The Minnesota Wild were looking for redemption from a bad loss to the Los Angeles Kings on Tuesday where they got away from their game of aggressive and confident hockey. They started a 3-game road trip that will be a test because the San Jose Sharks have the 2nd worst record in the National Hockey League. We expect the real Wild to show up and take it to the Sharks.
2024-25 Minnesota Wild Schedule and Results
8-2-2 (W-L-OTL) (18 points)
2nd in the NHL Central Division
2024-25 San Jose Sharks Schedule and Results
4-8-2 (W-L-OTL) (10 points)
7th in the NHL Pacific Division
Alright. Enough words. Let’s…
Drop the ClutterPuck!!!
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Here’s how the teams lined up:
Game Recap
1st Period
The Minnesota Wild started the game like the team we’ve seen most of the season. They were aggressive and confident and were in the San Jose zone for most of the first 2 minutes of the game.
A stoppage put a faceoff on the left faceoff dot in San Jose’s zone (or to Sharks G Vitek Vanecek’s right). Wild F Marcus Foligno won the faceoff back to D Decland Chisholm at the left point and he passed the puck to his defensive partner, D Zach Bogosian, at the right point. Bogosian sent the puck to the net with Marcus Foligno going to the net and being defended by rookie F Will Smith and the puck deflected off of Smith into the net for an early 1-0 Minnesota Wild lead.
2:22 – Goal – Minnesota – Zach Bogosian (2) from Declan Chisholm (2) & Marcus Foligno (2)
Minnesota Wild 1 | 0 San Jose Sharks
The Wild owned the 1st period. They outshot the Sharks 13-5. They also had a couple of power plays but didn’t score so the lead was still just 1-0.
2nd Period
They Wild came out in the 2nd period and scored early in this period too. This time, it was just 1:01 in as Joel Eriksson Ek but San Jose challenged the play for being offsides and it didn’t take the linesman long to decide it was indeed offsides so… NO GOAL!!!
On the ensuing faceoff, San Jose had an offensive rush and Sharks F Tyler Toffoli was tripped by Wild D Brock Faber. What a turn of events. The Wild were going to go up 2-0 then the goal is taken off the board and San Jose is on the power play.
Wild D Zach Bogosian made a great play to take away a Sharks player’s stick but knew where the puck was so he was able to clear a loose puck from the front of net to keep the puck out of the net.
The Wild killed off that penalty.
But… not too long after the penalty expired, the Wild were maybe a little too aggressive on the forecheck as a simple pass off the boards to get around Mats Zuccarello created a 3-on-2. Wild D Jonas Brodin broke up the play, taking the puck off of Mikael Granlund’s stick and it was heading below the goal line but Granlund got to it and threw it back towards Macklin Celebrini and he got just enough of it to send it towards the net and it somehow went in.
15:24 – Goal – San Jose – Macklin Celebrini (2) from Mikael Granlund (9) & Henry Thrun (2)
Minnesota Wild 1 | 1 San Jose Sharks
With 14:07 on the clock, the Wild play-by-play man Anthony LaPanta said, “Suddenly, the Wild… in a bit of a dangerous spot… where the Sharks are starting to generate some excitement, some chances, a little life for the home team…,” so the Wild threw a couple of hits, won a couple puck battles then F Marat Khusnutdinov rushed up the ice and in on the goalie in what may have been his best shift in the NHL. The 4th line kept the puck in the zone. The Wild changed to their top line of Kirill Kaprizov, Marco Rossi & Mats Zuccarello and were in the offensive zone for 71 seconds when the clock stopped because Kirill Kaprizov made an insane turnaround pass to his buddy Mats Zuccarello to respond to losing the lead by regaining the lead but, yeah, they were in a “dangerous spot.”
Be Quiet, LaPanta!!!
11:59 – Goal – Minnesota – Mats Zuccarello (6) from Kirill Kaprizov (15) & Marco Rossi (8)
Minnesota Wild 2 | 1 San Jose Sharks
2:36 later, the Minnesota Wild scored again but it was also challenged for offsides again and another Wild goal was taken off the board, again. Ughh! Is this the Hockey Gods’ way of making us think about Herb Brooks? “Get a whistle!… AGAIN!”
But the Wild got a power play off a Luke Kunin slashing penalty and Matt Boldy sniped a shot to the upper right corner and this one will stand!
6:34 – Goal – PPG – Minnesota – Matt Boldy (7) from Brock Faber (5) & Kirill Kaprizov (16)
Minnesota Wild 3 | 1 San Jose Sharks
3rd Period
13:58 – Goal – Minnesota – Jonas Brodin (1) from Frederick Gaudreau (5) & Kirill Kaprizov (17)
Minnesota Wild 4 | 1 San Jose Sharks
With about 4 minutes to go in regulation, San Jose Sharks F Macklin Celebrini got the puck at the right of the blue line then skated to some open ice, faked going one way to create space then whipped a wrist shot to the upper right corner. Geez! He’s 18!
3:52 – Goal – San Jose – Macklin Celebrini (3) from Mikael Granlund (10) & Henry Thrun (3)
Minnesota Wild 4 | 2 San Jose Sharks
The San Jose Sharks pulled their goalie and Wild F Matt Boldy made look like he was playing against little kids as he just skated around the defense and scored on the empty net.
1:35 – Goal – ENG – Minnesota – Matt Boldy (8) – Unassisted – Matthew Boldy needed no help on this goal! Goal-dy?
Minnesota Wild 5 | 2 San Jose Sharks
And THAT, ‘Puckers… Is Another
Minnesota Wild VICTORY!!!!
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Final
Minnesota Wild 5 | 2 San Jose Sharks
Goals
MN:
Zach Bogosian (2); Mats Zuccarello (6); Matt Boldy (7)-PPG; Jonas Brodin (1); Matt Boldy (8)-ENG
SJS:
Macklin Celebrini (2); Macklin Celebrini (3)
Assists
MN:
Declan Chisholm (2), Marcus Foligno (2); Kirill Kaprizov (15), Marco Rossi (8); Brock Faber (5), Kirill Kaprizov (16)-PPG; Frederick Gaudreau (5), Kirill Kaprizov (17)
SJS:
Mikael Granlund (9), Henry Thrun (2); Mikael Granlund (10), Henry Thrun (3)
Goalies
MN:
Marc-André Fleury
24 Saves on 26 Shots; .923 Save %, 2.70 GAA*; 3rd Win
SJS:
Vitek Vanicek
26 Saves on 30 Shots; .867 Save %, 3.32 GAA*; 5th Loss
*Goals Against Average
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Next up:
The Minnesota Wild take on the Anaheim Ducks in the 2nd game of their 3-game road trip. That’s just an 85-minute flight so they should be ready for another tilt that starts at 9 pm on FanDuel Sports Network North Extra against the Anaheim Ducks.*
*That’s the game sheet so don’t click it if the game has already started to avoid seeing the score. This is likely my own paranoia as I feel like I’ve found out a score in every way possible.
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