Things went from bad to worse for the Minnesota Wild in Game 3 against Dallas. It's one thing to lose a playoff game, but it's another to lose it in double overtime at one o'clock in the morning.
Even with how frustrating it was to watch the Wild burp up all over themselves as the Stars were spoon-feeding them momentum in overtime, this is still anyone's series. We all knew this thing was likely headed for seven games, and Minnesota is a win away from tying things back up and making it a best-of-three the rest of the way.
If that's going to happen, though, some things need to change.
John Hynes defended Danila Yurov after his critical delay of game penalty in the second overtime that led to Dallas scoring a game-winner on the power play by saying the Wild win and lose as a team. That's true, but the nuance to that is there are some things going wrong within the ecosystem that are causing the sort of rot that can collapse a season and end a playoff run short.
3 Wild players who deserve blame for crushing Game 3 loss to Stars
Everyone on special teams, both power play and penalty kill
Holy moly. Like holy smokes folks.
Minnesota's power play has been an unmitigated tire fire for the last eight periods and that running total is showing no signs of stopping any time soon. The Wild are 1-for-12 on the power play over the last two games, and it really feelsl like the lone goal in that stretch was an accident.
Not having Mats Zuccarello is a big piece of why things aren't going well, but at the same time relying on a 38-year-old to be the load bearing piece of your special teams strategy is a nightmare. And that's why we're seeing the Wild struggle so badly, it just doesn't seem like they have any sort of plan on the attack despite having heat seeking missle launchers like Kirill Kaprizov, Matt Boldy, and Quinn Hughes on the ice at the same time.
Teams would kill to have that sort of firepower, yet the Wild controlled the puck for almost all of both overtimes and failed to score on any of the three power play opportunities they got. Meanwhile, Dallas has converted nearly 40 percent of its power play opportunities including the game-winner in Game 3.
Say what you will about the fact that Dallas has been given 13 power plays over the last two games but they've turned that into five goals. The Wild simply cannot allow that to happen and think they have a fighting chance to win this series -- or any series in the postseason.
Kirill Kaprizov
Part of this isn't on Kaprizov, as it's becoming abundantly clear that he's being miscast with linemates that don't bring out the best in him. Hynes switched out Vladimir Taresenko for Bobby Brink, who wasn't able to set Kaprizov up or allow him to get unlocked behind Dallas' defense.
He's also at the front of the line of Wild players who sorely miss Mats Zuccarello on the power play. In back-to-back games Kaprizov had decent shot attempts but it's hard to imagine him just missing like he has if Zuccarello is feeding him.
Still, Kaprizov is the highest-paid player on the roster and the best player on the ice whenever he's out there. He's been more of a sleeping giant than a menace in this series and that was clear in Game 3 where he failed to give the Wild a difference-making goal when they needed it the most.
Marcus Foligno
This is an ongoing frustration that has potentially reached critical mass for Wild fans. Marcus Foligno has been flat-out terrible this series and has become a total liability in all the worst ways.
In theory, he should be leading the charge in bullying the Stars on Minnesota's heaviest line, but he's instead leading the charge in making overly emotional mistakes. He wasn't called for any of the chippiness he was doling out in Game 3, but he's leading with the wrong intentions in a series where the margins are already so incredibly thin.
The fact that he wasn't the one responsible for a power play that allowed Dallas to win is honestly surprising. There's a big difference between Danila Yarov making a mental mistake while dead tired in double overtime and Foligno going head-hunting out of spite. Aggression and physicality are needed in playoff hockey, but not when it's blinded by unchecked emotions.
Foligno also gave the Stars bulliten board material after Game 2 with his comments about not being able to hang with the Wild in 5-on-5. Well, he followed that up with a +/- of minus-one in less than three full periods of play in Game 3.
If he can keep his head screwed on right then he has the qualities of a brusier who can bully the Stars the way the Wild need. As it stands now, he's creating more problems than he's helping to solve with his physical play.
Add us as a preferred source on Google