Last season saw The Minnesota Wild finish in 12th place in The National Hockey League’s Western Conference and changes had to be made. Wild general manager Chuck Fletcher saw the need to upgrade as he signed a pair of free agents in left-winger Zach Parise and defenseman Ryan Suter. After a slow start this season, The Wild have posted a 9-3 record this month as they are currently riding the wave of a six-game winning streak. The Wild are now tied with The Vancouver Canucks for third place in The Western Conference and they look very eager to compete with The Chicago Blackhawks and Anaheim Ducks at the top of the conference.
Last July, Parise signed a 13-year, $98 million deal to leave The New Jersey Devils to return to his native Minnesota. Now Parise is the leading goal scorer on the team with 14. Parise’s 27 points on the season are second on the team to center Mikko Koivu who leads the team with 28 while Suter is third with 26. You cannot win in The NHL without a good net minder and Wild goalie Niklas Backstrom is currently tied with Pittsburgh Penguins goalie Marc-Andre Fleury for the most wins in The NHL this season with 17. As a team, Minnesota is currently fourth in The NHL as far as penalty kill percentage at 85.6 percent.
During their recent streak The Wild have defeated the likes of The Detroit Red Wings and San Jose Sharks as they are trying to distance themselves from both teams in the standings. Three out of the next four games for Minnesota are at home as they are set to square off against The Phoenix Coyotes, Los Angeles Kings, and St. Louis Blues.
As the calender turns to spring and the playoffs will be on the mind of hockey fans, it will be comforting for the people of Minnesota that The Wild are right in the mix to hoist Lord Stanley’s Cup.
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