The Minnesota Wild were back at home to start a three-game homestand when they took on the Los Angeles Kings on Thursday, Oct. 19. It didn’t start the way they hoped as the Kings jumped out to an early one-goal lead, but the Wild stormed back quickly with two goals. However, it didn’t end there as the Kings registered three straight to take a 4-2 lead and kept it through the third period.
The third period has been the Wild’s struggle area regarding goals scored, and they tried to fix that against the Kings. They kept the Kings off the board until halfway through the third, when they found a way past Marc-André Fleury to make it 5-2. Not all hope was lost as the Wild fought back to get within two with just over five minutes left in the game. Again, that hope was dashed as the Kings recorded not one but two empty netters to seal the deal 7-3 and give the Wild a 2-2 record.
Wild’s Lack of Spark
Again, the Wild started on the wrong foot this time against the Kings; not only did they go down a goal early, but they didn’t get their first shot until almost five minutes into the first period. Not long after they got that first shot, they put together back-to-back goals under two minutes apart and changed the momentum in their favor.
As everyone saw, it didn’t last, and although the Wild had glimmers of hope and some great plays, they couldn’t convert. They did make some mistakes defensively, especially letting the Kings skate around them or beat them to the puck. It was quite the off night, and they had no energy. Their little momentum after their first two goals diminished quickly after the Kings answered, and it didn’t return. Again, they had some strong chances, but couldn’t find a way past former Wild goaltender Cam Talbot.
Even Fleury, who hardly ever has an off night, seemed off. Obviously, letting in five goals (the final two were empty netters) isn’t a typical night for Fleury, but he didn’t make any giant mistakes. He was in position but couldn’t stop everything that came at him. As the season goes on, the Wild have to figure out how to keep that high-tempo spark going even when the score isn’t in their favor, or they will continue to struggle when behind.
Wild’s Power Play Empty-Handed
It’s only four games into the Wild’s season and likely not cause for alarm, but it is something to keep a small eye on, and that is their power play or lack thereof. They found some success in their two wins, but in their two losses, they were stonewalled. Despite having some strong talents on their power play in Kirill Kaprizov, Joel Eriksson Ek, Marcus Johansson, Calen Addison, and Mats Zuccarello, they’ve only scored four times out of 17 chances.
However, there is a bright side: they’ve clearly changed how they approach their power play. They appeared to take more shots than they used to, and rather than staying stationary in their positions, they were skating around swapping spots, just being more fluid. This created chances for them, but Talbot just played lights out and stopped almost everything.
Related: Wild Hope to Improve Power Play With King Addition
There’s no doubt that their new power play coach, Jason King, is behind this new power play style. It may not have been as successful as everyone hoped, but it’s important to remember it’s early in the season, and they have plenty of time to fine-tune things, although sooner is always better.
Wild’s Sammy Walker Shines
Amid this injury bug, the Wild have lost Jared Spurgeon, Matt Boldy, and Alex Goligoski. They’d already called up Dakota Mermis due to Spurgeon’s injury, but he didn’t actually play until Goligoski was out. Goligoski’s switch to the long-term injured reserve list allowed the Wild to temporarily fill Boldy’s spot with Samuel “Sammy” Walker.
Walker played nine games for the Wild last season and made quite the impression, but of course, this season, there wasn’t room due to the roster being set until injuries happened. Walker did everything he could to make this chance count just like before. He didn’t register any points but made things happen, got some scoring opportunities, and recorded a shot on goal.
He also had the chance to be teammates again with his former Golden Gophers teammate, Brock Faber. They’re both Minnesota natives and have fulfilled the dream of playing with their hometown team at the college level and professionally. It’ll be interesting to see how much Walker can contribute while he remains on the roster.
Wild Face Blue Jackets
The Wild will stay at home to face the Columbus Blue Jackets on Saturday, Oct. 20. They had a lot of issues with the stanchions at the Xcel Energy Center during Thursday’s game, and it’ll be interesting to see if that continues, and something to watch for, especially behind the net. It’ll also be fun to watch if Eriksson Ek and Kaprizov can keep their current goal streaks alive and if Kaprizov can continue his strong defensive game that we saw against the Kings.
The Blue Jackets will be heading into the second game of a back-to-back, with the first game being against the Calgary Flames. After this loss, the Wild will be looking to get back into the win column and hopefully step up their game to do just that.
