Minnesota Wild: Canucks finish their road trip tonight in St. Paul

The Minnesota Wild hopes to get back on track after losing to the Washington Capitals on Tuesday night.

The Capitals have now won eight consecutive match-ups against the Wild. Despite that, the Minnesota Wild is currently tied third for the fewest regulation losses in the NHL.

After the loss to the Capitals, the Minnesota Wild is ranked third in the NHL with 24 points and a record of (11-5-2).

Captain Mikko Koivu now has 148 multiple points games in his career. Tuesday, Koivu had a goal and an assist (1-1=2) in the loss.

Finnish native Mikael Granlund is once again on a tear; in his last four games, Granlund has five points (4-1=5).

24-year-old defenseman Matt Dumba now has six goals on the season, he ranks second in the NHL among defenseman in goals scored.

Goaltender Devan Dubnyk will start tonight according to Daily Faceoff. He has won seven of his last ten starts (7-3-0), posting a 2.21 GAA and a .922 SV%.

Opponent: Vancouver Canucks

Tonight will be Vancouver’s sixth consecutive game on the road. They are 1-2-2 on this trip to date.

The Canucks are still fighting the injury bug. 72 man games have been lost due to injury this season for Canucks.

Rookie sensation Ellias Pettersson has registered a point in nine of his first 14 career games.

Vancouver is ranked third in the NHL with 62 goals scored.

Per Daily Faceoff, the Canucks will start former Colorado College goaltender Richard Bachman. Bachman has yet to see action this season.

The lack of a known quantity in net could be a massive advantage if the Minnesota Wild are able to capitalise on it.

The Rundown

Vancouver Canucks (10-8-2) at Minnesota Wild (11-5-2)
Game Start: 7:08 p.m. CT
Radio: KFAN FM and affiliates
Watch: Fox Sports North; Fox Sports app
All-Time Record vs. Canucks: 38-36-15 (22-17-6 at Xcel Energy Center, 16-19-9 at Vancouver)
18-19: (0-1-0) Wild lost to the Canucks 5-2 in Vancouver on (10/29)

Team Series Leaders:

Minnesota Wild: C Mikko Koivu leads Minnesota with 43 points (12-31=43) in 59 games against Vancouver
Vancouver Canucks: LW Loui Eriksson leads Vancouver with 36 points (16-20=36) in 37 games against Minnesota
Wild Goalies vs. Canucks: Dubnyk is 11-10-4 with a 2.55 GAA, .919 SV% and three shutouts in 27 games. Alex Stalock is 0-1-0 with a 1.99 GAA and a .929 SV% in two games.
Canucks Goalies vs. Wild: Markstrom is 2-1-0 with a 2.66 GAA and a .911 SV% in four games. Anders Nilsson is 1-3-0 with a 3.27 GAA, a .879 SV% and one shutout in four starts. Richard Bachman is 2-0-0 with a 2.18 GAA and .912 SV%.. Thatcher Demko has not faced Minnesota.

Injuries:

Minnesota Wild: Matt Hendricks (undisclosed injury) Eric Fehr (personal reasons)
Vancouver Canucks: Alex Edler (lower body injury) Sven Baertschi (upper body injury) Jay Beagle (fractured forearm) Thatcher Demko (concussion) Anders Nilsson (broken finger) Brandon Sutter (upper body injury) Brock Boeser (groin)

The Minnesota Wild has an excellent chance to get back in the win column tonight in St. Paul. Vancouver has to be worn out after a long road trip and dealing with a ton of injuries.