Minnesota Wild Lose Heartbreaker, Winnipeg Jets Win In Overtime

There’s nothing quite like the atmosphere when the Winnipeg Jets come to visit our Minnesota Wild. The Wild, losers of 4 straight games and 9 of the last 14, came on the ice hoping to return to a consistent, structured game. While they played a fantastic game, even taking the Jets to overtime; an odd bounce stole the second point away, as the Minnesota Wild lose a heartbreaker in overtime.

The Minnesota Wild and Winnipeg Jets are building one of the best rivalries in the National Hockey League. Counting tonight, 5 of the last 6 games between the two squads have been decided by one goal. The Wild earned an overtime point, but lost their 5th straight game. John Curry, the Iowa Wild’s saving grace, made his second career start for the Wild. Several riots broke out in front of the net. Remarkably, there was only one fight.

First Period:

The Jets pushed hard in the first 5-6 minutes, outshooting the Wild 5-2 at one point.

The Wild briefly had zone pressure, but Ryan Carter, who’s played well but isn’t on the score sheet, took a tripping penalty in front of the goal mouth while Stu Bickel and Chris Thorburn fought. Bickel clearly won the fight, so there’s that.

The Wild killed off Carter’s penalty with relative ease, with Kyle Brodziak registering a shorthanded shot that whistled wide of the net. As  Carter exited the box, Carter’s right skate deflected the puck while his left skate was still planted in the box. According to  NHL rule 56.2, Carter was assessed a minor for interference, giving the Jets 4 uninterrupted minutes with the man advantage. The Jets only managed a few shots and the Wild killed all four minutes without breaking a sweat. Here’s the odd rule Carter was enforced on:

"A minor penalty shall be imposed on any identifiable player on the players’ bench or penalty bench who, by means of his stick or his body, interferes with the movements of the puck or any opponent on the ice during the progress of the play. In addition, should a player about to come onto the ice, play the puck while one or both skates are still on the players’ or penalty bench, a minor penalty for interference shall be assessed.-NHL Rule 56.2"

The Wild earned a power play chance shortly after, managing two shots. Although they didn’t convert, they used the momentum to hold the offensive zone for what seemed like the remainder of the period.

Mikael Granlund, who hadn’t scored in eons, put the Wild on the board first. Entering the zone with Jason Pominville, Granlund picked up a centering pass and fired a short, low wrister that scampered under goaltender Michael Hutchinson’s Right leg. This is what I’ve been waiting to see from Granlund. The kid has awesome hands, and I’m glad they finally went to great use. 1-0 Wild at 16:03 of the first period.

Ending the first period on the power play, I thought the Wild played a well-rounded period and earned the chances they had.

Shots through one period: Winnipeg Jets 7, Minnesota Wild 8

Second Period:

The Second period was fairly quiet for both teams, who tightened up defensively.

Hutchinson had a gaffe on a clearing attempt from behind the net that landed right in front of Pominville. Pominville didn’t have much time to get the shot off and the puck never made it to the net.

Bryan Little tied it up for the Jets with a sneaky quick release from the slot that slid right through Curry’s wide open 5-hole. 1-1 tie at 07:17 of the second period. This is the only goal of the night that Curry played a big part in. I don’t think it was a soft goal at all, since Little has a wicked fast release; however, I don’t think he quite had a grasp on it.

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Towards the end of the period, Jared Spurgeon fired a howitzer from the point that beat Hutchinson cleanly, but was immediately waved off due to incidental goaltender interference by Zach Parise. Parsie was cutting to the crease for a rebound and contacted Hutchinson’s glove. Dustin Byfuglien actually pushed Parise in to Hutchinson, though he may have connected with Hutchinson anyway. Goaltender interference can’t be reviewed, so the play stood.

Shots through two periods: Winnipeg Jets 15, Minnesota Wild 16

Third Period:

Things got fun in the third for the largest crowd at the X this season; though things looked bleak for the Wild at times.

Mikko Koivu put a shot just centimeters wide of the goal post in the opening seconds.

Adam Lowry, who does not have a street named after him in Minneapolis, picked up an Evander Kane rebound from outside the blue paint and elevated the puck off of Erik Haula’s stick. Curry didn’t quite play the puck cleanly and it bounced off his trapper and in. 2-1 Jets at 01:52 of the third period.

Jonas Brodin got run down in the neutral zone in the third and did not return. He looked winded as he went to the bench. After the game, Mike Yeo called it an upper-body injury and gave no time table for the promising defenseman’s return.

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Byfuglien ran down Granlund in the 7th minute. On replay, you can see Granlund do a somersault and landed on his head. He left later in the game and didn’t return. As with Brodin, there is no timetable on his return. The only positive is that the Wild earned a power play as Byfuglien got sent to the box for interference.

After a lackluster power play and two consecutive icings for the Wild, Jason Pominville tied things up for the Wild with a really odd-angled shot that hugged the inside of the far post and crossbar. What an absolute laser by Pominville. Stu Bickel earned the primary assist, giving him his first point as a member of the Minnesota Wild.

2-2 tie at 10:38 of the third period.

The Wild went back to the power play with 9:09 left to play. With a chance to regain the lead, the Wild instead gave up a shorthanded goal. Koivu attempted a long pass to Pominville at the point that Blake Wheeler intercepted. The Wild couldn’t beat the rushing Jets and the Robbinsdale, MN native Wheeler scored his 11th of the year. 3-2 Jets at 12:09 of the third period. 

Not to be outdone, Thomas Vanek tied things up for the Wild as the power play expired. Spurgeon ripped a shot from the point that would’ve missed wide, but Vanek provided the net front presence he was brought to the Wild for. 3-3 tie at 12:41 of the third period.

Despite a power play chance for both teams, the Jets were perfectly comfortable taking the game to overtime to cushion their lead in the standings.

Shots through regulation: Winnipeg Jets 22, Minnesota Wild 24

Overtime:

Let’s bring it down to this. One shot per side in the OT period. Then, Andrew Ladd fired a shot over the net that took an odd bounce off the glass and hit Curry’s neck and bounced in to the back of the net. Minnesota Wild lose again and miss the opportunity for a 4 point swing in one game.

Trembley’s Take:

Heartbreaking describes it perfectly to me. The Wild actually played a really good team game tonight and only came away with one point. The Wild are

Koivu, Nino Niederreiter, Charlie Coyle, and Parise all had Corsi for percentages above 55%

I think John Curry played servicably. With the struggles we’ve had at goaltender, I think he’s worth another look. When do the Oilers come to town? Let’s pencil him in. His save percentage was 0.826, but I also feel like he was out of sync with the team. That’ll improve.

I sincerely hope Brodin and Granlund are well enough to play on Monday. Both would be a huge loss for the Wild. Granlund and Pominville both had multi-point games tonight, so it’s important to see what happens. Granlund landed on his head and has a significant history of concussions.

Monday is my birthday, Gone Puck Wild fans. The Wild play in Winnipeg on Monday. I feel like this is a positive omen. I’ll talk to you then.