A five-game winning streak and a four-game losing streak made a head-on collision Wednesday night at the Xcel Energy Center. Both teams were coming into the second game of a back-to-back. One team is on top of the division, the other near the bottom. The Calgary Flames and Minnesota Wild: Game on.
Fire burns early
Fireworks started when the game wasn't even two minutes old, with a goal from Olli Jokinen. Going down 1-0 early isn't the way to start off a game, especially when the Wild have been giving up at least four tallies in their past few games. Luckily, this was the only speed bump in the Wild's eventual 4-1 win over the division leaders.
The first Wild strike came later in the first period off a redirection - on the power play, where the Wild have struggled lately. Eric Belanger was the goal scorer. It was the first of two beauties on the night for him, a special one because it marked his 600th game. He couldn't have asked for a better one.
It was all knotted up at one apiece as the teams headed to their locker rooms after the first. The game had a great pace to it. Lots of offense, good skating and an overall exciting game. The Wild took a 2-1 lead and never looked back, notching two more goals off of veteran goalie Miikka Kiprusoff. Shots were plentiful too, with 35 for the Wild and 25 for the Flames.
Friendly rivals
My only disappointment of the night was there were no fights. All the ingredients were there between the physical teams: The Boogeyman and John Scott in the lineup, the Hit-man Cal Clutterbuck, a division-rivalry game that usually brings out the spirited rough stuff and the usual suspects for the Flames as well.
No fights, and not really any close calls either, unless you count Clutterbuck getting a hand white-wash to the face, which resulted in a penalty. But really, that's often how it goes. Games you think will provide a ton of extra-curricular entertainment don't, and then there's a game that gets quite physical that no one sees coming.
A solid win over the red-hot Flames to end a losing skid was just what the doctor ordered for the Wild. With the victory, the Wild move a game above .500 with a 21-20-3 record.
Thursday, January 7, 2010
Tuesday, January 5, 2010
It's been way too long
Wow. I absolutely did not mean to neglect my blog for a month. At least I had a good run of keeping it updated once a week or so. December was one of the busiest months I've had in quite awhile. A lot has happened, and I wanted to share everything here. Don't worry, sports is involved, so I'm not writing anything totally off-topic.
We all know how busy the usual holiday time can be each year. It's so busy and stressful that at some point you wish the holidays would just get themselves over with so you can go back to the normal routine. For the first time ever, I have never had the "I want it to be January" feeling more than I did this December.
I mean this all in a good way. Early last month, I was spending some quality time with my laptop conducting the never-ending job search. I found a listing on Star Tribune.com for a part-time sports copy aide. Within a few days, I was hired.
I was very excited to be working at the Strib. It was almost like a dream come true, if you want a sappy line. When I received the phone call, I literally couldn't stop smiling for a few minutes. It felt great.
My job is to answer calls and take boxscores for all the high school games, mostly focusing on basketball and hockey. I also update statistics from the results of the games. I have met some great people and enjoyed my time there thus far.
While I spent my nights at the Strib, I was still working as an intern during the days. Throw in the usual holiday hustle and bustle, plus multiple car problems, and I had one hectic month. Now my schedule is settling down a bit, which has left me with some breathing room and a chance to update this fine blog.
Always time for hockey
I did make it to the Wild game the day after Christmas. In a fairly average game, they pulled out a 4-3 win against the St. Louis Blues, even after giving up a late goal. It was another good game, and fun to be there with the family.
We're going to the game against division-rival Calgary Wednesday night. The Wild have been sliding a bit lately, including a 4-1 loss this evening at Chicago, so let's hope they turn things around and come out on top over the Flames.
I hope to write about the game, or at the very least I'll be sure to keep this blog up to snuff again.
We all know how busy the usual holiday time can be each year. It's so busy and stressful that at some point you wish the holidays would just get themselves over with so you can go back to the normal routine. For the first time ever, I have never had the "I want it to be January" feeling more than I did this December.
I mean this all in a good way. Early last month, I was spending some quality time with my laptop conducting the never-ending job search. I found a listing on Star Tribune.com for a part-time sports copy aide. Within a few days, I was hired.
I was very excited to be working at the Strib. It was almost like a dream come true, if you want a sappy line. When I received the phone call, I literally couldn't stop smiling for a few minutes. It felt great.
My job is to answer calls and take boxscores for all the high school games, mostly focusing on basketball and hockey. I also update statistics from the results of the games. I have met some great people and enjoyed my time there thus far.
While I spent my nights at the Strib, I was still working as an intern during the days. Throw in the usual holiday hustle and bustle, plus multiple car problems, and I had one hectic month. Now my schedule is settling down a bit, which has left me with some breathing room and a chance to update this fine blog.
Always time for hockey
I did make it to the Wild game the day after Christmas. In a fairly average game, they pulled out a 4-3 win against the St. Louis Blues, even after giving up a late goal. It was another good game, and fun to be there with the family.
We're going to the game against division-rival Calgary Wednesday night. The Wild have been sliding a bit lately, including a 4-1 loss this evening at Chicago, so let's hope they turn things around and come out on top over the Flames.
I hope to write about the game, or at the very least I'll be sure to keep this blog up to snuff again.
Wednesday, December 2, 2009
Catching up a bit
So many blog topics, so little time. Early last week I had a few different topics rolling around, but not enough time to put anything up on the actual blog page. Bear with me if this entry is a little different than others. I'll try to hit all my points in an organized way, even though they're not exactly timely.
MVP
The big sports news in Minnesota, and on the national level too, was Twins catcher Joe Mauer winning the American League MVP award. He received 27 of the 28 first-place votes by the baseball writers.
As word quickly spread on Twitter, the focus then shifted to finding out who the writer was that didn't give him the first-place nod. It turned out it was a writer out in Seattle, Keizo Konishi of Kyodo News. His MVP pick? Detroit's Miguel Cabrera. The same guy who partied it up at the end of the season and got in a little trouble with the cops. Good choice.
No doubt Mauer deserved this award. And I have to admit, it was nice to see a piece of hardware go to someone in baseball other than the Yankee prodigy Derek Jeter. Now of course, it is a necessity for the Twins to sign Mauer to a multi-year deal this off season. OK, it's technically not a must, but letting him reach free agency would be one of the most colossal mistakes of the Twins organizaiton.
Poor Pouliot
On the very same day when the rest of the Twin Cities focused on the glory day for Mauer (as it should be), I became a very torn sports fan. My sentimental favorite on the Minnesota Wild, Benoit Pouliot, was traded to Montreal for a guy whose name I couldn't even attempt to pronounce (Guillaume Latendresse).
From the early reporting and thoughts from Michael Russo, the trade seemed pretty even. And at that point, the Wild had made two of the three trades in the NHL since the start of the season. That's a pretty good step in the right direction for the Wild's front office.
Even if it's a good trade, it still stings when you see your favorite player leave your home team. I guess that's why I don't generally have favorite players. But that's the business side of professional sports.
Tommie football makes a run
What can I say about St. Thomas football? Simply amazing. The team is headed out west to play in the third round of the NCAA playoffs. I could go on and on about all the records and statistics this team has compiled, but I don't have that much time.
They are in the playoffs for the first time in nearly two decades, and earned themselves a home playoff game last weekend (thanks to Coe College upsetting St. John's in the first round). I went to the game and it was great to see stands full of alumni, community members and students. It was a great game as the Tommies worked their way to a 34-7 victory.
Fritz Waldvogel was named the MIAC MVP. Just watch him run back a kickoff for a touchdown and you'll see why he earned this honor. It's not a good idea to kick the ball directly to him, just for future reference.
Best of luck to the Tommies this weekend!
A couple other things...
I was very disappointed to read in the newspaper that pitcher Glen Perkins will once again be with the Twins come next season. This is the same guy that had a horrible year pitching-wise, and also off the field. He wasn't very forthcoming when he had injuries, coming forward only after he had a sub-par pitching outing. Then he was upset when he was sent down to the minors, and nearly filed a grievance against the Twins.
It's a long saga that should have ended with the Twins showing Perk the door. But instead, they brought him back for at least another year. This is the same guy that also turned down an invitation to be with the team at a Metrodome celebration at the end of the season. What does that say about his team chemistry?
With Thanksgiving last week came the traditional Turkey of the Year award from Patrick Reusse of the Star Tribune. It's always fun to read this column not only for the Turkey, but also for the great things Reusse has to say about the other candidates.
This year's pick was very obvious, and a good one: Golden Gopher football head coach Tim Brewster. The team finished 6-6, but don't worry, they'll still make a bowl appearance. For a team that couldn't score an offensive touchdown in two straight games, but is still able to limp into a bowl game, that tells me there must be too many bowls.
MVP
The big sports news in Minnesota, and on the national level too, was Twins catcher Joe Mauer winning the American League MVP award. He received 27 of the 28 first-place votes by the baseball writers.
As word quickly spread on Twitter, the focus then shifted to finding out who the writer was that didn't give him the first-place nod. It turned out it was a writer out in Seattle, Keizo Konishi of Kyodo News. His MVP pick? Detroit's Miguel Cabrera. The same guy who partied it up at the end of the season and got in a little trouble with the cops. Good choice.
No doubt Mauer deserved this award. And I have to admit, it was nice to see a piece of hardware go to someone in baseball other than the Yankee prodigy Derek Jeter. Now of course, it is a necessity for the Twins to sign Mauer to a multi-year deal this off season. OK, it's technically not a must, but letting him reach free agency would be one of the most colossal mistakes of the Twins organizaiton.
Poor Pouliot
On the very same day when the rest of the Twin Cities focused on the glory day for Mauer (as it should be), I became a very torn sports fan. My sentimental favorite on the Minnesota Wild, Benoit Pouliot, was traded to Montreal for a guy whose name I couldn't even attempt to pronounce (Guillaume Latendresse).
From the early reporting and thoughts from Michael Russo, the trade seemed pretty even. And at that point, the Wild had made two of the three trades in the NHL since the start of the season. That's a pretty good step in the right direction for the Wild's front office.
Even if it's a good trade, it still stings when you see your favorite player leave your home team. I guess that's why I don't generally have favorite players. But that's the business side of professional sports.
Tommie football makes a run
What can I say about St. Thomas football? Simply amazing. The team is headed out west to play in the third round of the NCAA playoffs. I could go on and on about all the records and statistics this team has compiled, but I don't have that much time.
They are in the playoffs for the first time in nearly two decades, and earned themselves a home playoff game last weekend (thanks to Coe College upsetting St. John's in the first round). I went to the game and it was great to see stands full of alumni, community members and students. It was a great game as the Tommies worked their way to a 34-7 victory.
Fritz Waldvogel was named the MIAC MVP. Just watch him run back a kickoff for a touchdown and you'll see why he earned this honor. It's not a good idea to kick the ball directly to him, just for future reference.
Best of luck to the Tommies this weekend!
A couple other things...
I was very disappointed to read in the newspaper that pitcher Glen Perkins will once again be with the Twins come next season. This is the same guy that had a horrible year pitching-wise, and also off the field. He wasn't very forthcoming when he had injuries, coming forward only after he had a sub-par pitching outing. Then he was upset when he was sent down to the minors, and nearly filed a grievance against the Twins.
It's a long saga that should have ended with the Twins showing Perk the door. But instead, they brought him back for at least another year. This is the same guy that also turned down an invitation to be with the team at a Metrodome celebration at the end of the season. What does that say about his team chemistry?
With Thanksgiving last week came the traditional Turkey of the Year award from Patrick Reusse of the Star Tribune. It's always fun to read this column not only for the Turkey, but also for the great things Reusse has to say about the other candidates.
This year's pick was very obvious, and a good one: Golden Gopher football head coach Tim Brewster. The team finished 6-6, but don't worry, they'll still make a bowl appearance. For a team that couldn't score an offensive touchdown in two straight games, but is still able to limp into a bowl game, that tells me there must be too many bowls.
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