2.15 Goals per Game (29th in NHL)
3.15 Goals Against per Game (21st in NHL)
21.7% Power Play (14th in NHL)
87.2% Penalty Kill (1st in NHL)
Top 5 Scorers:
1. #9 Mikko Koivu ~ 3G 9A = 12pts
2. #15 Andrew Brunette ~ 7G 4A = 11pts
3. #25 Eric Belanger ~ 3G 8A = 11pts
4. #14 Martin Havlat ~ 1G 5A = 6pts
5. #3 Marek Zidlicky ~ 0G 6A = 6pts
Top 3 Penalty Minutes:
1. #34 Shane Hnidy ~ 18PIM's
2. #36 John Scott ~ 16PIM's
3. #67 Beniot Pouliot ~ 12PIM's
Goaltenders:
1. #32 Niklas Backstrom ~ (4-7-0) 2.63GAA .910SV%
2. #37 Josh Harding ~ (0-2-0) 5.50GAA .739SV%
at
Pittsburgh Penguins (11-2-0) 22pts 1st in Atlantic Division
3.31 Goals per Game (6th in NHL)
2.23 Goals Against per Game (4th in NHL)
18.6% Power Play (18th in NHL)
81.&% Penalty Kill (9th in NHL)
Top 5 Scorers:
1. #87 Sidney Crosby ~ 9G 7A = 16pts
2. #71 Evgeni Malkin ~ 4G 10A = 14pts
3. #3 Alex Goligoski ~ 5G 7A = 12pts
4. #14 Chris Kunitz ~ 2G 9A = 11pts
5. #13 Bill Guerin ~ 3G 6A = 9pts
Top 3 Penalty Minutes:
1. #17 Mike Rupp ~ 22PIM's
2. #74 Jay McKee ~ 21PIM's
3. #14 Chris Kunitz ~ 21PIM's
Goaltenders:
1. #29 Marc-Andre Fleury ~ (9-1-0) 2.07GAA .921SV%
2. #1 Brent Johnson ~ (2-1-0) 2.22GAA .918SV%
Last night's game against the New Rangers exhibited a list of "firsts" for the Minnesota Wild. It was the first win for the Wild in regulation. It was the first game that not one Wild goal was scored with the man advantage. It was the first time the Wild won the game and didn't have to fight back from being down several goals. However, there's a "first" that the Wild have yet to accomplish this season. That "first" being the first win on the road.
Tonight, the Wild head into Mellon Arena for the last time. If there was an optimal time to earn their first road win, tonight would be the night. Last night, the Wild proved that they could take advantage of a team missing one of their top scorers. However, in the case of the Rangers, it might have been a bit more personal since they were without former member of the Wild, Marian Gaborik. In the case of the Penguins, tonight (and for several "tonight's" over the next few weeks) they will be without the services of Evgeni Malkin. The Wild will still have to contend with Sidney Crosby, but having at least one of their top scorers out could only help.
For one member of the Minnesota Wild, it would be nice if he came out firing on all cylinders to turn his own season around. One can only think that Petr Sykora would like to say to the Penguins management that they should have offered him a new contract. While he's struggled in Minnesota thus far, if he could truly turn things around (possibly starting tonight), it could make some heads roll. However, at this point that is not the case for Sykora.
The Wild found a way to win last season in Pittsburgh, however in that game, it took a shootout to accomplish that feat. Personally, I would prefer a regulation win as it would further build on last night's success. Yet at this point, I'll take any win the Wild can earn on the road. One could say that a journey starts with but one small step. The way things are going this season, it could be a series of small steps, hopefully avoiding too many of the giant steps backwards.
