 - View from the Recliner
Lotta good things happened today. It was an extreemly successful day of watching hockey for me today. I'll run it down:

Game of the Week on NBC - Rangers v. Penguins
I like the GOTW on NBC cause it's a nice early start and it's almost always an east coast matchup, usually the Pens, so if I miss it it's not a big deal, but if I can watch, it doesn't interfere with anything esle. Wasn't really watching this game, but it was on in the background while I was putting primer on the trim in the nursery. Not too much vested interest in who won, but if I were to root for one of them it would be the Pens, and they won 3-1. Most important thing is that more progress was made on the nursery...actual paint next weekend!

NCAA Regional Final #1 - Boston College v. Miami Ohio
Saw the OT in this game. BC won to deny Miami their first trip to the Frozen Four. Again, didn't really care who won.

NCAA Regional Final #2 - Wisconsin v. North Dakota
Not a fan of either of these teams, however, my wife and mother in law are HUGE UND fans, so I become a Sioux fan when the UMD Bulldogs finish the year, and that's usually as soon as the playoffs start. Bucky Badger shouldn't even have made the tournament with a sub-500 record, and this game was played in Madison so it was a home game for them. Made me really want UND to win. Bucky carried the play through the 1st and 2nd periods, but Nodak woke up and scored 2 quick goals in the 3rd and won it in OT. The Sioux go to the Frozen Four for the 3rd straight year, and 15th overall. The Frozen Four is now set: North Dakota v. Boston College and Notre Dame v. Michigan. Games are Thursday April 10th from Denver on ESPN2.

Avs v. Wild
This was the main event. Another big NW division game, and this on in HD. The Wild knew they had clinched a playoff spot before this game even started, because Nashville lost to Detroit in OT, so there is no way the Wild could finish any worse than 8th in the Western Conference.

The Wild came out fast in the 1st and carried play. Brian Rolston (his 30th) and Marian Gaborik scored to take a 2-0 lead to intermission. But, as a team who is fighting to stay in the playoffs is want to do, the Avs fought back and tied it in the 2nd. It was a reversal of the 1st. Colorado dominated the 2nd. The 3rd was pretty even. The Wild hit a couple posts, Backstrom made a couple good saves, and we go to OT.

Pretty good OT period. Colorado really needed the extra point, but the Wild denied them. Gabby and Pavol Demitra broke out on a 2 on 1 with just under 2 minutes remaining. Gabby dished to Demo, Demo corralled a bouncing puck, then sent it back to Gabby for the tip in. Crowd bananas. Gabby, 40th goal and 80th point. Sit it down Jeff Finger. The Wild get the extra point that will be huge in the quest for the NW division title.

Calgary @ Vancouver
Watched this game on NHL Network. The perfect finish to this day is Vancouver winning in regulation, 6-2. Keenan pulled Kipprosoff in the 2nd after the 4th goal. The Canucks really showed up for this one; I thought they were done after Friday's game at the X. The win also puts them back ahead of Nashville for that last playoff spot. Oh, and Jerome Iginla got into it with Matt Cooke's prodigy Alex Burrows.

Braves @ Nationals
Not hockey, but the Nat's new stadium looks pretty sweet. Only 2 more years left at Metrodome!

Jots

• Liked Eric Belanger's game tonite
• Backstrom was solid positionally
• Good to see Gabby get 2 tonite after getting alot of chances Friday without scoring...40 goals for the kid
• A quick check of Wild.com revealed 2 things: Playoff tickets go on sale Saturday morning and they're going with the same playoff slogan as last year, "Fight to the End." Hopefully this year's end isn't as quick as last year.

Fight to Hang the 1st Banner
2 more points for the Wild is huge down the stretch. Calgary loses, so now it's Colorado 4 points back and Calgary 5 points back. Colorado has 2 games left, so they can earn 4 points. If that happens and they tie the Wild, the Avs would have the tiebreak over the Wild with more wins.

Calgary has 3 games left so they can still earn 6 points and take over the NW outright.

Next on the Docket - Flames @ Wild - Thurs 4-3-08
Wild are off until Thursday, and Calgary will finally make up that game in hand. Whatever happens in that Flames game @ Edmonton Tuesday, a Wild win Thursday and wins the division. If you remember, last month the Flames came to the X a point behind the Wild for the NW lead. Flames won that game. I think I need to find some tix. I'd hate to have to watch this one on the 45. Wild 3 Flames 2

Post-Script
I'll be at Angels v. Twins @ Metrodome for the Twins 2008 opener tomorrow nite. My prediction? 2 HRs for Torii Hunter v. Livan Hernandez. They're talking blizzard here for the 2nd to last Twins home opener indoors.

Canucks @ Wild - 3-28-08 - View from Section 216
I'm dead tired right now. Spent alot of energy at the Wild game tonite and the sore throat I woke up with this morning will most likely be a full-blown deal tomorrow. But it was well worth it.

Wild win 4-0 tonite over a Vancouver team that looks like they have nothing left. The Wild played an excellent game, dominating for all 3 periods. They scored 2 on the powerplay, another just as the powerplay expired, and there were fisticuffs in the 3rd. The Canucks continued to be the thugs that Minnesota fans love to hate.

Goals
1st period goals from Pierre-Marc Bouchard and Mikko Koivu, and 2nd period goals from Brent Burns and Todd Fedoruk. All very nice goals, Koivu's was very pretty. He snuck out from behind the goal line and slipped it through G Roberto Luongo's 5 hole. Fedoruk's goal was on a 2 on 1 with Marian Gaborik, where Gabby set Fridge up with a late pass.

Fights
It was relatively calm in the 1st and 2nd, but all heck broke loose in the 3rd. Derek Boogaard went with someone, can't remember who, but he took care of bidness. Then, after Canuck Alexe Burrows apparently speared PMB, so PMB gave him a two-handed slash to the back of his leg. That got the two teams together, and PMB and Burrows fought, along with Brent Burns absolutely pummeling Nathan McIver. I mean just laying into him. Everyone else paired off, and it took a good 10 minutes to settle everyone down and sort out the penalties. During the stoppage, the Xcel crowd turned in a quality"Let's go Wi-ld" chant. It was a nicely riled up crowd that enjoyed Friday nite at the X.

Jots

• Niklas Backstrom gets his 4th shutout of the season. The D was very good in front of him, blocking shots and clearing rebounds in a timely manner.
• Sean Hill was very solid again tonite. He made a couple great plays on D to stop scoring chances and also had an assist.
• The new tough-guy philosophy seems to be paying off so far. I said to my wife on the walk down the stairs that the Wild certainly haven't had a team like this before, that would welcome the physical play and had multiple players that don't back down from fights.
• Gabby looked very good tonite. the 2 on 1 with Fridge, a breakaway in the 2nd, drew a penalty in the 1st, another 2 on 1 in the 3rd, and a couple nice shots. He didn't score, but the chances were there.
• Was good to chase Luongo out of the nets, but can you blame the guy for not being focused? His wife just had their first child yesterday.
• At the end of the day, Vancouver is in 9th and out of the playoffs thanks to a tiebreaker held by Nashville. The production crew at the X didn't waste time putting that up on the scoreboard either.

 
Fight to Hang the 1st Banner
Wild now with 93 points, Calgary with 90, but Calgary now has 2 games in hand. They play Edmonton tomorrow nite in Calgary. Colorado came back to beat Edmonton in OT tonite, so they are now at 88 points, 5 back of the Wild.

The Wild are 1 point away from clinching a playoff birth.

Next on the Docket - Avalanche @ Wild - Sun 3-30-08
Can the Wild continue their solid play? They look to be on a nice roll, and I think this one is going to last into the playoffs. This game is scheduled for FSN in HD, so plan on a good lookin W. Wild 3 Avs 2

Just a quick follow-up to a post I made a few weeks ago about Alex Ovechkin pushing for 60 goals. At the time he had 54, and as of tonite he has 61.

I'm pretty excited he got to 60. It means that the NHL has indeed opened up some in the past few years. Ovechkin is obviously very talented, but the cool thing is that he is genuinely excited for his team's success. He celebrates his own goals, and he also celebrates his teammates with just as much exuberance.

Gabby could learn a thing or two.

Oilers @ Wild - 3-26-08 - View from the Couch
Very nice 3-1 win tonite. It was an important win as the Wild played a much better game than just Monday in Edmonton. Tonite the defense was much better, Mikko Koivu was awesome, and Marian Gaborik was great.

The team seemed much more focused in this one, and they jumped out to a 3-0 lead by midway through the 2nd. An early goal from Branko Radivojevic thanks to a pretty dish from Gabby, a powerplay goal by Sean Hill on a pretty tic-tac-toe passing play started by Gabby, Radivojevic, and Koivu, and a shorthanded goal where Koivu hit Brian Rolston driving to the net for a nice five-hole goal.

Defense supported very well, and they cut down the ugly turnovers. There were still a couple, specifically one by one by Nick Schultz that led to a post by Gagne, but all-in-all the Wild were in control of this game from the start.

Jots

• Since I took the time to watch this game, it was good to see Eric Belanger back in the lineup. He didn't figure in the scoring, but it had kind of a calming effect. At least on me.
• Mark Parrish got to play, but didn't do much. He had one opportunity in close on Edmonton G Dwayne Roloson, but he missed the net short-side.
• Speaking of Roloson, I really like watching him lose. Did anyone really believe he was hurt when Boogaard crashed into him?
• The Oil looked like a team that has finally run out of steam as a result of the hard push they've made to get into playoff contention. I think they're about spent.
• When was the last time the Wild had a shortie?
• Sean Hill with 2 goals in his last 2 games...he's on fi-a!

Fight to Hang the 1st Banner
With the win, the Wild regain the division lead again over Calgary, by 1 point. Calgary with 5 games left, Wild 4, so the game at Xcel v. Calgary on April 3rd will likely be huge. Colorado beat Vancouver 6-3, so they jump into 3rd, 3 pts behind the Wild. Vancouver is now 5 pts back.

Next on the Docket - Canucks @ Wild - Fri 3-26-08
When I chose this game back when we divvied up games in September, my thoughts were that it could be for the NW division title. It's not quite that, but it is still a big game for the Wild. I expect them to continue high-intensity, and I expect them to win my final game of the year in section 216. Wild 5 Canucks 2

Wild @ Sharks - 3-19-08 - View from the Home Office
Missed the 1st period tonite. Well, most of it. Tuned in just in time to see the Wild give up a 3 on 1 goal that was eventually put in by Jeremy Roenick. I hate when old mouth runners score against us. Luckily the Wild's new #1 player Stephane Veilliux tied the game shortly into the 2nd, and all is well.

Watching the game while I officially do our taxes for the year. Last 2 years since we bought the house we've gone to H&R Block but this year after thinking about paying them $200 I decided to try and do it online. So this might turn into sort of a pseudo live blog. I'll type write as I see something eventful.

Oh bugger, SJ just scored. Backstrom should have stopped that one. Just a backhander that got by his glove top-shelf.

Kurtis Foster just slammed into the wall hard. Homer Terhar talking about it being an ugly cheap shot, and at 1st I dismissed it as normal Terhar, but as I watch the replay it looks like Torrey Mitchell gave him a push into the boards. His knee went 1st into the boards. I wouldn't call it a cheap shot, but it looks like Foster is hurt pretty bad. He's being carried off in a stretcher and screaming in pain when they move him. Looks like a leg or knee. Mitchell gets a tripping penalty. Interesting and classy that Jeremy Roenick is helping the group get him on the stretcher. Picture all trainers, Wild players, and Roenick watching the process of getting him off the ice. JR is a classy old mouth runner.

Wild have had a few chances. I missed a 2 on 1 and a breakaway in the 1st, and we just had a nice odd man rush with Rolston missing the net late in the 2nd.

Marian Gaborik gets a PP goal early in the 3rd to tie it at 2. He's got a couple goals in the last few games so it looks like he's starting to score again, and should get to 40 goals by the end of the year. That bodes well for our playoff chances.

Aaah, that bites. Just 2 minutes from gaining a big point in the standings, Joe Pavelski turns and fires a quick shot point blank and it deflects somewhere and over Backstrom. It was either off Johnsson or Backstrom's stick.

Wild put on some good pressure in the last 2 minutes and get a 40-second power play. And with 28 seconds left, Gabby connects on a one-timer from the slot to tie it up, with Todd Fedoruk screening SJ G Nabokov quite well. Déjà vu of a week ago at the X and we go to OT.

Wild have had 2 great chances to win the game in the OT. A Rolston slapper that he broke his stick on, and a 2 on 1 for Mikko Koivu and Kim Johnsson. Didn't turn out tho. Then Patrick Marleau had a great opportunity in alone on Backstrom but he missed the net. We go to shootout. I'm assuming a Sharks win given the Wild's shootout prowess.

True to form, Backstrom looked pretty bad in the shootout giving up goals to Pavelski and Roenick. Brent Burns scored a nice goal that he got to trickle through the five-hole because he fired it so hard. Gabby was stopped after a nice attempt. He got full speed through center ice and put on a deke, but Nabokov got the right pad out and then stopped Koivu to seal the xtra point.

All-in-all, nice work getting the point against a good team in the Shark Tank. This game was almost identical to last Sunday's game at the X. And SJ keeps on keepin on.

A final parting shot - did Mark Parrish play tonite?

Fight to Hang the 1st Banner
All other Northwest teams were off tonite. The Wild go to 3 points up on Vancouver, Calgary, and Colorado in the NW, and 7 points up of Nashville for that last playoff spot. 8 games left for the Wild and Colorado, 9 for Vancouver and Calgary. They'll catch up in games played tomorrow. It's NW division games from here on out. Buckle up!

Next on the Docket - Wild @ Vancouver - Fri 3-21-08
Crunch time begins now. I like the Wizzy. We've played well against the Canuck this year. Mikko Koivu gets real pumped to play against them, and Willie Mitchell likes to talk. If they stay true to the not too up not to down mentality, they can win this game. Wild 4 Canucks 2

Kings @ Wild - 3-15-08 - View from the Recliner
Tonite the Wild and more specifically a Wild goaltender did something I've been calling for for a long time...went out and shut a team out. Wild win 2-0 over the Kings tonite. Niklas Backstrom didn't have to be great...I actually can't remember any standout saves, but the important thing is he didn't let in any soft goals and kept the rebounds to an acceptable level. The Wild got an important win over a bad team. They had to work for it, but they put in the work and got the W, and 2 points to tie Colorado for the NW division lead.

Goals came from Brian Rolston and Marian Gaborik. Mikko Koivu was strong, and I thought new call up and much maligned Benoit Pouliot had an excellent game. He was quick, on the puck, and had a few very nice physical plays to knock players off the puck. Maybe getting his face pounded into the ice a couple weeks ago gave him new perspective.

The Wild continued to ride this scoring draught into at least mediocre success. They've got at least 1 point in their last 4 at a time they're not scoring and everyone in Minnesota thinks the world is coming to an end. If it turns around they will be in good position. We're about to hit that stretch of games against the NW that will tell the story. 10 games left, 9 of them against the NW division.

Fight to Hang the 1st Banner
Colorado lost to New Jersey 4-2 so the Wild are back into a tie with the Avs for 1st. Calgary was off, so they're now 2 points back. Oh and Vancouver won too, so they're 2 points back. Seriously...who knows who's going to win this thing?

Fight to Stay in the Playoffs
Nashville won today so the Wild are up 4 points on the final playoff spot.

Next on the Docket - Avalanche @ Wild - 3-17-08
This game is not important at all...just because the teams are tied for 1st with 10 games remaining doesn't mean much... Wild 3 Avs 1

Devils @ Wild - 3-13-06 - A View from the Couch
In my earlier post today, I mentioned I had a very positive outlook on tonite's game. Sun shining gave way to birds singing, snow melting, and in theory, a Wild victory, righting the sinking ship. Those birds kept singing until 7 minutes left in the 3rd period. They completely fell asleep when Jamie Langenbrunner easily deked Niklas Backstrom (that's different) to win the shootout and the game for the Devils.

Wild did play a pretty good game tonite. Great 1st period resulted in a 2-0 lead. Bad 2nd period allowed NJ to tie the game, and then Koivu to stickhandle nicely to set up Gabby for his 1st goal in like 85 games. Good 3rd period up until Backstrom was scored on from a bad angle again. This time it was sort of on a hockey move instead of a shot from 15 feet out and behind the goal line, but still a save he should have made. He shouldn't have followed Danius Zubrus to the front of the net, because he never went there. I don't know what to make of the OT. Wild dominated after the ugly minute-long power play, but didn't ever shoot the puck. Skoula and PMB combined for like 30 seconds of skating around the offensive zone, never getting a shot at Martaaay Brodeur. That was frustrating. And of course, the shootout was bad for the Wild. They could not score a goal and Backstrom was beat 3 times, even though only one of the goals went in. Langenbrunner's winning goal was fitting, given he had like 100 friends and family in from Cloquet, and that I have always liked him as a player, and that earlier in the game I called him old. Oh, and he almost caused me to break my TV. I childishly threw my goal light remote on the floor and it bounced up and hit the TV. No damage tho. (What, you don't have a goal light?)

I guess it's positive. They had alot of great scoring opportunities tonite and Brodeur either got lucky or made the good save. The team sounded pretty upbeat in the postgame interviews. Stephane Veilleux and Mikko Koivu both were encouraged that they played a good game, and that if they keep playing that way things will go their way. I hope they're right.

Fight to Hang the 1st Banner
At time of this post, Colorado has a 5-1 lead on Edmonton in the 3rd, so they'll be in 1st by 2 pts at the end of the day.  Atlanta miraculously came back on Calgary to win 6-4, so the Wild and Calgary are tied for 2nd. Vancouver could pull into that same tie for 2nd if they beat Phoenix, but right now it is 1-0 Coyotes at the 2nd intermission. C'mon 'Yotes!

Seen in the Crowd
Props to a couple of my co-workers, Kristie and Karen, who got alot of high-definition face time tonite on FSN behind the Wild bench. One of the highlights was during the break before the shootout...they seemed to be mimicking the coaches writing out the shootout lineup. Beauty work!

Next on the Docket - Kings @ Wild - Sat 3-15-08
We'll see if the last 2 shootout losses against good teams really were good for the Wild's psyche against the lowly Kings. I'd like to see Josh Harding in net. I expect a win. Wild 4 Kings 1

Blackhawks @ Wild - 3-4-08 - View from the Couch
Uuuuuugh. Why does the Wild make every goalie we play look like a cross of Dominic Hasek, Patrick Roy, and Martin Brodeur? At least we could score on Roy. Seriously...we may just need to score a few more goals to make a run in the playoffs. Or to make the playoffs.

Ok, maybe I've gotten the frustration out of my system. Wild lose to the Blackhawks again, this time 4-2. First win at the X for the Blackhawks since 2002. They 'Hawks are playing do or die right now, trying to get back in the playoff picture, so you expected a hard-fought game. Wild played decent. Really can't fault them on 2 of the goals I guess. One was a deflection. Another was a nice mid-air tip that almost was a high-stick. Still, the big problem here is goal scoring. Again the Wild out-chanced the opposing team but can not bury anything. Pavol Demitra's goal in the 1st was good...a pretty cross-ice pass from Gabby. The other goal was pretty nice too...Kim Johnsson cut through the 'Hawks defense and Stephane Veilleux cleaned it up. Still, 2 goals won't get the job done.

They had so many chances. Gabby and Demo had a 2 on 0 they couldn't put in. They crashed the net nicely in the 3rd. But it's just not goin' in right now. That trend needs to change now.

Jots

• Wild played an inspired first 6 minutes of the 1st. Nice departure from the uninspiring 1st periods we've seen of late.
• Eric Belanger got a goal. For the 'Hawks...What if he would have had his stick on the ice for Gabby's dish with 15 seconds left?
• Good to see Johnsson figure in the offense.
• How come I've never heard of Chicago F Dustin Byfuglien? He's from Roseau. He's 6'3". He's 250 lbs. He's got 14 goals this season. He also got the GW tonite. Go back to Roseau Dustin!
• What's Chris Simon adding to this team that Aaron Voros wasn't?
• Obviously I don't know what Gabby said to the ref to get the unsportsmanlike penalty late in the game, but that's the 2nd time he's done that this season, at least. Not a great trait of a captain, especially late in the game when you're pressing for a tying goal, to have your most offensive player in the box.

Fight to Hang the 1st Banner
Back to a tie for 1st in the NW. Calgary beat Columbus 1-0 and Colorado beat Vancouver 2-1. Colorado is now 3 pts behind us. BTW, Peter Forsberg made his 2008 debut tonite for Colorado.

Next on the Docket - Wild @ Hurricanes - Thurs 3-6-08
Carolina leads the Southeast division by 3 pts over Washington, so they're a playoff team. They play at Atlanta tomorrow so it'll be a back to back for them, but the Wild can't win in that situation of late. Rod Brind'Amour is on the DL with knee surgery, but Eric Staal has 31 goals and Cam Ward is having a nice comeback year. Wild will need to play a quality game to get this one - maybe even score a few goals. Hurricanes 4 Wild 2

Marian Gaborik Named March Captian
Thought I would chime in on this. I've read a couple bloggers today talking about how it's a bad thing that Gabby is captain for the first time in his career. I can understand those sentiments. Gabby often talks like he is more important than the team. Often he acts depressed if he isn't scoring. He isn't what I think of when I think "team."

But it seems this is part of Coach Lemaire's mind game. Seems he is doing it to motivate Gabby. Gabby likes to be important. We need Gabby motivated to make a playoff run. Coach Lemaire knows how to motivate. So if this is it, I'm all for it. No point in berading the point that Gabby isn't a team guy if it will help string together 3 months of wins.

Predators @ Wild - 2-17-08 - A View from My Couch
Wild win 5-4 in OT tonite, in dramatic fashion. The game was really a mixed bag. I don't remember a game where the Wild scored such pretty goals. Frustratingly, the Wild gave up 2 2-goal leads, and were forced into the OT by a charging Nashville squad. Looked like we were destined for a shootout, but Demo and Gabby pulled off a pretty 2 on 1 to win it.

All 5 goals were skill goals. Here's a quick recap...

• Pterri Nummelin with a breakaway all alone from the blueline thanks to a pretty pass from Eric Belanger. Nummelin scored on one of his patented shootout moves.
• Mark Parrish on a beautiful give-and-go from Marian Gaborik.
• Pierre-Marc Bouchard with the move of the year. On the power play, PMB skated into the zone and all 4 Preds closed in on him. He stickhandles the puck between 2 of them and goes in on Preds G Chris Mason all alone. He beats him with a top-shelf backhander. Then his price tag went up to sign him this summer.
• Marian Gaborik, with a delayed penalty being called on Nashville, came on the ice as the extra attacker. PMB was down low and found Gabby streaking in. Gabby put a little deke on Mason and buried it.
• With about 10 seconds left in overtime, Pavol Demitra picked up the puck at center ice and started in against 1 Preds defender. Marian Gaborik came out of nowhere, streaking in for a 2 on 1. Demo lifted a pretty saucer pass over the Preds D, and Gabby one-timed it past Mason for the win, with only 4.4 seconds left.

Check out the highlights here.

Jots

• At least Eric Belanger factored in the scoring. He made the long pass to Nummelin for the Wild's 1st goal. Hopefully it's a sign he's ready to actually score a goal again.
• If you saw Michael Russo on the Wild Live after the game on FSN, how come he looks so much different from his picture on his Star Tribune blog?
• The Wild seemed to get a little nonchalant after they were up 3-1 and 4-2. That led to untimely penatlies, which led to a tie game and overtime.
• Shoddy officiating tonite. Two of the Preds goals could have been waived off, and there were a few penalties I would have called that were not called.
• Backstrom could have been better. When's Harding going to play again?

The Fight to Hang the 1st Banner
The stars aligned tonite in the NW division. Wild get 2 pts, Colorado lost 2-1 to Chicago and Calgary lost 4-2 to Anaheim. With 23 games left for all 4 teams that matter in the NW, the Wild are now up 6 points on Vancouver and Calgary, and 7 on Colorado.

Next on the Docket - Canucks @ Wild - Tues 2-19-08
Another big Northwest division matchup Tuesday nite. They just keep coming. The Wild are rolling right now, and the Canucks aren't. Let's hope that continues. Wild 2 Canucks 1

Wild @ Oilers - 2-14-08 - A View from My Couch
Today at work we had a strengths workshop, and we were given bracelets to wear to help remember not to be negative or complain. So I'm going with resilliance in this game. Wild win 5-4 in the shootout.

What a goofy game. I absolutely ran the gammut of emotions. I felt fortunate because Stephane Velliux scored twice and it looked promising to get a W. Frustration of a late 2nd and early 3rd period goals by Vancouver to tie. Anger that Vancouver scored a 3rd goal to take the lead. Apathy until surprise that Kurtis Foster scored against G Roberto Luongo to tie it at 3. Extreeme fired-upness on Gabby's pretty pretty goal to take the 4-3. Are-you-kidding-meness after Vancouver tied it with 3 minutes left. Ok, I'm making up words. But if Roger Clemens can do it...

At the end, it was relief. Relief that the game was over, that the Wild had picked up 2 very important points, thanks to Mikko Koivu's game-winning shootout goal. Amidst the boos from the GM Place crowd, Koivu perservered and ended the game. The Wizzy sure can make Luongo look bad.

Happy B-Day Gabby
FSN had a nice feature in the 2nd intermission about the milestones Marian Gaborik has had in his years with the Wild. He then celebrated his 26th birthday with an awesome individual effort to give the Wild a short-lived lead. He cut parallel to the goal line in between 2 or 3 Canucks, flipped the puck in the air, let it bounce, and caught his "pass" and fired a quick wrister that surprised Luongo. I liked it...alot.

The Fight to Hang the 1st Banner
The Wild pick up 2 points, Calgary was off, and Colorado lost to St. Louis. It was a good nite, although now Calgary has a game in hand. That give us 4-points over the Flame and 5-points over the 'Lanche. However, with the point tonight, the Canuck sortof keeps pace; they're 6 points back. The Wild have 24 games left.

I wanted to do a magic number bit, but it appears they are way complicated in hockey, thanks to the 2-1-0 scoring system.

Next on the Docket - Predators @ Wild - Sun 2-17-08
Aaaah, the boys will be back home for 2. Sunday has the Preds, then we get the Canucks again. The Preds are in the playoff meatgrinder, currenly in the playoffs by 2 points. They will be in town on the 2nd nite of a back-to-back with the Wild getting 2 nites off. Advantage Wild. I also hope to see Josh Harding in net. Wild 3 Preds 1

Wild @ Oilers - 2-12-08 - A View from My Couch
Who ever heard of outshooting a team 21-4 in a period and being outscored 1-0 for the period. That was the tale of tonight's game, a 4-2 loss to the Oil. The Wild really dominated the first two periods but Oilers G Mathieu Garon played a great game, and Wild G Niklas Backstrom let in a couple softies. Coach Jaques even made a goaltender change, bringing in Josh Harding to start the 3rd period. Apparently they used all their energy and chances in the first 2 periods. Harding was equally shaky and gave up 2 more goals, although he was hung out to dry by the Wild defense on one of them, and the Wild never had much of a sniff but for a late goal by Mark Parrish.

Hopefully the Wild can rediscover their scoring touch soon.

The Fight to Hang the 1st Banner
The Wizzy got some help tonite. Anaheim beat Colorado 2-1 with a late goal. Teemu Selane also got his 1st goal of the year in that one. As of this post, Calgary and San Jose are tied 2-2 at the 2nd intermission. So the nite will finish with the Wild still up either 2 or 3 points in the Northwest.

Jots

• Appears I have to get motivational again. Eric "Todd White" Belanger has all but vanished. I was a huge fan at the beginning of the year, but he isn't scoring right now. Appears people were right that said he's the same player as White.
• Gabby wearing the "A" is silly looking.
• I hate "Thee Oilers goal..."
• With the lone meaningful Wild goal tonite, Demo has a nice scoring stretch going.

Next on the Docket - Wild @ Canucks - Thurs 2-14-08
Gotta...win...this...game. Let's see if a goalie can give us a good performance. Wild 2 Canucks 0