3 Takeaways From the Wild’s 4-3 Overtime Loss to the Oilers

The Minnesota Wild started their five-game road trip against the Edmonton Oilers on Tuesday night, Oct. 20. They did get a slight break in their injury issues as Nico Sturm returned to the lineup after missing the past three games, which was a result of a puck to the side of the head. He was the only injured player to return, so the Wild were still without Jared Spurgeon, Olli Määttä, and the Foligno brothers. 

Jesper Wallstedt was in the net once again, and the Wild got the early jump with the first of the game. However, the Oilers responded late in the first, and they went into the second period tied 1-1. That’s where things got difficult as the Oilers added two more goals and took a 3-1 lead into the final period. The Wild dug deep and responded with two straight goals of their own and tied it 3-3, and they forced overtime. The Oilers got the final goal and took the win 4-3, but the Wild still earned a point, and in this article we’ll look at a few takeaways starting with the penalty kill. 

Wild’s Penalty Kill Exposed

The Wild got the scoring started, but unfortunately once they took their first penalty of the game, they let the Oilers back in. The Wild started out the season with a very strong penalty kill, but no matter how strong a penalty kill is, there’s a weakness in it somewhere. The Oilers exploited that weakness not just once but three times; twice in regulation and the game-winning goal in overtime as well.  

The Oilers are clearly a very strong team with Connor McDavid, Leon Draisaitl, Evan Bouchard, and others, so it was no surprise their power play was also strong. The Wild’s penalty kill had been very aggressive and forced other teams to make mistakes; however, against the Oilers, they had to chase the play and allowed them to set up. 

“Yeah, how many they score four on the power play? Three, three, yeah, they {are} good {on the} power play but we just gotta do a better job in the PK, I think, and maybe stop or kill two of those and then we’re fine, but yeah it’s good players out there so can make plays but I thought it was good comeback and we get one point,” said Jonas Brodin to the media in his postgame interview when asked about the Oilers’ power play. 

Wild’s Wallstedt Was Strong

Regardless of how the game ended, the loss was not on goaltender Jesper Wallstedt’s shoulders. The power-play goals scored against him: there was nothing he could do. He was in position, and he did what he could, but Draisaitl was able to get open, and Wallstedt couldn’t get there in time to stop him on two of the three power-play goals. 

The even-strength goal that was scored seconds after a power play for the Oilers had expired was the only goal that Wallstedt could have some of the blame. He faced the initial shot and had it stopped, but it trickled through his pads, and Mathieu Joseph was waiting on the doorstep to knock it in, something that was not Wallstedt’s fault; his defense should’ve had Joseph covered. Throughout the game, Wallstedt made some big stops, and it looked to be his best performance of the season despite the loss. 

“Yeah, just he’s so calm. If you don’t really understand the game, you think he’s just making routine saves, but he makes those saves easy just because he’s so compact and he’s never really out of position; you don’t really see him flailing around on his back…he’s just composed and really level-headed,” said Ryan Hartman to the media in his postgame interview when asked what he’s thought of Wallstedt so far this season.  

Wild’s Bright Spots

The Wild may have struggled with their special teams against the Oilers, especially their penalty kill, which managed to kill off just two of five penalties they took, but there were some bright spots to their game. They did get the first goal, which gave them some momentum until the penalties came. 

Despite the penalties and allowing the lead to slip away, they dug deep and found a way to score twice to get themselves back in the game. The top line contributed twice, with Joel Eriksson Ek getting his first of the season, and then Ryan Hartman on the third line also scored his first of the season. Two players they needed production from, and they contributed, which forced overtime and helped earn their team a point. 

“Yeah, it was nice; it was a nice time of the game to get the game tied up and get a point out of a game that wasn’t really going right for us, so we like that we were able to contribute a point out of that,” said Hartman to the media in his postgame interview when asked about his goal in the third. 

The ending wasn’t what the Wild wanted, but they still managed to come out with a point after climbing back into the game. They have things to work on in terms of special teams, but overall they’ve proven they can get themselves back into the game even when things are going against them. They still have four more games on this road trip, so hopefully they can turn things around and come out with some wins.