Minnesota Wild Hockey

Wild Dominate - Wojtek Wolski and Paul Stastny push Wild to the edge

2008-04-18T04:08:00Z

Next Minnesota Wild Game - April 19 at Colorado Buy Tickets

Wojtek and Stastny scored 79 seconds apart early in the third period to give Theodore and the patient Avs a 3-2 victory on Thursday and a 3-2 series lead, after weathering a relentless effort by the Wild.

Minnesota outshot Colorado 32-14 over the first two periods. But following an interference penalty by Sean Hill, with 5 seconds left on the power play, Wolski sent the puck through goalie Niklas Backstrom’s pads for a 2-1 lead with 14:54 remaining.

Then came the knockout blow by Stastny, the regular-season goals leader for the Avalanche who was searching for his first score of this series. He took a smooth pass by Milan Hejduk and made a nifty pivot to lift a back-hander over Backstrom.

Game 6 is in Denver on Saturday night. According to the Elias Sports Bureau, more than 80 percent (158 of 196) of the Game 5 winners of previously tied playoff series have advanced to the next round in NHL history.

Theodore made 38 saves. He gave up a too-late slap shot goal by Brian Rolston with 2.5 seconds left and a first-period power-play goal by Pierre-Marc Bouchard.

Andrew Brunette also scored for Colorado.

Next Minnesota Wild Game - April 19 at Colorado Buy Tickets

Hustling from end to end and applying hard, clean hits, the Wild dominated the game in every facet except that pesky scoreboard.

After losing their touch and their cool in the ugly 5-1 loss at Colorado two days earlier, they came out firing and skating at a frenetic pace. They were noticeably physical, especially in the first half of the first period, but they maintained their discipline with only two penalties over the first 40 minutes. Oh, and they finally got a goal before the second intermission, too. The Avs outscored them 9-0 in the first two periods of the first four games.

Theodore made 38 saves. He gave up a too-late slap shot goal by Brian Rolston with 2.5 seconds left and a first-period power-play goal by Pierre-Marc Bouchard.

Hustling from end to end and applying hard, clean hits, the Wild dominated the game in every facet except that pesky scoreboard.

Theodore was the reason Colorado still had a chance to win in the decisive third period. He denied all kinds of shots from every angle, whether it was a toe save of still-scoreless Marian Gaborik’s wrister from just outside the crease, or a glove squeeze of another windup and sizzling slapper by Rolston.

Bouchard snagged a pass sent by Brent Burns and blasted a shot into the back of the net so fast Theodore had barely begun to lean the other way. That was the only blemish on Theodore’s performance until the very end, and that was hardly his fault.

Brunette scored his third goal in as many games on a wide-open shot that knocked the water bottle off the top of the crossbar. Defenseman Kim Johnsson was turned around trying to corral a loose puck, giving Brunette an opening in front of Burns.

Next Minnesota Wild Game - April 19 at Colorado Buy Tickets

Preview: Colorado Avalanche at Minnesota Wild

2008-04-10T02:48:00Z

Wild Celeb Pictures - January 2007

Peter Forsberg, Adam Foote and Joe Sakic have won two Stanley Cup titles with Colorado. The Avalanche are hoping the trio can lead them to another one this season.

The Avalanche make their return to the playoffs Wednesday after a one-year hiatus when they visit the Northwest Division champion Minnesota Wild.

Forsberg, Foote and Sakic helped guide the Avalanche (44-31-7) to Stanley Cups in 1996 and 2001. Forsberg and Foote left the team following the 2004-05 lockout, but have returned after Colorado missed the playoffs for the first time in 12 years last season.

Foote was acquired in a Feb. 26 trade with Columbus, while Forsberg signed with the Avalanche on Feb. 25 and made his season debut March 4 - the first night the three played together since May 4, 2004.

You need experience and you can only get experience by playing,” Sakic said. “Both those guys are going to help out. At the deadline we got Ruslan (Salei), and he played in the (Stanley Cup) finals, as well. We have a lot of experience in here and everyone needs to pick it up.”

The Avalanche couldn’t ask for more experience than they get with Sakic and Forsberg. Sakic ranks first among active players with 82 playoff goals and 178 points (eighth and 11th all-time, respectively), while Forsberg is third among active players with 63 postseason goals and second with 172 points (23rd and 15th all-time).

“I think he upgrades our overall skill level, helps our power play, direct plays, patience with the puck, relieving pressure as good as anyone in the game,” coach Joel Quenneville said of Forsberg. “The improvement in overall skill and our team ability to score is enhanced. He’s one of those players that can really influence the outcome of games. We’ve noticed that when he’s been in.”

Sakic, who missed 38 games following hernia surgery, finished this season with 13 goals and 27 assists. Foote had a goal and 15 assists in 2007-08 - though he picked up just one assist in 12 games with Colorado - while Forsberg, who’s been bothered by balky legs and a strained groin, had a goal and 13 assists in nine games.

The Avalanche went 5-0-1 in their final six games, including a 4-3 shootout win over Minnesota (44-28-10) on Sunday. Forsberg had three assists in that contest as Colorado improved to 3-4-1 against the Wild this season and clinched the No. 6 spot in the playoffs.

Sakic scored his 205th career power-play goal, passing Wayne Gretzky for 12th on the all-time list.

“It’s good to know we can beat those guys,” Colorado’s Ian Laperriere said. “You don’t know what can happen at the end. It’s better to be sixth instead of seventh.”

The Avalanche, however, were 0-3-1 in Minnesota this season, extending their losing streak there to five games.

The Wild are in the playoffs for the second straight season. After losing in the first round last year to a more physical Anaheim club that went on to win the Stanley Cup, Minnesota has added rugged forwards Todd Fedoruk and Chris Simon.

“You’ve got to be ready for seven games in every round, so the more you hit, the more you finish checks, the more that adds up,” said Simon, who has been suspended eight times in 15 years and missed a total of 55 games over the last two seasons for separate incidents. “It’s like putting money in the bank. It pays off in the end, wearing guys down.”

Laperriere and Marian Gaborik, who set team records with 42 goals and 83 points this season, exchanged punches and drew five-minute fighting majors in overtime Sunday. Gaborik had never been in an NHL fight before.

“The playoff will be a notch higher,” Laperriere said. “Teams and players that haven’t been physical all season will be physical. They will bring their physical play in the playoffs, because if they want to win that’s the way they need to play. Our guys will be physical, and that the way playoffs are.”

Minnesota, which went 4-0-1 in its last five games, will be hoping for a big series from Niklas Backstrom, who won a franchise-record 33 games this season. Backstrom was 1-4-0 with a 2.22 goals-against average in last year’s playoffs, but is 18-2-6 with a 1.60 GAA in 28 career regular-season games in March and April.

The Wild and Avalanche are meeting for the second time in the playoffs. Minnesota rallied from a 3-1 deficit in 2003 to beat Colorado in seven games in a first-round series.

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com

Wild Celeb Pictures - January 2007

Minnesota Wild Updates - December 10

2007-12-11T00:26:00Z

Nell McAndrew - Bikini Photoshoot

Ducks must become penalty dodgers
SportingNews.com - 7 hours ago
The Blue Jackets, meanwhile, are looking to rebound from Saturday's 2-1 loss to Minnesota as they continue a five-game homestand. ...

So what if Crawford said 'pay the price'?
Vancouver Province, Canada - 13 hours ago
Don't know what we're going to do for excitement now that Sidney Crosby has left town and the next Minnesota Wild game is still six weeks away, ...

Wild Tickets

Tom Powers: Minnesota Wild flush with plumbers
Pioneer Press, MN - Dec 9, 2007
It's not like the Wild to miss out on a marketing opportunity. But they've dropped the ball on this one. Somebody explain to me why the holiday gift shops ...

Red Wings gualie Dominik Hasek flips Minnesota Wild's Marian Gaborik
Pioneer Press, MN - Dec 9, 2007
BY JOHN SHIPLEY DETROIT - If you haven't seen Marian Gaborik's somersault over Dominik Hasek yet, turn on sportscenter or check out youtube. ...

The Minnesota Wild are taking SI's 'Hockeytown' status seriously
MLive.com, MI - Dec 7, 2007
December 6, Wild.com: Sports Illustrated, the nationally recognized and critically acclaimed magazine of record for sport in America for more than a ...

Grace Park Photo Gallery

Long break hurts Wild - Colorado 4, Minnesota Wild 2

2007-11-12T15:57:00Z

Paul Stastny and Wojtek Wolski tore things up in the Colorado Avalanche's 4-2 victory over the Minnesota Wild on Sunday night. Stastny scored twice and assisted on Wolski's empty-net goal with a second left.

"I think we've built a pretty good relationship," said Wolski, "We're just both working hard."

Stastny's two goals in the second period, along with his assist, gave him 100 points in 99 career games. He is the 6th player in franchise history to reach 100 points in 100 or fewer contests. Lots of hockey history in the Stastny family - Stastny's father, Peter, needed 73 games to reach 100 points. His uncles, Marian and Anton Stastny, took 82 and 95 games, respectively, to reach the mark.

"He makes plays," said Smyth, who had a goal and an assist. "The puck doesn't die with Stastny. Collectively, we're playing well together."

Peter Budaj had a great game in the pipes, stopping 25 shots. He allowed 2 power-play goals in the second period, and then clamped down.

One of the goals deflected up into the air and Budaj couldn't locate it. Eric Belanger knocked it in for the Wild.

"I don't know why goalies never look up when the puck is in the air," Budaj said. "I tried to get back in net, the puck went off my shoulder as I went down and into the net. It was an unlucky break."

Pierre-Marc Bouchard also had a power-play goal for the Wild. Minnesota has seven power-play goals in its last three games but it's not been enough.

The Wild were off for five days before taking the ice Sunday and coach Jacques Lemaire thought the break hurt his team at the beginning.

"We didn't pass the puck well to start," he said. "Sure, we practiced well the last two days. But the opposition is not the same."

The Avalanche will be in the same position this week. The team has a long break and won't play again until Friday night in Dallas.

"I think the big thing is we have some practices to work on things and better ourselves," Smyth said. "Hopefully, we can build off the next little week here."

Joe Sakic assisted on Stastny's first goal, which came courtesy of a power play. He now has 12 assists in his last 12 games. However, Sakic only has one goal in that time frame.

Marian Gaborik missed his second straight game due to a strained groin. The Wild were without forward Stephane Veilleux, who was scratched before the game. He broke his left cheekbone when he was hit by a nasty puck in practice Saturday.

"We have to play better than we did tonight if we want to win with our injured players or without them," Lemaire said. "We have to play well with the players that we had."

Colorado coach Joel Quenneville is certainly pleased with what he's seeing out of the combo of Stastny and Wolski.

"They haven't played a lot together, but when they do get together, they seem to work well together," Quenneville said. "Paul had a real nice game."

Not that he wanted to talk about it or the fact he already had reached 100 points for his career.

"I'll look back maybe down the road," Stastny said. "I'm just excited right now that the team won and we're playing well. I feel good out there."

Another tough lose for the Wild

Minnesota Wild Home Tickets for November:

November 18 vs Colorado 6:00 pm   Buy Tickets ALT
November 21 vs Vancouver 8:00 pm   Buy Tickets CPPV, FSNO
November 23 vs Columbus 2:00 pm   Buy Tickets FSOH
November 28 vs Phoenix 8:00 pm   Buy Tickets AZTV, KSTC
November 30 vs St. Louis 8:00 pm   Buy Tickets FSMW, FSNO

Recap: Minnesota 5, Edmonton 2 - Mark Parrish scored twice

2007-11-06T03:07:00Z

ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) -- Missing their top two forwards again, the Minnesota Wild let loose.

They got goals up and down the lineup from all over the ice, with little resistance by the depleted Edmonton defense.

Niklas Backstrom kept up his mastery of the Oilers, and Mark Parrish scored twice for the Wild in a 5-2 victory Monday night.

"Some pretty goals, some backdoor goals, some ugly tip goals. We had it all going, and that's good," said Parrish, who is second on the team with six goals.

Pierre-Marc Bouchard, Kurtis Foster and Stephane Veilleux also scored and Mikko Koivu was credited with three assists for the Wild, who woke up their power play with four extra-skater goals in 10 chances provided by their undisciplined and frustrated opponent. They fired away at former teammate Dwayne Roloson and forced a goalie change for the Oilers after the first period.

"A lot of times I talk about confidence when you're doing certain things, and it seems like we got that confidence," said coach Jacques Lemaire.

Edmonton has a league-low 10 standings points in 15 games and a handful of injuries to veteran defensemen, including All-Star Sheldon Souray, but Minnesota was missing the entire original top line.

The absences didn't hurt the Wild as much as they could have.

Pavol Demitra missed his fifth game with a groin strain, and Marian Gaborik was out for the third time due to the same injury. Wes Walz, who centered the Slovakian stars when the season started, has been away from the team since last Thursday for unspecified personal reasons.

But that gave others a chance for more time on the power play, and the additional minutes led to better production. Petteri Nummelin moved from defense to the wing and had two power-play assists. Foster, one of the team's best slap shooters, finally scored his first goal on a blast just inside the blue line.

"It was nice to get some chances tonight and really contribute, when we're missing two big guys," said Foster, who contended that the Wild can be more prone to shoot with Demitra and Gaborik gone because their games are based on so much puck control.

Backstrom made 22 saves for the Wild, improving to 6-0-0 in his career against the Oilers. His streak of three straight shutouts against them ended, but he has only given up four goals in those six starts.

Edmonton scored a rare power-play goal, a tip-in by Dustin Penner, but went just 1-for-6 with the man advantage and fell to a league-worst 4-for-60 this season.

"We're a close-knit team, and we're going to stay positive," said Shawn Horcoff, who scored in the second period. "We've got a lot of injuries, but we're not making any excuses when it comes to losing games here. We're going to let go of this one and work hard tomorrow."

Edmonton just didn't play any defense. Roloson let three of the eight shots he faced get by, and he was pulled for Mathieu Garon after the deficit grew to 3-0. Coach Craig MacTavish was disappointed he didn't save Foster's long shot with 52 seconds left in the first period.

On Parrish's first goal, a simple give-and-go from Nummelin, Denis Grebeshkov let Parrish sneak behind him and *** Tarnstrom let Nummelin's pass slip through the crease without interference.

"I think everybody in the building knew where the puck was going," MacTavish said.

The coach limited his criticism, though.

The crush of injuries to his blue line has forced defensemen like Grebeshkov, Tarnstrom and Tom Gilbert into significant time on the penalty kill that they're not ready for. MacTavish was mostly upset with what he called desperate, undisciplined 5-on-5 play that led to all the penalties.

"You can commend the effort and intensity, but you've got to play this game with your head or else you're going to get picked apart. We were moving around the ice like chickens with our heads cut off," MacTavish said.

The Oilers will have a better feel for how they fare among their Northwest Division foes over the next two weeks. They began an eight-game stretch of division-only competition, with one against each opponent at home and on the road. "We've got a lot of good quality people in this room, and we all believe in each other that we can get it done," Horcoff said. ... The Wild don't play again until Sunday, an unusual stretch of five straight days without a game. Lemaire said each player will get at least one day off from practice this week.

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com

Minnesota Wild 4, Calgary 1 - Marian Gaborik scored twice

2007-11-04T02:05:00Z

ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) -- This time Minnesota finished what it started.

Marian Gaborik scored twice and added an assist to lead the Wild past the Calgary Flames 4-1 on Saturday night.

Brian Rolston and Branko Radivojevic also scored for Minnesota, which snapped a five-game winless streak. Niklas Backstrom stopped 23 shots in his return after missing four games because of a strained groin.

Jarome Iginla scored for Calgary, which has lost three of four. Alex Tanguay added an assist for his ninth point in five games.

When the teams met Oct. 24 in Calgary, Minnesota jumped out to a 3-0 first period lead, only to have the Flames rally to win 5-3. It was the first loss in Minnesota's winless slide.

"This was kind of revenge, and it was great that we battled hard and got two points," Gaborik said.

The contest was the start of eight straight games against Northwest Division foes for both teams. Minnesota, which entered the night tied with Colorado atop the division, now leads Calgary by three points.

"We beat them last time. They beat us. You want to have all of your division games for sure, but you are not going to," Iginla said. "Every loss feels tough, but more so when you lose to a division team that you are right beside in the standings. You have to think of the four-point swings and all that. But we play them six more times."

Rolston said the Wild is a much stronger mentally than it was 10 days ago, and what happened in Calgary will not happen again.

"We started making plays," he said. "Our D did a great job handling the puck when we had it and made good plays up the ice. We were able to tip it in and get some good chances offensively."

However, it was a Rolston slap shot from the left point that put Minnesota on the board 2:27 into the game. Mark Parrish screened Miikka Kiprusoff, who did not move on the shot.

"I told Mark that he gets an assist for every one I get from back there," Rolston said. "If Kiprusoff sees it, he's going to stop it."

Gaborik put Minnesota up 2-0 6:37 into the second, when he beat Kiprusoff on a breakaway.

With the Wild caught on a line change, Keith Carney slid to stop a shot during a 4-on-2 Calgary rush. James Sheppard corralled the loose puck and found Gaborik behind the Flames' defense just as he came onto the ice.

Gaborik has scored in both games after his two-game absence due to a groin injury.

"It was just fortuitous for them that they happen to get puck possession when he made his line change," Calgary coach Mike Keenan said. "You have to have better awareness. Our defense has to count the jersey in front of them and see that there are only four, and look around and see where the fifth is."

Iginla tipped a slap shot by Adrian Aucoin past Backstrom with 38 seconds left in the second period to make it a 2-1 game. Iginla is the leading career scorer against Minnesota with 23 goals and 17 assists in 37 games.

But Gaborik, who has 23 points in 32 career games against Calgary, returned the lead to two with a power-play goal early in the third.

A slap shot from Kim Johnsson was stopped by Kiprusoff, but Gaborik fought off a check by Aucoin and backhanded the rebound over the netminder.

Backstrom, now 18-0-0 in his career when leading going into the third period, made a pad save on a shot by Kristian Huselius to thwart Calgary's best scoring chance in the final period.

Calgary was 0-for-3 on the power play, and is 3-for-32 in its past six games. It is 1-for-17 on the road this year.

"We played decent enough five-on-five, but it was our special teams that let us down. We gave up two power-play goals, and that was the essence of the game. And our power play didn't come through when we had the opportunity," Keenan said.

Radivojevic scored an empty-net goal with 58.8 seconds to play.

"We got a great start and today we finished the game the same way we started. That's a big step for us and now we have to do that every night," Backstrom said.

Wild RW Pavol Demitra missed the third period with a leg injury, and is to be evaluated Sunday. ... Minnesota LW Derek Boogaard did not return after a second period fight with Eric Godard. Wild coach Jacques Lemaire said he had a sore hand and couldn't hold his stick. ... Calgary C Wayne Primeau missed his sixth straight game with an ankle injury. ... Minnesota D Brent Burns had two assists, and now has assists in three straight games.

St. Louis 3, Minnesota Wild 2 - Jay McKee scores game-winner

2007-11-03T02:02:00Z

ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) -- Not even the return of two offensive stars from injuries could help the Minnesota Wild end their longest winless streak in more than three years.

Jay McKee scored the game-winner in the third period -- his first goal in 34 games -- and the St. Louis Blues beat the Wild 3-2 on Thursday night.

Keith Tkachuk and Martin Rucinsky scored for the Blues, who ended a six-game losing streak in Minnesota. Manny Legace stopped 23 shots for his sixth win in eight starts.

After missing a combined six games with groin injuries, Marian Gaborik and Pavol Demitra both had a goal and an assist for Minnesota. After opening the season 7-0-1, the Wild are winless in five games -- their longest stretch since a seven-game streak Feb. 22-March 7, 2004.

"We got six, seven guys that could play better, if not 10," Minnesota coach Jacques Lemaire said.

Coming down the slot, McKee took a pass from Ryan Johnson and beat Josh Harding low with a slap shot from between the circles at 7:46.

"It was a perfect pass. One-timer passes, if they come too fast, I can't handle it," McKee said. "He laid it out there just perfectly. With a pass like that you've got to finish."

Lemaire was disappointed that defenseman Brent Burns did not make a better effort to stop Johnson at the blue line with a hip check, instead of trying to draw an interference penalty.

"He could have made the effort to stay on his feet and try to stop the guy," Lemaire said. "The guy was coming on his side along the boards, he could have still probably get him, even though that he was caught flat-footed. He's got a long reach and he's capable of stopping these guys."

Burns said he was interfered with.

"I got hit, tangled my feet up," he said. "I wasn't trying to draw a penalty there."

The Wild had a number of excellent scoring chances late, but were stonewalled by Legace, whose goals-against-average is 1.89.

"Manny's been our best player. You're not going to be a successful club without your goaltender being one of your top players," McKee said. "He's been our main guy, coming up with some big saves."

His best one was a pad stop on a slap shot by Demitra from the right circle.

Demitra, activated from the injured reserve before the game, missed four straight games because of a strained groin. Gaborik missed two straight with a similar injury, and was bothered by leg issues in his previous two games. He missed 34 games last season with a groin injury.

Lemaire was happy with the two returning Slovakians, who played on a line with Mikko Koivu.

"It was the best line, there's no doubt, by a mile," he said. "They were both skating well, they felt good."

Less than five minutes into the game, they gave Minnesota a 1-0 lead.

A shot by Demitra from the lower right circle deflected off the stick of Jay McClement and popped up in front of Legace. Standing beside the crease, Gaborik whacked the puck in at thigh-level.

"It felt good working together out there," Gaborik said. "I still could feel (the groin) a little, but it's going in the right direction."

The Blues ended an 0-for-18 power-play drought early in the second period when Tkachuk jammed home a loose puck after a shot from Paul Kariya clanked off both posts and landed in the crease behind Harding.

Four minutes later, Rucinsky gave the Blues a 2-1 lead.

Following a turnover by Nick Schultz, Rucinsky picked up a loose puck behind the net, carried out front and backhanded a shot that deflected off the skate of Kurtis Foster and into the net.

Demitra evened the score with 56 seconds left in the second period when his weak shot from the right circle was tipped in by Tkachuk.

St. Louis has yet to lose consecutive games this season, and coach Andy Murray believes his team could have even more points.

"If somebody had told us at the start of the year that after 11 games we'd be 7-4, we'd probably take it," he said, "but at the same token, our feeling is that we should be 9-2."

St. Louis is 2-8-1 in its last 11 games against Minnesota. ... Brian Rolston was named Minnesota captain for November. Koivu and Schultz will serve as alternate captains. ... McKee's last goal was April 8, 2006. He missed 59 games with injuries last year. ... After sitting out two games with an injured groin, Niklas Backstrom backed up Harding. Nolan Schaefer, the team's backup goalie the last two games, was reassigned to Houston of the AHL. Also sent to the minors was RW Cal Clutterbuck ... St. Louis, whose 89.8 percent penalty kill was the league's second-best entering the game, killed off two short-handed situations. The Blues have allowed five goals in 51 chances.

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com

Pittsburgh 4, Minnesota Wild 2 - Sidney Crosby has waited three years

2007-10-31T01:58:00Z

ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) -- Sidney Crosby has waited three years for a chance to play professionally in the "State of Hockey."

The hockey-crazed fans here have been just as eager to see No. 87 in person, and the NHL's newest superstar and his brilliant young sidekick didn't disappoint.

Playing in Minnesota for the first time in their young careers, Crosby had a goal and three assists, and Evgeni Malkin scored twice and had an assist in Pittsburgh's 4-2 victory over the wounded Minnesota Wild on Tuesday night.

"It's fun to be able to come here and play," said Crosby, who starred as a 15-year-old player at prep powerhouse Shattuck-St. Mary's in Faribault. "No matter how the night ended up, it's just nice because I was here before, watching games and dreamed of one day playing in the NHL and playing here. It's really a bonus to come out of here with a win."

Petr Sykora's power play goal -- on a beautiful feed from Crosby in the slot -- broke a 2-2 tie with 9:55 to play, and Crosby broke free on a line change by Minnesota and sealed the win with his fifth goal of the season just over four minutes later.

"Crosby's line was on fire," Penguins coach Michel Therrien said.

Stephane Veilleux and Brian Rolston scored for the short-handed Wild, who lost at home for the first time this season and fell to 0-3-1 in their last four games after starting the season an NHL-best 7-0-1.

Pittsburgh caught the Wild at an opportune time, after a rash of groin injuries shelved Minnesota's top three players. Dynamic forwards Marian Gaborik and Pavol Demitra and No. 1 goalie Niklas Backstrom all missed the game.

"It's a huge hole, there's no question, but we have enough guys in here to get the job done," Rolston said. "We were in the game tonight, all the way through it. We just need to be a little bit better."

Josh Harding made 23 saves for Minnesota, but a couple of unlucky bounces did him in against Pittsburgh's talented kids.

With the NHL's head-scratching unbalanced schedule, this was the first time Crosby and Malkin have played in front of fans in the Western Conference's Northwest Division in their careers.

Crosby looked forward to this game even before he was the No. 1 overall draft pick in 2005. "The Next One" scored 72 goals in 57 games at Shattuck in 2002-03, the same season the Wild made a stunning run to the Western Conference finals.

"It's nice to come back here and play. Even if you don't have ties to here, you come to this rink, it's a great atmosphere," Crosby said. "You play this team and you have no choice but to get up for it."

As in most arenas he goes to, there were plenty of No. 87 sweaters in the seats, and he received a nice ovation upon being introduced before the game, a rarity at Xcel Energy Center, where fans worship the Wild.

"He's a great leader and he is a great player," Minnesota coach Jacques Lemaire said. "I don't know him personally, but I'd love to have one on our club, if they make any more."

As it seems to have done for Crosby and Malkin throughout their young careers, the puck always seemed to bounce their way in the second period.

Malkin scored the first goal of the game when Crosby lost the puck behind the net, and it trickled right onto the Russian's stick. Malkin slipped the puck in on Harding's left side for an easy wraparound goal, his fourth tally this season.

Luck was on Pittsburgh's side again just 25 seconds after Veilleux tied the game. Crosby camped out in front, and Ryan Malone's shot from the point glanced off Crosby's skate and onto Malkin's stick. Malkin had a wide-open net and hit it easily for a 2-1 lead.

"It seems like that's been our luck lately," Harding said. "And the only way you can get though that is hard work. It obviously is very frustrating."

Wild D Kim Johnsson bruised a leg in the second period and didn't return. ... Malone, who played at St. Cloud State University about an hour northwest of the Twin Cities, had two assists in his first game playing in Minnesota since he was in the Young Stars Game at the 2004 All-Star weekend in St. Paul.

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com

Colorado 3, Minnesota Wild 1 - Marian Gaborik and Pavol Demitra out

2007-10-29T01:53:00Z

DENVER (AP) -- Ryan Smyth came to Colorado for the chance to play with Joe Sakic.

So far, that free-agent deal is paying off for everyone.

Smyth had a goal and an assist, and Sakic helped set up two scores Sunday in leading the Colorado Avalanche past the Minnesota Wild 3-1.

Smyth, who has five goals, developed chemistry with Sakic while winning an Olympic gold medal and two world Championships for Team Canada. They are still clicking with the Avalanche.

"He recognizes the shooter and he reads the play as he sees it," Smyth said of Sakic.

The two connected on Colorado's first goal. Smyth stole the puck from defenseman Pierre-Marc Bouchard and worked a give-and-go with Sakic and beat Josh Harding with a one-timer at 8:29 of the opening period.

"If I could ask one guy not to have the puck right there, it would be Joe Sakic," said Minnesota rookie Josh Harding, who made 19 saves in place of injured Niklas Backstrom (groin). "He's a great player and knows what he's doing. I have to respect that shot, and he got the feed over to Smyth."

Sakic set up Marek Svatos' winning goal in the second period when he corralled the puck behind the Minnesota net and passed to the left side of the goal. Svatos skated across the front and slid a backhander past Harding for his fifth goal.

"When Joe's on the top of his game like he is now, it makes everybody around him a lot better," Smyth said. "It's nice to get goals when he's setting us up."

The Wild, 0-2-1 since a 7-0-1 start, had tied the game at 1 on a power play when Bouchard's pass from the corner found Eric Belanger between the circles. Belanger wristed a shot past Peter Budaj with 4:18 left in the first period.

It was the only blemish in a solid performance by Budaj, who had 29 saves.

"I don't want to take anything away from them, but there were not many huge backdoor chances," Budaj said. "The defense did a great job. They cleared the rebounds."

Minnesota was playing without two top offensive players, Marian Gaborik and Pavol Demitra, who sat out with groin injuries.

"I think we did fine, we just had to do different things against certain guys because of the injuries that we have," Wild coach Jacques Lemaire said. "That's the way it is. When you have guys missing, you need your defense to be its best and play the best they can."

The Wild nearly tied it with 2:58 left. Petteri Nummelin skated around the back of the net with the puck and tried to put a shot into the top of the net. Budaj reached with his glove and made the save.

"I guess I should have gone even higher," Nummelin said. "I had a little more room."

Wojtek Wolski scored an insurance goal with 37 seconds left when Paul Stastny fed him in the slot. Wolski beat Harding with a one-timer to help the Avalanche improve to 5-0 at home for the first time since moving to Colorado in 1995.

"Certain things were pointed out going into the season, and winning at home and playing well at home was important," Avalanche coach Joel Quenneville said.

Backstrom and Gaborik were injured during practice Saturday. Demitra was hurt in Minnesota's win over Colorado on Oct. 21. ... Svatos and Smyth tied Sakic and Stastny for the Avalanche team lead in goals. ... Colorado forward Milan Hejduk missed his fourth straight game with a back injury. ... The game was moved from 6 p.m. MDT to 1 p.m. to avoid a conflict with Game 4 of the World Series, played that night at nearby Coors Field.

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com

Edmonton 5, Minnesota Wild 4, Shoot Out

2007-10-27T01:49:00Z

EDMONTON, Alberta (AP) -- Ales Hemsky doesn't mind scoring ugly goals if they help the Edmonton Oilers to a win.

Hemsky scored twice in regulation and added an unusual goal for the shootout winner as the Oilers ended a two-game losing skid with a 5-4 win over the Minnesota Wild on Thursday night.

After scoring a nice goal in the third, Hemsky went in with the shootout tied 1-1 and got an ugly one as he lost the handle on the puck, only to see it sneak through the legs of Wild goalie Josh Harding.

"I kind of lost it there but it went in anyway," Hemsky said. "It's nice to get the break and have some luck. I'll take the goal, no question."

He'll take the two he scored in regulation as well, his first two goals of the season.

"I knew it would come but I didn't know when," he said. "I was hoping and hoping it wouldn't take something like 20 games. I just wasn't getting any breaks. That changed tonight."

The Oilers haven't had many breaks to start the season and coach Craig MacTavish felt they were due to get some.

"We were talking about getting some breaks and they came tonight," he said. "We'd already had a couple and then we got the final one in the shootout."

Shawn Horcoff also scored twice and added two assists for Edmonton (4-6-0), which won for just the second time in its past eight games. It was also the first time in seven games and only the fourth in their past 17 that Edmonton was able to defeat the Wild.

James Sheppard, Pierre-Marc Bouchard, Brian Rolston and Mark Parrish scored for Minnesota (7-1-2), which lost for the second consecutive night, but still has points in all but one of its games this season.

The Oilers got to Harding just 3 1/2 minutes in, as defenseman Ladislav Smid's wrist shot was tipped into the net by Horcoff.

Edmonton extended its lead midway through the first, after Hemsky picked up a loose puck in front of the net and snapped a shot over Harding's shoulder.

After some sustained pressure in the second period, Minnesota cut into the lead on Sheppard's first career NHL goal, knocking his own rebound past Oilers goalie Dwayne Roloson.

Edmonton bounced back less than a minute later as Horcoff's shot hit Harding, bounced off Wild defender Kim Johnsson and went in to make it 3-1. It was only Edmonton's second power-play goal in 38 attempts on the season.

Minnesota made it 3-2 with five minutes remaining in the period after Nick Schultz's point shot was deflected in front and trickled past Roloson to Bouchard, who sent a backhand shot into the open net.

Rolston evened the score early in the third period, converting an Eric Belanger shot that caromed off defender Tom Gilbert's skates directly to him at the side of the goal.

Edmonton regained the lead five minutes later on a highlight-reel goal by Hemsky as he got past Johnsson and deked out Harding before sliding it through his legs.

"I think that was the best he's ever scored," Horcoff said. "From the ice it looked like he lost the puck three times. We were yelling 'shoot, shoot.' And then the second time it looked like he lost it, but he put it five-hole. It was something else."

"He can make the best of defensemen look pretty silly at times," MacTavish said.

Minnesota rallied midway through the period to tie it at 4-4 and send it to the shootout when Roloson mishandled a glove save on a shot by Parrish and it trickled over the goal line.

Hemsky's first-period goal was his 200th NHL point. ... Pavol Demitra (groin) missed his second game in a row. He has three goals and five assists in eight games. ... Wild G Niklas Backstrom, who did not get the start, has been tough on the Oilers throughout his career with three shutouts and five wins in five meetings. Harding's only previous start against the Oilers was a shutout win.

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com

Calgary 5, Minnesota Wild 3 - Brian Rolston and Mark Parrish scored

2007-10-26T01:46:00Z

CALGARY, Alberta (AP) -- Alex Tanguay made up for a miscue earlier this week that cost Calgary a game.

He scored the tying and go-ahead goals to help the Flames come back from a three-goal deficit and beat Minnesota 5-3 on Wednesday night, handing the Wild their first regulation loss in nine games this season.

Minnesota earned 15 of 16 available points in its first eight games, winning seven times and losing in a shootout at Los Angeles.

Jarome Iginla and Dion Phaneuf got the comeback started with power-play goals in the second, and Tanguay tied it in the period with his first goal of the season.

Tanguay, who turned over the puck on the power play Monday night in a 4-1 loss to the Sharks, gave Calgary the lead at 3:46 of the third, and Robyn Regehr added a goal at 8:03.

"I wasn't happy about Monday, I gave (San Jose) a goal that shifted the game's momentum," said Tanguay, whose goals were his first in 18 games dating to last season. "Tonight, we were skating and Iggy and Daymond (Langkow) were playing great. When we're skating, we're first on the puck and with their skill level, it's easy to make plays."

On the go-ahead goal, goalie Niklas Backstrom shoveled the puck behind his net for Nick Schultz, but it bounced over the defenseman's stick. Iginla corralled the puck and zipped a pass out to Adrian Aucoin, whose slap shot was deflected in by Tanguay.

Tanguay tied the game at 15:29 of the second.

"The game changed after that," Wild coach Jacques Lemaire said "We weren't as disciplined, we weren't as sharp, we stopped doing the good things that got us the lead that we had. You could see it coming."

Miikka Kiprusoff made 16 saves for the Flames.

Brian Rolston and Mark Parrish scored power-play goals for Minnesota in a 2:04 span early in the first period, and Wes Walz made it 3-0 at 9:41.

"This brings you back down to earth quick," Parrish said. "It's a humbling game, it really is. Just when you think you have everything figured out, something like that comes along and bites you."

After giving up the two early power-play goals, the Flames' successfully killed their final seven penalties. ... Backstrom made 19 saves. He entered the night second in the NHL in goals against average (1.48), second in wins (5), and third in save percentage (.943).

source: http://sports.yahoo.com

Mikko Koivu just keeps getting better

2007-10-22T01:44:00Z

ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) -- Mikko Koivu just keeps getting better and the Minnesota Wild just keep on winning.

With overtime looming just more three minutes away, Koivu made an athletic move to get to the net and score the game winner to help the Wild beat the Colorado Avalanche 3-2 on Sunday night.

"It happened so fast," Koivu said. "It's always tough for the goalie when it comes so quick, and that's what happened there. I don't know if he even knew that I got the puck."

With both teams stagnant in the final period, Koivu grabbed the puck out of the corner, started like he was going to carry it behind the net and then made a lightning quick move to the short side and simply bulled his way out in front.

He stuffed the puck past a surprised Peter Budaj with 3:04 to play, lifting the Wild to their seventh win in the first eight games. Minnesota is off to its best start (7-0-1) in franchise history and is the only team in the NHL that has yet to lose a game in regulation.

"It's good for the team and it's good for our self confidence for the rest of the year," Koivu said. "But still, it's just eight games."

Niklas Backstrom made 29 saves, and Mark Parrish and Brian Rolston also scored for the Wild.

Koivu, the younger brother of Montreal star Saku, has made steady progress since he was chosen by the Wild with the sixth overall pick in the 2001 draft.

His first two seasons with the Wild were solid, but he seems to have taken another step this season.

"He's the guy that has been playing great for us since the start," Wild coach Jacques Lemaire said.

Andrew Brunette and Tyler Arnason scored for the Avalanche, and Budaj made 29 saves.

The Colorado goaltender said he wasn't surprised when Koivu got to the crease, but "I was surprised it went in. He hit a five-hole."

Minnesota's struggling power-play unit, which entered the night converting a minuscule 6.9 percent of its chances, scored twice in the second, but Colorado bounced right back in an action-packed period.

After Parrish and Rolston scored power-play goals just over two minutes apart to give Minnesota a 2-0 lead, Colorado responded by finishing the frame strong.

Arnason got things going with a power-play goal and then Brunette scored on a tip in on the backdoor to tie the game.

But the Avalanche sorely missed Milan Hejduk, who was out with a back injury, and couldn't quite come up with enough in the end.

The Avs are looking to avoid another slow start, which doomed them last year. Colorado began last season 18-18-2, the kind of mediocrity that won't get it done in the ultra-competitive Western Conference.

Even a 15-2-2 finish to the season wasn't enough to dig the Avs out of that hole, and they missed the playoffs for the first time since 1993-94, becoming the first team in NHL history to record at least 93 points and not qualify for the postseason.

They added Ryan Smyth and Scott Hannan to give the team some much-needed toughness, but the results have been mixed early this season. They are 4-4 in their first eight games.

"We've got to get it to overtime," Colorado coach Joel Quenneville said. "We can't give up late goals like that or you end up with nothing. That's something we dealt with last year. We got better late in the year, but we can't wait to apply that lesson."

Wild forward Pavol Demitra had two assists, but did not play for the final 10 minutes of the third period because of an injury. Lemaire said he would be evaluated on Monday. ... It was the 500th game in franchise history for the Wild, who began play in 2000. With a total record of 215-194-90 record (.521), the Wild have the seventh-best win percentage of any active franchise after its first 500 games. ... It was a rough second period for Jordan Leopold, a former star defenseman at the University of Minnesota. Leopold took three penalties in the period, two of which led to Wild goals.

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com

Recap: Minnesota Wild 3, St. Louis Blues 1

2007-10-21T01:42:00Z

ST. LOUIS (AP) -- Although his team's power play had generated only one goal in 22 chances coming into Saturday's game in St. Louis, Minnesota Wild center Eric Belanger felt the unit was on the right track.

"I know our power play was moving the puck well," Belanger said. "It was just a matter of time before we scored."

The Wild scored twice with the man advantage Saturday night and that was the difference. Belanger assisted on the first of those power-play goals and added an even strength goal himself as the Wild remained the NHL's only unbeaten team by beating the Blues 3-1.

Josh Harding made 33 saves for Minnesota. Brent Burns and Pavol Demitra also scored and Pierre-Marc Bouchard had two assists for the Wild (6-0-1), who have won six of their first seven despite not scoring more than three goals in any game. The only blemish was an overtime loss in Los Angeles on Tuesday.

Steve Wagner scored his first NHL goal for St. Louis' only tally, and the Blues had its four-game winning streak snapped. Martin Rucinsky also had a milestone on that goal, picking up an assist for his 600th career point.

Manny Legace made 31 saves for the Blues.

"We knew it was going to be a tough game," Legace said. "That's a great club over there and their goaltender played outstanding."

Harding got his second start, and was just glad for the chance.

"I'm glad to contribute any time I get the call," he said. "I've got to take advantage of my opportunities."

He was helped by the Wild power play, which scored twice as many goals Saturday as it had in the first six games.

"We moved the puck, and we had good chances," Minnesota coach Jacques Lemaire said. "This is a team that pressures a lot, and if you do move the puck quickly, you're going to get a good chance."

The Wild took advantage of a double minor penalty for high sticking against the Blues' Lee Stempniak to draw first blood midway through the second period. With Stempniak off, Kim Johnsson got the puck off a faceoff in the Blues end and centered down low to Belanger. He fed a quick pass to Demitra in the slot, and Demitra beat Legace with a snap shot from the right circle with 7:07 remaining in the period.

It appeared that the Blues would take momentum into the second intermission when Wagner led a rush into the Wild zone and surprised Harding with a shot from the top of the left circle. Harding, who stopped all 37 shots he faced in his only other game, beating Anaheim on Oct. 14, got a piece of it but it trickled home to tie the game with 49 seconds to play in the period.

But Belanger gave the Wild their lead back when he converted Bouchard's centering pass with 11 seconds to go in the second.

"Well, after you give up a goal, you always want a good shift," Belanger said. "Fortunately, we got a goal. I came off the bench, and I stopped in the slot and let her rip."

Burns gave the Wild some insurance when he scored another power-play goal with 11:39 remaining.

Lemaire used four forwards on the power play and it paid off with two goals. ... Paul Kariya had his five game scoring streak snapped. ... The Blues lost at home for the first time this season after two wins. St. Louis has not won its first three at home since 2000-01, when the team won its first six.

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com

Recap: Los Angeles King 4, Minnesota Wild 3, SO

2007-10-18T01:39:00Z

LOS ANGELES (AP) -- The Los Angeles Kings insist they're not as bad as they started this season. How they played against the Minnesota Wild on Tuesday night reinforced that.

Anze Kopitar scored a short-handed goal in the third period, and the Kings connected on all three shots in the shootout to beat Minnesota 4-3, the Wild's first loss of the season.

"We followed through on our game plan for the entire 65 minutes," Kings coach Marc Crawford said. "We limited the top team in the league to very few chances. We forced them to take a lot of penalties, and that's very uncharacteristic of a Minnesota Wild team."

Scott Thornton and Kyle Calder also scored for the Kings, who had lost five straight after beating defending Stanley Cup champion Anaheim in London in the season opener. Dustin Brown and Michael Cammalleri also scored in the shootout against Nicklas Backstrokm.

"We really needed that game, and to do it against them is awesome because we knew how well they've been playing," Cammalleri said. "You're always dangerous when you're desperate."

Pavol Demitra, Mikko Koivu and Brian Rolston scored for the Wild, who remain the only team in the league that hasn't lost in regulation. Their only goal in the shootout was by Petteri Nummelin.

"We took a lot of penalties, a lot of questionable calls, but we battled and we deserved the point that we got tonight," Minnesota center Eric Belanger said.

Jean-Sebastien Aubin, who began the season on injured reserve because of a groin injury, made 28 saves in his 200th NHL game and first with the Kings. Rookie Jonathan Bernier, who was in net for the Kings' opening-night victory, was returned to his junior team in Lewiston, Maine on Monday after allowing 15 goals over his last three starts.

"I didn't feel too much pressure. I just wanted to play a good first game because first impressions are always a big thing," said the 30-year-old Aubin, who also played for Pittsburgh and Toronto since making his NHL debut in 1988-89. "I've got to get used to everything we do, and I'm going to learn more and more about these guys and be even more comfortable."

The Kings grabbed a 3-2 lead with 13:34 left in the third on Kopitar's third career short-handed goal. Kopitar knocked the puck off Demitra's stick about 10 feet inside the Kings' blue line, carried it into the Wild zone and beat Backstrom with a wrist shot from the left circle.

Rolston tied it with exactly 12 minutes left in regulation, beating Aubin to the stick side with a slap shot from the top of the right circle.

Koivu put Minnesota ahead 2-1 just 43 seconds into the second period, beating Aubin to the stick side from the low slot after Rolston took the puck away from Kings center Patrick O'Sullivan behind the net. But Calder tied it at 7:42 of the second on a tip-in of Brad Stuart's one-timer from 45 feet on the power play.

"Discipline was something that wasn't there tonight," Rolston said.

Minnesota did not get a shot on net until Demitra converted a rebound of Marian Gaborik's 40-foot slap shot at 7:25 of the first period.

Referee Stephane Auger had his arm raised to call a delayed penalty against the Wild when Thornton tied the score for the Kings, 30 seconds after Minnesota finished killing off a four-minute penalty.

"We seemed really desperate on the ice," Kopitar said. "We were grinding and really buying into the system. We executed the game plan real well and didn't give up a whole bunch of chances, and the ones we had we put in the net."

It was the eighth overtime in the last 13 meetings between the teams. ... Minnesota RW Mark Parrish played in his 600th NHL game. His mother Barb was one of 17 players' moms who were guests of the Wild during the team's three-game western swing. So was Tuire Koivu, and Camilla Backstrom, who came from Finland. ... Aubin, who signed with the Kings as an unrestricted free agent in August, made 16 saves in the second period after facing only four shots in the first. ... Minnesota was 0-for-3 on the power play, making them 1-for-22 altogether. ... The Kings came in with a league-worst 4.60 goals-against average.

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com

Recap: Minnesota Wild 3, Phoenix Coyotes 2

2007-10-15T01:36:00Z

GLENDALE, Ariz. (AP) -- Instead of losing his temper, Minnesota winger Eric Belanger got even with Phoenix by scoring the winning goal.

After being struck in the face and losing a tooth, Belanger scored a short-handed goal late in the third period and the Minnesota Wild rallied to beat the Phoenix Coyotes 3-2 on Saturday night.

"The best way to get back is to score the winning goal," Belanger said. "I was upset with what happened, and it was a cheap shot. We have three games against them, so we'll see what will happen."

Belanger knocked in the rebound from a Stephane Veilleux backhander at 16:45. That came just more than three minutes after Mikko Koivu tied the game for Minnesota with 6 minutes, 20 seconds remaining.

Wild goalie Niklas Backstrom, who allowed just one goal in his previous three starts this season, surrendered two first-period goals, but none thereafter. He had 27 saves.

"When I gave up those goals, I felt I let the team down," Backstrom said. "Between the second and third periods, we talked about the situation, and had all the confidence we would come back."

Phoenix goalie Alex Auld stopped 23 shots.

The Wild scored first when Marian Gaborik converted a perfect centering pass from Pavol Demitra at 4:09 of the opening period.

Then, Daniel Carcillo struck twice for Phoenix.

First on the power play, he scored on a scramble in front of the goal at 14:51 of the first period. Just more than two minutes later, Carcillo skated into a pass from Niko Kapanen and beat Backstrom with a slap shot from the right face-off circle.

The two tallies marked the first multigoal game for Carcillo in his two-year NHL career.

"We need to be more disciplined in the third period," he said. "We took it to them in the first two periods, but obviously we didn't get the result we wanted."

The effort also marked the second straight multiple goal game for a Phoenix player. Winger Fredrik Sjostrom had a hat trick Thursday at Nashville.

Though the second period was scoreless, each team had several good chances. The best for Phoenix occurred when captain Shane Doan hit the right post with just more than five minutes remaining in the period.

With less than one minute remaining in the middle session, Auld stopped Gaborik in close.

"That was a heart breaker to lose because we played well against a very good team," said Wayne Gretzky, the Phoenix coach. "It was a good effort, but we took three undisciplined penalties late, and two of those cost us the game."

Peter Mueller, the Coyotes' 1st-round pick in 2006, was a healthy scratch. Mueller is scoreless in the Coyotes first four games. ... Minnesota Brian Rolston skated in his 900th NHL game. Rolston has played for New Jersey, Colorado, Boston. ... The attendance was 12,088, the lowest home crowd for Phoenix since last Dec. 21 (12,704) against Edmonton.

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com