Trade Deadline News:
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Games this week:
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On the road to finish off the season series against all three of these teams. It doesn't look like any of these three are going to make the playoffs, so this is Minnesota's last trip to California until next year.
Current Standings:
| Rank | Team | GP | Pts | Magic Number |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Vegas | 47 | 70 | 0 |
| 2 | Colorado | 45 | 66 | 0 |
| 3 | Minnesota | 47 | 65 | 0 |
| 4 | Arizona | 48 | 47 | 22 |
| 5 | St. Louis | 45 | 46 | 18 |
| 6 | San Jose | 47 | 41 | - |
| 7 | Los Angeles | 45 | 40 | - |
| 8 | Anaheim | 48 | 35 | - |
5-2 win over the Coyotes
The power play was 3 for 3 in this one and is as good now as it was bad earlier in the year. The power play shooting percentage has reached an inflection point and is moving toward the league average (the median NHL power play shooting percentage is 14%, the Wild season power play shooting percentage is 11%, and is 14% once you remove the first 10 games of the season).
Power play shooting percentage over the 5 games preceding this weekend - 31.3% (10 goals on 32 shots).
Two wins over the Sharks
The fourth line was the story here. Bonino-Sturm-Parise combined to score 6 of Minnesota's 13 goals this week.
Bonino had 6 points, Parise had 4, and Sturm got a goal and an assist. It was amazing how much this line controlled play when they were on the ice. Zach Parise had a really good couple of games, and immediately all the podcasts and Russo articles and everything rushed to recognize his fourth line contributions.
I'm interested to observe how Evason's doghouse works, because there are clearly players that he doesn't give the benefit of the doubt (Nico Sturm - who's been really good and still plays fourth line when he's not scratched). Parise was in trouble with Evason earlier in the year and I wonder how long it will take to see Zach on the power play again.
Kirill Kaprizov Corner
Leaderboards
| Player | G | Player | A | Player | Pts | Player | xGAR |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kaprizov | 22 | Greenway | 22 | Kaprizov | 41 | Eriksson Ek | 11.5 |
| Fiala | 17 | Kaprizov | 19 | Fiala | 32 | Kaprizov | 10.6 |
| Eriksson Ek | 15 | Zuccarello | 19 | Zuccarello | 29 | Spurgeon | 7.7 |
| Zuccarello | 10 | Suter | 16 | Greenway | 28 | Brodin | 7.2 |
| Foligno | 9 | Fiala/Soucy | 15 | Eriksson Ek | 25 | Sturm | 7.2 |
It is possible, with 3 regulation wins and some help, for the Wild to clinch a playoff spot on Friday.
All-time highest point total for Minnesota Wild rookies:
1. Kaprizov - 37
2. Gaborik - 36
All-time highest goal totals for Minnesota Wild rookies:
1. Gaborik - 18
1. Kaprizov - 18
Not sure if that says more about Kaprizov or the Wild.
Yes.
Kaprizov would be on pace for 35 goals in an 82 game season right now. That would put him tied for 34th all time for NHL rookie goals.
In the last 20 years, 14 players have topped 30 goals in their rookie season. Only 4 have 35 or more (Ovechkin, Crosby, Matthews, Laine).
Kaprizov is something special.
Top 30 goals per game for rookies since the 2005 lockout (minimum 19 goals).
that was a pretty little flick for the empty netter.
Magic number down to 8 (over LA)
Scenario to clinch a playoff spot on Friday:
* Anaheim beats LA tonight in regulation
* Minnesota beats Arizona Wednesday in regulation
* Minnesota beats LA Friday in regulation
ha. there's a video on after the game of a tour of kaprizov's apartment. he shows where he plays video games and the producer asks does he play any ea sports? the NHL game? he laughed and said no, i play hockey.
I saw that too, made me wonder if part of the reason FIFA is such a popular game for professional athletes is that it could be one of the sports they've played the least (or maybe not at all) of the big sports game genres. Granted, I'm taking what EA's marketing team fed me while I worked there about how many football/basketball players spent a lot of time with FIFA.
FIFA is super popular with teens and has been for years. My son, who doesn't watch a lot of soccer on TV, knows all the players and teams from playing FIFA. Makes sense that this would apply to once teens who now are pro athletes.
Nico Sturm is good and should play more.
You cannot stop Kirill.
Filthy.
Also, Fiala did a great job not killing himself on his goal.
Wild finish the season series 7-1 against Arizona (no OT/SO games).
Arizona against the top 3 teams in the division -- 4-17-1
Arizona against the bottom 3 teams in the division -- 11-3-3
They've got 7 more against the Kings and the Sharks and that might be enough to get them into the playoffs and a first round date with Colorado or Las Vegas. I'm going to guess that won't be an exciting first round matchup either way.
I could lose to the Knights. I don't want to lose to the Avs.
I could lose to both, but then, I'm not very good at hockey.
It's funny to me how much the sports radio group (Zulgad is the one I've heard this the most from) has already penciled in the Wild upsetting the Golden Knights in round 1.
That certainly is funny. I'm expecting a painful loss in like 5 games, no matter which of those two teams we face. Hypothetically the Wild could win a series, and hypothetically the Knights are the weaker team, but the Knights and Avs are probably two of the best teams in the NHL, right? And we love the Wild, but they aren't that.
I think the Avs are the best team in the league by a lot (unless something happens to Grubauer, like DG said once before). There might be arguments for one or two teams maybe being better than the Knights (Lightning? Maple Leafs? Hurricanes? Someone from the other division...?), but I'd still probably take them second. And would certainly rather take a shot at them in the playoffs first if I had to choose one.
The camera on the other side shows it better. Feigned pass, gives it to himself between his legs
Sturm good. Play more.
Only 3 teams in the NHL have a higher points percentage than the Wild. Two of the three are in their division.
Loved Suter's look of disbelief when he scored.
Martin Jones: still not great.
Hey, he almost stopped more shots than he let in that period!
Playoffs magic number = 0
Avalanche minus Grubauer = not so threatening, it seems.
Dom L. at the Athletic weighs in on the Calder race. The takeaway here is that Nico Sturm is good and should play more.
Whether or not Kaprizov should get the Rookie of the Year award because he played in the KHL is one of those issues that like 3 people will care about in 4 months.
So true.
Robertson has a legitimate case regardless of past experience. But, I still think Kaprizov wins it. The best arguments I've seen for Robertson put him just a touch ahead of KK97 statistically, and given the way Kaprizov started the year and announced himself to the NHL, it would take a more significant difference to dislodge him from the top spot.
But then, I've watched a lot more of Kaprizov than any of the other candidates.
KHL player with more experience wins Calder Trophy over rookie? That sounds familiar.
And Panarin over McDavid in 2016.