Wild beat Ducks

The Minnesota Wild beat the Anaheim Mighty Ducks at the Xcel Energy Center last night 5-1. My favorite high-light shot was of Anaheim Goalie J.S. Giguere throwing a fit on the bench. He was kicking his feet like a two year old. The Wild looked to be firing on all cylinders after their short All Star Break.

The Wild travel to Columbus for a game Saturday night and then will be back at the “X” on Tuesday February 5th to take on the Detroit Red Wings. The Red Wings are arguably the best team in the NHL and this Western Conference rival match-up is a game you won’t want to miss. The Red Wings will be trying to avenge their loss to the Wild that happened in Detroit on January 10th. I am sure the Red Wings will want to embarrass the Wild on their home ice, but this MN Wild Freak hopes they won’t succeed. Wild tickets to this hot game are moving fast! Go Wild!

Minnesota’s Golden Boy Scores in All Star Game

It was nice to see the Wilds own Marian Gaborik representing Minnesota Wild hockey well at this years All Star game in Atlanta. Gaborik scored a goal in the third period and for awhile it almost looked like it would be the game winner. The West ended up losing 7-8 and the third period was about the only period worth watching as far as hard hitting close action is concerned. Last year, Brian Rolston represented the Minnesota Wild and scored two goals at the All Star Game so Gaborik had big shoes to fill.

Let’s hope the Wild can return from their All Star Break with the same fervor as they went in with. There are Minnesota Wild tickets from local ticket brokers available. Let’s go Wild!

Wild can’t handle the Flames in Calgary

The Minnesota Wild had a great chance at Calgary on Tuesday night to put some separation between themselves and other teams in the Northwest Division. They got off to a promising start with Brian Rolston’s first period goal, but the Wild were stalemated the rest of the contest while giving up two goals to the Flames. Wild killer Jarome Iginla was shut out, but it still didn’t matter for the Wild, who has a history of struggling at Calgary. A bright spot for the Wild was Josh Harding, who started in net and made 35 saves. The two goals netted on him were from bad defense by Keith Carney and a turnover, respectively.

The next time the Wild play at home is after the All Star break when they take on the Mighty Ducks. You can get Wild tickets from local brokers like Ticket King for around $80 each. Let's go Wild!

Jekyll & Hyde

Now when I tune into a Minnesota Wild game, I watch the first ten minutes with one eye open and one eye shut. Generally speaking, I am able to figure out which Minnesota Wild team has shown up in that span of time. Is it the lethargic team that just goes through the motions and loses or is it the energized hard skating team that pressures their opponent into a submissive victory?

Well, last night, the Minnesota Wild team that flies around the ice, fore checks with a reckless abandon and back checks like their lives depend on it while taking advantage of their opponent’s mistakes showed up. The Minnesota Wild completely outplayed the Vancouver Canucks on way to a 4-2 win on the Canucks ice.

I really hope that the same Wild team shows up tonight against the Calgary Flames because Jarome Iginla and the Flames have the Minnesota Wild’s number. The Wild have only won once in their last 12 visits to Calgary. I will definitely watch the first ten minutes of the game tonight with only one eye open. GO WILD!!!

Minnesota Wild versus Anaheim Ducks

I was never as fired up for a Wild regular season hockey game as I was for last night’s game versus the HATED Anaheim Ducks. I marked it on my Wild Schedule months ago as a “must see” game because I viewed it as a retribution game for the Minnesota Wild. It was an extremely big game that was full of sub-plots:

1. It was the first time the Ducks played at the Xcel Energy Center since last year’s playoffs.
2. The Minnesota Wild had already beaten the Anaheim Ducks twice this year in Anaheim.
3. Derek Boogard came of the IR just in time to suit up for the Wild.
4. In Minnesota, Todd Bertuzzi is the most hated NHL player.
5. The two NHL franchises have a general dislike for each other.


All of the sub-plots as well as my overall hatred for the Anaheim Ducks forced me to shell out big buck$ for some Wild Tickets and head down to the Xcel Energy Center for the much anticipated game.

Unfortunately, almost everything in the game that could go wrong went wrong. The Anaheim Ducks won the game 4-2. There wasn’t any retribution dished out by Derek Boogard for Brad May’s “sucker punch” on Kim Johanson in the Playoffs last year and Todd Bertuzzi had two goals and an assist.

The game was an utter disappointment! I wonder if I can get a refund on the Minnesota Wild Tickets I bought. The only positive I can come up with right now is that the same two teams face of at the Xcel energy Center January 30th. GO WILD!!!!

Minnesota Wild Sellout Streak

There probably wont be any added fanfare surrounding the Minnesota Wild reaching its 300Th consecutive sellout this Wednesday but it is an impressive streak that is hard to duplicate in any sport. This streak is the longest active sellout streak in the NHL and it has no chance of stopping unless something drastic takes place. It can be attributed to the rabid fan support for Minnesota Wild Hockey in the Twin Cities as well as the exceptional product both on and off the ice that the Wild organization has produced. I as a HUGE Minnesota Wild fan congratulate both the organization and the Minnesota fans who have purchase all of those Wild Tickets to make the streak possible. GO WILD!!!

Minnesota Wild Sold

Craig Leipold, former owner of the Nashville Predators, has bought the Minnesota Wild and all its entities for an undisclosed amount of money. Leipold is a resident of Racine, Wisconsin and is said to be a real hockey guy. In fact when current Minnesota Wild owner Bob Naegle informed Minnesota Governor Tim Pawlenty that Greg Leipold was coming to the Wild, the Governor said, “Oh good the Wild could always use another defenseman.” Leipold has a repuation as a passionate hockey guy and this MN Wild Freak thinks although the move is oddly timed (middle of the season) it should be seamless to fans. If anything, it will be interesting to see a new owner roaming the concourses of the Xcel Energy Center or at least roaming the Xcel suite level.

Burns, Gaborik, Backstrom lead as Wild hit season midpoint

So who is doing the best so far for the Minnesota Wild this season? The Wild has played through 48 games on their schedule this season which is near the halfway point in the season. Brent Burns has turned out to be the Wild's best defenseman, as he has compiled 25 points and a +3 ice ratio. He leads all defensemen in goals. Unsurprisingly, right winger Marian Gaborik has led the team in points with 40 in only 37 games played. A quarter of his 21 goals came in one game against the New York Rangers, when he scored five.

Goalie Josh Harding is enjoying more net time this year. He was projected to get around thirty starts and has played in 16 games with a 7-8 win loss record. His goals against average of 3.02 is higher than starting goalie Niklas Backstrom's 2.44, so look for Harding to try and improve that stat so Jacques Lemaire can have more confidence in him.

Minnesota Wild Schedule

The Minnesota Wild schedule is not an easy road in the next two weeks. The Wild played the second place Dallas Stars last night and again on January 7, and then the first place Detroit Red Wings on January 10. This is a mean stretch in the season, let's see if the Wild can hang in there in the Western Conference standings. Go Wild!

Sharks chomp a Wild comeback

The Minnesota Wild went hard for three periods last Monday against the San Jose Sharks, but the Sharks won out in the end after a lucky bounce for a Jonathan Cheechoo goal in the third period. The Wild had just tied the score at two a piece ten seconds earlier.

The Sharks have now won 10 straight road games, putting them in a tie for the second longest streak with four other teams. The NHL record of 12 straight was set by the Detroit Red Wings in March and April of 2006. The loss was bad for Minnesota Wild hockey because it propelled the San Jose Sharks to fourth place in the Western Conference standings with 49 points while leaving the Wild behind in sixth with only 46.