Wild Searching for Options, Answers After Two Games of Deficient Defense
Minnesota is considering lineup changes after allowing 14 goals in two losses, with injuries and struggles forcing coach John Hynes to weigh options.
- Following two losses in Denver where they allowed 14 goals, the Minnesota Wild face a crucial Game 3 on Saturday night in St. Paul. Coach John Hynes is evaluating defensive options after the difficult series start against Colorado.
- Injuries to veterans Jonas Brodin and Zach Bogosian have hindered the Wild's back end, while Jared Spurgeon and Jake Middleton have struggled on the ice. The 35-year-old Bogosian continues battling a lower-body injury sustained during the regular season.
- Coach Hynes inserted Daemon Hunt into the lineup for the first two games, where the defenseman emerged with a plus-2 rating. "I think with my skating, the way I think the game, I think I did fine," Hunt said on Thursday.
- While the top defensive pair of Brock Faber and Quinn Hughes remains set, Hynes may juggle the bottom four before Saturday's game. Spurgeon noted the team must maintain optimism, saying, "We're getting our looks, and we're getting some zone time."
- Expecting a sellout Saturday, the Minnesota Wild will host a free watch party on West 7th Street between West Kellogg Boulevard and West 5th Street. The event begins at 5 p.m. with pregame entertainment and big-screen viewing.
16 Articles
16 Articles
Pine Journal
Wild searching for options, answers after two games of deficient defense
There isn’t much about the Wild’s defense that is praise-worthy after allowing 14 goals — two of them empty-netters — in a pair of losses to open their second-round series with Colorado. The loss of veteran Jonas Brodin to an injury and the on-ice struggles of veterans Jared Spurgeon and Jake Middleton during the two games in Denver have been costly. It’s all left the Minnesota coaches looking for answers and options during the rare three-day br…
The Wild Can’t Keep Rolling With Spurgeon and Middleton
The good vibes surrounding the Minnesota Wild’s first-round triumph over the Dallas Stars have largely dissipated after dropping the first two games to the Colorado Avalanche in Round 2. A Minnesota team that seemed to have broken onto the scene as a true contender is now left asking questions about...
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