The Minnesota Wild returned to game action following the Olympic break on Thursday night, Feb. 26, on the road against the Colorado Avalanche. They had their whole roster back with the exception of Jonas Brodin, who was still recovering from surgery he had prior to the break. They went into the break on a five-game win streak and looked to extend it to six.Â
Filip Gustavsson was in the net for the Wild, and the game started out scoreless through the first. The Wild jumped to an early lead, and although the Avalanche tried to climb back into the game, the Wild protected the lead and went on to win the game 5-2. In this article, we’ll look at a few takeaways from the game, starting with the Wild getting off on the right foot.Â
Wild Just Get By
It wasn’t the smoothest or best effort the Wild have given throughout the season, but it was enough to get the job done. They struggled off and on but found ways to score, and they kept the Avalanche off the board as well. The team had been practicing since the middle of last week, but it wasn’t until their morning skate prior to the game that they had the entire team on the ice.Â
While the non-Olympians had rust to shake off from not skating, many expected the Olympians to either not play or, if they did play, they were expected to struggle and be fatigued. The beginning of the game was pretty back and forth as both teams got their NHL legs under them again, but as they got comfortable, the speed came back for everyone.Â
They did have some nice goals, but they also made a number of mistakes that could’ve let the game go the other way. Luckily for them, they held on just enough and pulled ahead at the right time to take the win, and their Olympians led the way.Â
Wild’s Eriksson Ek & Boldy Step UpÂ
One of the Wild’s Olympians stepped up to get things started for the Wild, and that was Joel Eriksson Ek. He scored not once but twice on the power play that gave his team the lead not once but twice, and although his goal wasn’t the winner, it came close. The first goal was from his favorite spot right in front of the net, and his second was from the corner along the goal line that snuck in.Â
Eriksson Ek’s teammates extended their lead with a goal from Mats Zuccarello and then the first of two from Matt Boldy before the Avalanche tried to mount a comeback late in the third. The Avalanche did get one past Gustavsson to get back within two, but Boldy answered with his second empty-netter of the night. The first empty net goal scored by Boldy was also while shorthanded.Â
When the Wild needed them, two of their top scorers stepped up and produced against the top team in the NHL. Neither team had outstanding play, but there were definitely times the rink was tilted towards one more than the other, and the Wild came out on top.Â
Wild’s Gustavsson Outstanding
The number one star of the game, who definitely earned it, was the Wild’s goaltender, Filip Gustavsson. He made save after save up until the final minute of the game, when he left because he threw up in the crease. It’s unclear when the sickness started, but he clearly played while not feeling his best, yet he still played a strong game.Â
He made 44 saves on 45 shots for a save percentage of .978 against some of the best the NHL has to offer in Nathan MacKinnon, Cale Makar, and Gabriel Landeskog. Again, while his performance was already impressive, doing so while not feeling great made it even more impressive.Â
Hopefully, whatever sickness he ended up with goes away quickly and doesn’t spread to the rest of the roster. They have quite a few games over the next few weeks, and they’ll need everyone as healthy as can be to make a strong postseason run.Â
Related: Frost & Wild’s Gold Medal Winners Made Minnesota Proud
The Wild won’t have much time to think about this win, as their win over the Avalanche was the first half of a back-to-back. The second half will also be on the road against the Utah Mammoth on Friday, Feb. 27, and they’ll look to extend their win streak to eight games and come home on a good note.
