The Minnesota Wild didn’t end the month of November the way they hoped, but the rest of the month went very well. They finished the month with a record of 11-1-2 and looked like a completely different team from the month of October, where they had a record of 3-6-3. The complete 180 in play wasn’t because of just one or two players, but the entire team, unless you ask Mats Zuccarello, who claimed it was his doing when he returned from injury, and the team started the month with consecutive wins.
While their success was the entire team coming together, that doesn’t mean there weren’t a few players who stood out above the rest. Everyone knows Kirill Kaprizov is on that list, but there are three others who deserve the spotlight and will be the three stars for November. We’ll look at who they are, starting with the third star first.
Third Star: Marcus Johansson
If you had told many Wild fans last summer that Marcus Johansson would be doing as well as he has this season, it’s likely they wouldn’t have believed you. Last season wasn’t bad, but it wasn’t great; however, this season has started out strong. It’s barely past the quarter mark, and he’s already tallied 20 points compared to 34 points in 72 games last season.
He’s stepped up in many ways, from playing on the first line to making the second line shine with his talents. He’s made a strong partner for Matt Boldy, and the two of them have found some great chemistry that has resulted in goals. While it looked like his career was getting close to ending, he’s found a new edge that the Wild needed, and he played his 1,000th game.
He’s had two game-winning goals this season, and one of those was an overtime goal. It hasn’t been an easy season, but the month of November was one the Wild will want to find a way to replicate, and if Johansson can keep up his play, they’ll be able to do that.
Second Star: Matt Boldy
Many may wonder why he’s not the first star, but they’ll see why in a second, as it could’ve easily been a three-way tie. Regardless, Matt Boldy has earned his spot as one of the stars of the month as he was the top point-earner for the Wild. He tied Kaprizov with 10 goals for the month, but he had seven assists for 17 points compared to Kaprizov’s five assists for 15 points.
He’s stepped up in every way the Wild could’ve hoped for and then some. He’s playing more aggressively and confidently, and he’s not backing down. Instead, he’s pushing through players to get possession of the puck, he’s winning board battles, and he’s getting the puck out front. He’s even been quite strong on the power play and has consistently been on the top unit.
Without him, it’s safe to say the Wild wouldn’t have had the strong month they did have. He’s really improved his game and found that next level that everyone knew he was capable of. Again, like Johansson, hopefully he can keep this game going, and he can help the Wild stay on the winning track.
First Star: Jesper Wallstedt/Filip Gustavsson
While it’s supposed to be one player per star, the Wild’s goaltending was top-notch for the month of November, but they couldn’t have done it without each other. Everyone has seen and knows what Filip Gustavsson is capable of, while Jesper Wallstedt was more of an unknown. Everyone hoped he would step up, and at first, things looked a little shaky, but this past month, he’s shown everything and more.
The two of them got the Wild out of their slump and onto the winning track, and even better, into a playoff position. Wallstedt has shown he’s everything the Wild hoped he would be and more. He has recorded three shutouts this season, and all three were in the month of November. Gustavsson has two shutouts, one in the very first game of the season in October and the other in November.
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It’s the best thing possible for a team to have two hot goalies; it’s a problem they all wish they had. The Wild need to keep the rotation going and make sure both goaltenders get their share of ice time, as they’ve been playing better because of it, and they’ve pushed each other to be better with the healthy competition.
The Wild had a great November, and a big part of it was due to these four names listed. They all found ways to step up, and it worked. Hopefully, the month of December will be as strong as the month of November, and the Wild will have more names to add to the stars of the month and have more wins listed as well.
