One specific goal will 'haunt' Jesper Wallstedt from Wild elimination loss

The Minnesota Wild's run in the playoffs officially reached its end on Wednesday. After holding a 3-0 lead through the first 20 minutes of Game 5, the Wild were unable to hold off the Colorado Avalanche, as they surrendered three unanswered goals in regulation, and lost on a goal from Brett Kulak less than four minutes into overtime.

For Minnesota sports fans, they have had their fair share of awful playoff memories. Game 5 against the Avalanche will be the latest addition to the list. One person who will remember the loss is goalie Jesper Wallstedt.

While speaking with reporters, Wallstedt talked about the game-tying goal he surrendered to Nathan MacKinnnon in less than two minutes left in regulation. Wallstedt said that that's the type of shot he can usually stop, and that it will be a play that "definitely hurts a lot."

Jesper Wallstedt says Nathan MacKinnon's game-tying goal 'definitely hurts a lot'

"Obviously that one hurts a lot. I'm not sure. I haven't looked at it, but it felt like I was in good position," said Wallstedt. "It felt like I had that the right read. Maybe I was a little passive or went down a little quick, but also he picked his corner. And I think in the long run, that's a save I make most of the time, but not today. Today, he scored. That one definitely hurts a lot to me."

The angle of MacKinnon's goal is only one that the Avalanche star could pull off. He is a Hart Trophy finalist and favorite for a reason, and that's because of his unreal ability to score goals. MacKinnon faced this same situation before, in the Winter Olympics, where he missed a wide open net in the gold medal game for Canada against the United States. He's learned from his mistake, and he made sure it was never replicated, sending it over Wallstedt's shoulder to send the game to overtime.

The Game 5 loss isn't on Wallstedt entirely. Sure, he did give up four unanswered goals resulting in the Wild getting eliminated from the playoffs, but the Wild did play passively in the final two periods of the game. After taking a 3-0 lead in the first period, the Wild had just seven shots on goal total for the remainder of the game. That ultimately came back to bite them, as the Avalanche made them pay. Shocker, the best team in hockey were able to take advantage of the Wild's mistakes.

In the game, Wallstedt stopped 30-of-34 shots on goal. In 10 games, Wallstedt put up a 2.77 goals allowed average and a .909 save percentage.

Wallstedt overcame a bad Game 1 against the Avalanche and a subsequent benching for Game 2, but he has shown that he is the Wild's goaltender for the foreseeable future. This loss could fuel him in the offseason to be an even better goalie. That would help him and the Wild, as they push to win a Stanley Cup next season.

Add us as a preferred source on Google

Follow