After a few weeks’ hiatus, the Wild Check-In is back and has some good news to discuss. The Minnesota Wild had quite the busy week between firing and hiring a new coach, plus they found a way to win games. That’s right; they found a way to win not just one game but all three they played this past week. They started by taking down the St. Louis Blues, then moved on to the Nashville Predators and wrapped up the week against the Chicago Blackhawks.
Before this past week, the Wild seemed destined to continue their losing streak with no real hope. They were making mistake after mistake, and nothing worked, no matter what they tried to do to fix it. However, after the coaching change, everything seemed to get better, and they had several players who were struggling before stepping up, plus Mats Zuccarello leading the way, and that’s where we’ll start.
Wild’s Zuccarello Leads Way
As he’s quietly done all season, Zuccarello led the team in points with five in the past three games. He registered one goal and four assists, even topping his linemate Kirill Kaprizov, who was a little further down the line regarding points. Following Zuccarello, Connor Dewar was the first player to step up in a big way.
He was known last season as one of the best-shorthanded players the Wild had, and while he hasn’t found that success yet this season, he did find some offensive production. Dewar recorded three goals and one assist for four points in one game this past week. It was the first hat trick of his career and his first game with three or more points.
After Dewar, there was a player who’s been stepping up all season and hasn’t found a way to stop, and that’s Marco Rossi. He continues to improve every game and find ways to make an impact. This past week, he contributed with two goals and an assist for three points; he nearly followed in Dewar’s footsteps with a hat trick of his own.
Wild’s Johansson Needs Production
Where there’s success, there’s room for improvement, and that’s exactly what the Wild need from Marcus Johansson. He’s played decently, but his level of offensive production has struggled, especially this past week when he tallied zero points. Thankfully, other players stepped up, but he’s been on the second line, and they need more from him in the future.
Johansson’s not the only one who struggled in production this past week; Ryan Hartman could’ve also used some help offensively. His struggles were mainly due to being suspended for two games, and he was unsuccessful in the one game he did play. After being removed from the top line, it’ll be interesting to see if he can find chemistry on his new line.
Jon Merrill is the final player on this list who really needs to step up and has needed to for most of the season. He’s struggled when he’s been in the lineup, and this past week was no different. He played just one game and had zero points. Hopefully, these three can find a way to be more productive and be on the successful list next week.
Wild’s Road Trip
The Wild will be heading out west on a four-game road trip to face the Calgary Flames, Vancouver Canucks, Edmonton Oilers, and finally the Seattle Kraken. This will be a true test to see if their success can continue or if they’ve been lucky in the last few games.
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The Wild’s defense will have to find a way to stop Nazem Kadri, Jonathan Huberdeau, Andrew Magnipane, J.T. Miller, Quinn Hughes, Elias Pettersson, Leon Draisaitl, Connor McDavid, Zach Hyman, Vince Dunn, Oliver Bjorkstrand, and Jared McCann. There’s a lot of scoring power on this road trip they’ll have to watch for if they want to win.
On the other hand, the Wild’s offense will have to find a way past Dan Vladar or Jacob Markström if he’s healthy, Thatcher Demko, Stuart Skinner, and Philipp Grubauer or Joey Daccord. Again, this road trip will test this team and see if they’re the real deal. Hopefully, they can continue to string wins together and come home victorious.
