The Minnesota Wild wrapped up their home preseason stint on Tuesday evening, Oct. 1, against the Chicago Blackhawks. It was a mostly veteran lineup with a few changes due to injuries to Matt Boldy and Jake Middleton. Plus, they have some final roster decisions to make before the regular season starts next week.
The Blackhawks started the scoring with a goal six minutes in by Jason Dickinson, who capitalized on a big rebound and gave his team a 1-0 lead. The Wild dug deep and struck back late in the period to tie things up at one on a goal by Frédérick Gaudreau, which gave his team the energy boost it desperately needed.
Like their game against the Winnipeg Jets on Friday, Sept. 27, the Wild’s scoring exploded in the second period. They added five goals, including two on the power play, to take a 6-1 lead and nearly kept it until Connor Bedard added a late power-play goal to make it 6-2 to end the second.
Things calmed down in the third, and the Wild added just one more goal to make the final score 7-2. In this article, we’ll examine how the game unfolded, starting with how the Wild’s offense took over.
Wild’s Offense Explodes in the Second
The Wild found their scoring momentum at the end of the first period and built on that in the second period. Jakub Lauko kicked things off with a goal early, followed just 29 seconds later by Jared Spurgeon. They weren’t out of scoring yet, however, as Joel Eriksson Ek knocked one in on the power play, and Marco Rossi followed suit just 21 seconds later while at even strength.
The number two was the theme in the second period as the Wild’s goals came in pairs, but Kirill Kaprizov added one late in the second, and it was a standalone, perfect set-up on the power play to make it 6-1. The Wild have found their mojo in the second period this preseason, and hopefully, this will continue into the regular season. However, not to be outdone, the third had another goal in it as well and showed the Wild don’t plan on letting off the gas.
The lone goal in the third was scored by their captain, Spurgeon, for his second goal of the night. He wasn’t the only Wild player to have a multi-point night, either. Mats Zuccarello had three assists, Brock Faber had two assists, Kaprizov had a goal and three assists, and Rossi had a goal and an assist. It was a great night for the Wild’s offense, and if they keep this up, they’ll have a successful season.
Filip Gustavsson also deserves a mention. He made some big saves when needed and jumped into the play more often. Hopefully, this will translate to the regular season, as it’s nice to have a more involved goaltender.
Wild’s Power Play Improved
The Wild’s power play was decent last season at times but also struggled to find offense. So far this preseason, they’ve found offense in several games, and they’ve done it multiple times a game. In the past, the Wild would often get caught trying to set up the perfect play too many times, and while they shot the puck, it often didn’t make it to the net, or the goaltender was ready.
This season, the Wild have worked on making quicker decisions in passing and making their passes even faster so they can take the shot immediately. This new power play form has worked to their advantage, and the players are also taking to it. They aren’t slipping into old habits; if they do, they immediately switch back. It’s good to see the team willing to make changes and then see them succeed.
This may not continue to work if teams catch on, but they’re showing they’re willing to adjust the play, and that can only help them. Hopefully, this new power play will be something they can use all season and will help them win games. They did get stuck in the penalty box again towards the end of the game, but they stayed disciplined through the first two periods. That’s something they’ll still have to fine-tune as the season nears.
Wild Have Final Choices to Make
Following this strong offensive performance, the Wild still have some final roster decisions to make. Boldy will hopefully be back either this coming Friday, Oct. 4, for their final preseason game or he’ll wait until next week for the regular season, but the plan is he’ll be back. Plus, Middleton should be back as well, as he was listed as day-to-day with a bruise.
That means two roster spots are taken, and two players won’t be on the roster when the Wild take the ice to open the regular season in just over a week. With how the lineup looked against the Blackhawks, assuming Marat Khusnutdinov and Jakub Lauko impressed enough, it’s likely Liam Ohgren is the odd man out and will likely head back to Iowa.
Lauko has definitely earned himself a spot on the opening night roster. He’s scored multiple goals this preseason and has looked strong the entire time. Khusnutdinov hasn’t exploded onto the scene in quite the same way, but he’s worked well on the ice and brings a physical side as well. Ohgren looked strong, but it might do him well to get some time in the American Hockey League before earning a full-time NHL slot.
Related: Minnesota Wild Have Few Decisions Left to Make Before the Regular Season
Regarding the defense, Middleton returns, and Daemon Hunt slides out, which likely means Jon Merrill starts the season on the bench. It’ll be interesting to see the final decisions over the next day because they’ll likely want their official roster before Friday’s preseason finale to ensure they have one full game together before the regular season kicks off. Plus the three goaltender rotation is likely to affect this as well so it’ll be fun to see who’s in and who’s out to start the season.
Wild Wrap Up Preseason
The Wild will wrap up their preseason schedule on the road in Chicago to take on the Blackhawks, Friday, Oct. 4. They’ll likely see most of the same lineup from the Blackhawks and likewise for the roster the Wild will put on the ice. Hopefully they can keep this offensive streak going and ride a win into the regular season.
