Minnesota Wild vs. Colorado Avalanche: Game Recap

For the Dater-esque perspective, stop on over at Mile High Hockey.

Apologies for the late post. I'm starting to think that SkyNet is about to take over the internet. Anywho...

Despite the fact that the Wild had an epic meltdown Tuesday, you have to believe that Yeo was upbeat about the first 50 minutes the Wild totally dominated. If the Wild could come out and play that kind of hockey, then they give themselves every opportunity to win. If not...well, it could be a long night. How would the team respond after the St. Paul version of Chernobyl?

In what has become a staple when the Wild and Avalanche lock horns, the game started to devolve into bad offense and chippy play. Powe had some seriously questionable hits in the 2nd. McLeod squared off with Stoner. Kobasew (yeah, that guy) even dropped the gloves twice. It's not so much a rivalry anymore as it is a grudge match. Fortunately, fans on both sides were treated with some fantastic offside and icing calls to slow play down to a crawl. The Avs had another good late push, but Backstrom came up with some huge saves to preserve the 1-goal lead heading into the 3rd.

The Avs definitely had the early jump in the 3rd, but Backstrom came to the rescue to allow his team to settle back into the game. The fights and chippy play settled down for the final frame, and once the Wild settled in, the game slowed down again. It did get interesting when Falk was whistled for a cross-checking minor in the last minute of the game. Colorado had a 6-on-4, but never actually got a clean setup in the zone. Kudos to the Wild really digging their heels in and holding on in the 3rd, but you would like to see more attack with just a one-goal lead.

Five Questions: