Now and Then Through 20

As the season rolls along, the Wild have already played 20 games. Those 20 games just happen to have put them in first place in the NHL with 27 points, a franchise-high after the first 20 games. Just thought I'd remind you in case you forgot or you wanted to see it again. The Wild will stay there at least until Wednesday, when the Wild, the Penguins and the Blackhawks, the three teams deadlocked at #1, play again. The good news is that the Wild's playoff spot should be safe for a while considering the 5 point lead in the Northwest Division.

Part 1: Storylines

Long story short, despite scoring low, they're scoring enough to win and they're winning on team effort and defense, just like the good old Jacques Lemaire days that drew me to this team in the first place. If anybody's enjoying the Wild's stingy play, I'm enjoying it VERY much.

Part 2: Stats

10-8-2 for last year's record after 20 games. You might say ''Well, 22 and 27 aren't too far away from each other''. To put 22 in perspective, the Wild would be tied for the Northwest lead, sure, but they would also be tied for 17th in the league.

The Wild have 47 goals for, 40 goals against. In the same period last season, the Wild had 48 goals for (offense slowed down), 47 goals against.

Part 3: Looking back at the trades

First, let's compare Heatley and Havlat. Last year, Havlat had 3 goals and 14 assists at the 20 game mark, which was decent, but he was also -1 and was considered a ''sell'' on our stock market report at that point. 17 points and -1? Forgive me, but I'll take Heatley's 12 points and +4. Not to mention Heatley's 5 goals were mostly very important or timely goals. Heatley's play in the defensive zone in the last few years has been overlooked by him not scoring 50 goals anymore and while SJ fans were hoping for a two-way, PK player and 5-on-5 force in Havlat, his only goal this year came on the powerplay and he's a +4, which isn't bad when you look at it like that, but it puts him on a tie with 6 other players for 6th on the team. Plus, he had a little more than 9 total minutes on the PK. So much for those expectations. Sure, he's playing well, but not as expected. Heatley isn't scoring like expected, but he surprised us all with strong defensive play, which to me is a bonus. It's clearly working, the Wild are #1 in the NHL right now. 

As for Setoguchi and Burns, it's much harder to compare a defenseman and a forward, but the loss of Burns hasn't quite had the negative effect on the Wild's blueline that everyone on the planet expected. He's doing well in SJ. 2nd on the team in ice-time, leading team defensemen in goals with 4 and has 7 points, which would also lead all Wild d-men. Fans are liking him and he makes an already dangerous PP even scarier. Setoguchi is second on the Wild with 6 goals, 4th in points with 10, but there's a lingering feeling he's underacheiving. He's been shifted around between the first two lines and while his speed and hands are very fun to see, there's a feeling he could do more. Most SJ fans were sad to see fan-favorite Setoguchi go, but are glad with Burnsie. It's pretty much the same for Wild fans, just need to switch the names around. 

No one is expecting the Wild to keep it up without offense. I, for one, believe team defense is much more easily sustainable than offense. Plus, the Wild have always had trouble scoring, you'll notice that the seasons in which they had winning records were those with the fewest goals allowed. I think the Wild have the right formula, but not the right quantity yet. I'm not saying they'll be staying at the very top of the standings, but if they keep playing solid defense and relentless forechecking, they should at least make the playoffs.

What do this year's Wild and last year's Wild have in common after 20? Goaltending. Backstrom was the only reason the Wild weren't a disaster last year, this year, Backstrom and Harding's tag team is a huge part of the Wild's success.