Minnesota Wild 3
San Jose Sharks 4
The Wild hung around until the final seconds of this afternoon’s game against the Sharks, but lost to a last minute shot off a face off from Joe Pavelski.
1) Minnesota’s power play showing signs of life
Despite a successful 2nd period sequence involving a scrappy two-man goal between Nino Niederreiter and Charlie Coyle off a Jared Spurgeon smash from the blue line, the Wild went 1 for 7 on power play opportunities. Even so, Minnesota has now scored an advantage goal in two consecutive road games for the first time since their 3 game road trip that started the season, according to NHL.com’s Evan Sporer.
Wicked timing by @CharlieCoyle_3. #mnwild pic.twitter.com/BdHvCl1WYm
— Minnesota Wild (@mnwild) January 23, 2016
2. Tough night for Dumba and Koivu
Defender Matt Dumba and Center Mikko Koivu both struggled mightily, taking a minus apiece and handing off a pair of untimely giveaways that definitely didn’t do the wild any favors. Koivu’s inability to come up with the biscuit on this crucial faceoff gave the Sharks all the opportunity they needed to seal the game with a timely assist.
Captain Clutch. 🚨 pic.twitter.com/Hb888kHQff
— San Jose Sharks (@SanJoseSharks) January 24, 2016
3. Wild struggling to close out games
https://twitter.com/ChadGraff/status/691052541904232448
As the Pioneer Press’s Chad Graff observed, the Wild have done a poor job in clutch situations during this slog of a four game road trip. Hopefully a return to home ice will help buoy the team if Monday’s game against the Arizona Coyotes gets close.
Tweet of the Night:
Coach Yeo summed up tonight’s heartbreak perfectly.
Yeo: "Real tough way to lose a hockey game. Disappointing. You have to think at that point you’re going to get a point." #mnwild
— Michael Russo (@RussoHockey) January 24, 2016
Up Next:
Minnesota (23-17-8) hosts the Arizona Coyotes (22-19-5) Monday night, a 7:30 p.m. CST tip.
