The Minnesota Wild lost their third game in a row, 4-1, to the Canadiens in Montreal Saturday night. Two of their biggest stars are out with injuries, and it shows.
Zach Parise has missed two games with a concussion, and defenseman Jared Spurgeon has a shoulder injury that’s kept him out for four games, the Star Tribune notes.
The Wild have scored just two goals in the past three games while their opponents have scored 23 in the past seven games, according to the Star Tribune.
Neither team scored in the first period. Montreal got on the board first in the second frame with a goal by Brendan Gallagher. Jason Pominville came back and tied it 1-1 with 5:01 left in the second, the Associated Press reports.
Lars Eller put Montreal ahead for good with 50 seconds left in the second period, with a slap shot that went past goalie Darcy Kuemper’s glove. Kuemper had 27 saves on the night.
Jiri Sekac and Max Pacioretty also scored for Montreal, according to the Associated Press.
Before the game, the Canadiens retired Hockey Hall of Fame defenseman Guy Lapointe’s No. 5 jersey. Lapointe, who won the Stanley Cup six times with Montreal, is Minnesota’s coordinator of amateur scouting and has worked for the Wild since 1999, according to NHL.com.
Guy Lapointe became the 18th player to have his number retired by the @CanadiensMTL. VIDEO: http://t.co/L3i6hBq0rG pic.twitter.com/pNh4pOs4au
— NHL Public Relations (@PR_NHL) November 9, 2014
Lapointe was joined by his family, as well as former Canadiens defensemen Serge Savard and Larry Robinson. The trio of Hall of Famer were known as “The Big Three” during their heyday with Montreal in the 1970s.
Montreal Canadiens retire Guy Lapointe's No. 5 jersey and bring tears to everyone's eyes. http://t.co/mlR780LYJb pic.twitter.com/ps8FEPggjv
— theScore (@theScore) November 9, 2014
The Canadiens wore Lapointe No. 5 jerseys while they sat on the bench during the pregame ceremony as well as during their warm-up afterward.
The Wild’s next game is Tuesday in New Jersey against the Devils.
