Wild make it two straight against the Flames

I was watching the Minnesota Wild at the Calgary Flames game on television from a local establishment Saturday night when the boys pulled out a 3-1 win on the road.

While I was glad for the victory, I also thought this meant the Wild would have the usual letdown game when they came home to face the Flames again on Monday night - and more importantly, when I would be in attendance.

The boys proved me wrong.

Two-game streak

Minnesota came up with a 4-1 (really 3-1; Cal Clutterbuck threw in an empty-netter to seal it) win over the division rival Calgary Flames on Monday at the Xcel Energy Center. It was a very snowy night, one a majority of Minnesotans will remember for the Vikings versus Bears game played at TCF Bank Stadium.

It's really too bad the Wild were overshadowed by the local football team, although I'm sure they're used to it by now. There were some shining moments on the ice, as well as some not-so-great moments.

The Wild were outshot all night long, with the final totals 35-23 in favor of the Flames. Early on, I was very surprised Calgary didn't score. They were getting all kinds of chances, but kudos to Niklas Backstrom for making some great saves.

Niklas Backstrom stretching in the crease before making 34 saves. Photo credit: Kyle Rule.

Second period slump... again
What's a bit of a head-scratcher for me is that the Wild managed to score two power-play goals; the first time since Nov. 14. Their power play didn't look too hot at times during the night. In particular, the Wild held the man advantage nearing the end of the second period.

It was pretty hard to watch, what with not being able to set up plays and multiple Wild men turning the puck over. That was not a good way to end the period, and they were hearing it from the fans (yes, myself included.).

Of course, the second period wasn't a complete slaughtering, at least on the scoreboard (1-1 after two). The Wild still struggled a lot, as has been the story of the season, in the second. But it was the superb play by goalie Backstrom that kept them in the game.

Havlat on a roll
Martin Havlat continues to produce, this time he was patient and netted the puck with a slick backhander right in the crease. Veteran John Madden scored a power-play goal, and recent call-up Marco Scandella got an assist on Kyle Brodziak's first-period goal.

This was the first game my family and I have been to this season, and therefore the first since the sell-out streak ended. There were quite a number of green seats at the X. I'm sure the weather, traffic and the football game were factors too.

Opening faceoff. Let's play hockey! Photo credit: Kyle Rule.

Attendance and other notes
My dad told me, "Now you know what it was like to go to a North Stars game when they weren't doing so well." Official attendance was 18,315, but there were not that many people in the seats.

One other interesting note from the evening. On part of our side-roads drive down to the game, we hit a heavy traffic spot and were crawling for a while. From the backseat, I looked over to the driver on our right, and the guy is working on a power point from his laptop that he had positioned on the passenger seat next to him - while driving. Idiot.

But at least we got there and were able to enjoy the game and some good food. It was also a nice treat to see my friend Michael, who stopped to say hi after his shift.

'Til the next game, Go Wild!

Me in my Wild gear. Photo credit: Kyle Rule.