Fiala Shines, Dumba Ends Goal Drought, and Wild win 3-2.
A much-needed game-winner, Matt Dumba and Kevin Fiala soar in St. Paul, and the Wild send Chicago back to the Windy City.
Talk about an awesome primetime game on NBC in downtown St. Paul. The script was set before the puck was dropped. Entering yesterday’s game, Patrick Kane was riding a 12 game point streak and is always labeled as the Wild’s kryptonite. In his career, Kane has amassed 49 points in 51 games against the Minnesota Wild (Per statmuse.com).
It was a huge Central Division match-up the Wild needed to come out on top of. Before the puck drop, Head Coach Bruce Boudreau made a few lineup changes trying to spark a sputtering club. Luke Kunin was moved to second-line center with Fiala and Zucker. The newly formed “GREEF” line consisted of Jordan Greenway, Joel Erickson-Ek, and Marcus Foligno. Ryan Donato got the nod over Victor Rask and placed on the 4th line left wing.
This has needed to happen from day one this season. I don’t see how Rask has played over Donato, and I disagree with how Boudreau has him in the doghouse this season. A kid with his scoring and soft hands around the net needs to play in every game. From a developmental standpoint, it makes no sense to squander a 23-year-old with the skill set Donato possesses.
Period One
The first period was all Minnesota. They were hard on pucks, competed in the dirty areas, and came out with pucks developing strong scoring chances.
The newly formed “GREEF” line was great in the first frame. Talk about a tough line to play against. Coming in with an average height of 6’3in and weight of 221lbs. The “GREEF” line plays old school dump and chase, letting defenders go into their corner to retrieve the puck before being plastered by a paint can like Harry in Home Alone.
All four lines were clicking for Minnesota in the first period. The 4th line was exceptional on the puck and Ryan Donato looked great. It’s fun to see him in the lineup and watch the energy he can bring into a game.
The second line isn’t exactly “new.” I believe Boudreau has had that line out before, but I may be wrong. Kunin looked good up the middle, and the speed on the outside was a great compliment on that line. Moving forward I would like to see that line stay intact.
The Wild fired a barrage of shots in the first period but were unable to get a puck past Corey Crawford. The Wild outshot Chicago 12-4 in the first period.
Period Two
The second period carried the same sense of hunger the Wild showed in the first period.
At the 3:53 mark in the second period, Ryan Suter hit Zucker with an Overnight Delivery Stretch Pass streaking up the left side of the ice. Zucker got the puck behind the net, Duncan Keith gathered control, but Luke Kunin forced a difficult pass that Fiala managed to get control of. Fiala moved toward the point and cut in hard to create separation from the defender. In the blink of an eye, Fiala rifled a snapshot into the top right corner, can you say snipe?
Just a spectacular hustle play by Fiala and capped it with a brilliant shot. Fiala has great success against Chicago this season, four goals in two games.
Fiala would strike again, this time at the late in the second period. After a defensive zone faceoff on the PP, Kunin won the draw and pushed the puck up ice. Fiala gained possession of the puck and burned up the left side. Using his speed, Fiala created separation in the slot and went five-hole on Crawford. When this kid is on his game he may be exactly what Paul Fenton talked him up to be.
Stalock was tested multiple times in the second period. When he’s on his game Stalock is a fun guy to watch between the pipes. He comes out far to challenge shooters and takes away the angle. Ryan Donato also had a nice period. On top of a strong first period, Donato was smart with the puck, minimized turnovers, and made smart decisions in the offensive zone. The Wild potted two in the second period and went into the locker room outshooting Chicago 22-14.
Period Three
The third period was much of the same. The Wild came out of the locker room firing on all cylinders.
Yet at the 6:23 mark of the third period, Adam Boqvist received a pass off of an offensive zone draw and threw the puck on net. At the time of the shot, Jonas Brodin was tied up with a Blackhawk player in-front of the net. Stalock didn’t have a chance to see the puck leave Boqvist’s stick. It was a tough break because the shot didn’t seem that hard, but it had eyes and ended Stalock’s shutout.
The Wild continued to play good defensive hockey following the goal. They were rewarded in the form of a Ryan Donato breakaway with less than 10 minutes left in the third period. Streaking toward the net, Donato made his move, but Crawford was able to come out with the puck.
At the 16:50 mark in the third period, the air sucked out of the building. Every fan inside of the Xcel thought in their head “not this again.” Chicago won an offensive zone faceoff and from the half wall, Ollie Matta threw a puck on net that found its way up and over Stalock’s left shoulder. Just an awful angle, but again with traffic in front, Stalock had no idea where the puck was.
The Wild headed into overtime, where they’ve consistently struggled, needing to secure two points against the Three-Headed Monster Minnesota battled much the past decade.
Overtime
The overtime period started with Staal, Fiala, and Brodin on the back end. If you didn’t see enough from Fiala in the first three periods, do yourself a favor and watch this overtime frame. For the first minute and a half, Fiala just wheeled around the ice and made most of the Blackhawk players look like squirt B’s.
Unfortunately, the chances he had created weren’t converted. After Fiala went to the bench for a change, on came Matt Dumba, who hadn’t scored in 34 games. He hadn’t been playing terribly as of late, just couldn’t find the net.
The “monkey off the back” goals all seem to somewhat look the same. Was this a highlight reel snipe? No, but it didn’t have to be. Dumba went hard to the net, made a move and was rewarded with a fortunate bounce. This is exactly what this kid needed.
The Wild played a complete game, it was competitive and kept fans on the edge of their seat. What more could you want on a Tuesday night in downtown St. Paul? I enjoy all victories, but for some reason the victories against the Blackhawks area always a little sweeter.
Minnesota Wild
Leave a comment below your thoughts on the game and how you think the Wild are going to perform this Thursday against Vancouver.