The Minnesota Wild hosted the Dallas Stars for the final time of the regular season on Sunday afternoon, Apr. 6. Prior to the game, NHL history was made as Alex Ovechkin scored goal number 895 to officially surpass Wayne Gretzky for the all-time goals record. Wild fans were able to show their appreciation at the start of the game as they showed the goal on the scoreboard.
The Wild’s lineup remained unchanged except Jake Middleton who was out due to an injury he recieved in their loss to the New York Islanders on Friday night, Apr. 4. Fans saw some familiar faces in the Stars lineup as former Wild players Matt Dumba, Sam Steel and Mikael Granlund were all on the ice for the Stars. The game started in favor of the Stars, and the Wild fought back twice to win in overtime. We’ll look at what happened, beginning with Gustavsson’s continued efforts.
Gustavsson Solid Once Again
The Wild started the game with a penalty just eight seconds in, and they had to kill it off against a power play that has victimized them in the past. Filip Gustavsson stood tall and got them through not only that penalty but the ones that followed. He made save after save, and although two did get by him, he didn’t let that affect his mental game, and he continued to be strong.
“From the start of this game, where everyone was determined to win the game and we didn’t get rewarded in the first two periods, we gave up a soft goal there in the first one and then no one stopped and everyone was just ‘we’re going to win this game’ and kept the energy up and we got rewarded there in the third period and then in overtime,” said Gustavsson about the overall effort as he held his oldest son during his interview.
Wild’s Strong Third Period
The Wild came out with more intensity to start their game against the Stars than in the past few games, but they cranked it up a notch to start the third period. They had trouble getting a puck past Jake Oettinger all afternoon, but they finally broke through on a falling golf swing by Matt Boldy. Boldy has been playing like a man on a mission for quite some time now, and he’s come up with some clutch goals these past few weeks.
Boldy did struggle to start the game as he played mostly perimeter, but when he forced himself into the slot, he found the back of the net. He’s a solid player who needs to continue to force his way to the net, as he’s almost always rewarded when he does. He’s not the type of player who belongs on the perimeter but in front of the net, and hopefully, this gives him some confidence to prove he can do that.
“We’re in a crucial time of the year, and we gotta stop talking about it and how to do it. We gotta just show up and play. Sick of the meetings, sick of the motivational speeches. We know we have it in here it’s just getting our head around it and doing it for a full 60 so nice to see it show up and we need it right now,” said Marcus Foligno about playing the way they need to all of the time, and he laughed a little as he continued about giving or receiving the speeches, “A little bit of both, I don’t talk that much…”
Wild’s Special Teams Push Through
The Wild’s penalty kill stepped up once again as they killed off all four penalties they took throughout the game, including one at the end of the game with Brock Faber in the box. They’ve tried new combinations these past few weeks with Frédérick Gaudreau and Gustav Nyquist and it’s worked. Foligno and Boldy have had strong shifts on the penalty kill, and it made a difference against a strong Stars team that typically has no problems putting the puck in against the Wild on the power play.
“Getting good looks with Gaudreau out there and starting to get some good chemistry, the guys are being smarter with shares and things like that in our zone with the penalty kill so I just feel like it’s a lot of confidence and it’s tough when you go up against a penalty kill that feels really confident so it’s good and that’s just something we need to continue to build,” said Folingo about the strength of the penalty kill.
The Wild’s penalty kill was outstanding, and although they succeeded on the power play in overtime on a fantastic play by Boldy, Rossi, and Mats Zuccarello, they need to do the same at 5-on-5. This game may not have required overtime if they had converted on any of their other three power-play chances. They have gotten too perimeter on their power play and are hesitant to shoot, although they had 41 total shots throughout the game. Hopefully, they can be quicker on their future power plays and force their way to the net rather than stay on the boards.
Wild Stay Home
The Wild will remain at home for one more game against the San Jose Sharks on Wednesday, Apr. 9, before they head out on the road for a big back-to-back in western Canada. Hopefully, the Wild can use this big win to build some confidence and win another game against a struggling Sharks team.
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