Posted by I recently took advantage of the schedule to go to NYC to see the Wild play both the Rangers and the Islanders. It was back-to-back Wild games, which was fun. But it was back-to-back Wild games, so it was also frustrating.
Look, the Wild season has been circling the drain for some time. When you’re clinging to your playoff life and you can’t even match (much less surpass) your opponent’s sense of desperation you have a problem. Or many. But this was the first time I’d seen them in person since October.
For the Rangers game the team was just flat. Gaborik was going to the middle, and that’s a good thing overall but anyone who thinks this is a new dedication to going to the high traffic areas and not, say, a player that knows he needs to be putting his best foot forward right now, is kidding himself. But the Wild, plagued by an infuriating inability to generate shots on goal all season, were simply atrocious at it on this night. It’s like they don’t even want to shoot. Maybe I’m crazy, but against a world-class goalie like Lundqvist, the more (shots) the better. The Rangers are a fairly brittle team (arguably a little less-so since Torts came on board) and not possessed of a very opportunistic offense. But they mixed it up early (Avery and Clutterbuck) and often (Wild spiritual leader Nolan – wearing the “C” in Koivu’s absence even got into it) and the physical game tends to turn the Wild into the Tame very quickly. By early in the third it was so boring that my buddy – not a Wild fan – was coming up with considerably more interesting and, I have to admit, tempting offers of the alcoholic beverage variety trying to get me to leave.
I just can’t understand how you come out for a game like that – in New York, where many of the current roster had yet to play in the NHL, when even a 3-point game would have been fine, as long as they got SOME points. Just a maddening, frustrating game to watch.
The next night, with Wife in New York by my side, I made my first ever visit to Nassau Coliseum. No, it’s not Ralph Englestad Arena, but it’s certainly not the worst barn I’ve ever been in. It was sparsely attended by Isles fans (Wild fans made a good showing on both nights) – but then you can’t really blame them. (To their everlasting credit, as they filed out of the building after the game, the Isles fans sent up a lusty chant of “John-Ta Va-Res! Clap, clap, clapclapclap!” Hey, if you can’t laugh…) The Wild finally didn’t play down to an opponent, though, and carried the play for most of the game, running up a 6-2 victory in the process to secure the split of the two nights. Gaborik had a big game, and the power play finally got off the dime (3 goals.) But Wild fans were wise not to get their hopes up for that game representing a turnaround as we head into the final few games of the season…
…Because the Wild made their way up to Calgary and turned in the expected performance against the one team in the league that truly owns them: the Flames. It’s just so….expected at this point; the Flames beating the Wild. It’s not really even a contest. The Flames may sort of toy with the Wild for a period or so, but they WILL come out with the 2 points. In Saturday’s game, they didn’t really even toy with the Wild – though referee Eric Furlatt toyed with the Flames on not-one-but-two disallowed goals on the same power play. The only Wild player that really showed up was Backstrom. Even Skoula has been showing cracks in the foundation recently – and he had been one of the most-steady defensemen all season.
So it’s into Edmonton for the first of what one figures needs to be seven-straight wins for the Wild to have a reasonable shot at making the playoffs. You’ll excuse me if I don’t get all excited.
Some Other Articles That You May Enjoy:
A Sense Of Urgency
Minnesota Wild
I Like It, I love It…
Wild Win in St. Paul
Victory Belongs To The Most Persevering
Rookies To The Rescue?
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