Minnesota will look to bounce back and steal home ice advantage tonight in Game 2 against the Colorado Avalanche. In Game 1, without Jonas Brodin and Joel Eriksson Ek, the Wild faced an early 3-0 deficit but showed its resiliency, answering back by eventually taking a 5-4 lead late in the second period. Colorado would go on to tie the game shortly thereafter then proceed to score four goals in the third period, winning Game 1, 9-6.
Minnesota will be making a change in net tonight as Filip Gustavsson will be the Game 2 starter. In his lone start against the Avalanche this season, Gustavsson was superb. He only allowed one goal on 45 shots from Colorado, which was tied for the most shots he faced all season. Gustavsson comes into tonight’s contest with a 4-6 record in 11 career postseason games with a 2.53 GAA and a .917 SV%.
The nine goals Colorado scored marked the most Minnesota has allowed in a single playoff game in team history. On the flipside, Minnesota’s six goals scored is tied for the second-most scored in a playoff game in franchise history (three other occurrences). Of those six goals, none were scored by Matt Boldy or Kirill Kaprizov (both registered assists), which could be a positive sign for the Wild as it is getting goal production beyond those two players.
“I know I need to play better and create more offense and play good defensively,” said Kaprizov after Game 1. “In the playoffs you don’t want to give up easy goals against. Offensively, you will always have chances especially when you play a lot of minutes—just need to make a play right away and help your team.”
Cleaning up its defensive play will be a key factor in tonight’s game for Minnesota. Eight of Colorado’s nine goals came via five-on-five (one empty net goal), which is more than it gave up in the entire series against Dallas (four). The offense is there for the Wild, as its 29 goals in the postseason is the most by any team. Minnesota has proven it can score on anyone, now it needs to turn its focus to shutting the opposition down on the other end of the ice.
For the first time since 2015, the Minnesota Wild finds itself in the Second Round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs. After knocking off the Dallas Stars in six games in the First Round, Minnesota is set to face-off against the Presidents’ Trophy winning Colorado Avalanche. This marks the fourth time these two teams will meet in the postseason (2003, 2008 and 2014). Minnesota has won two of the previous three meetings (2003 and 2014, both in seven games).
During the regular season, Minnesota went 2-1-1 against the Avalanche. The earned a 3-2 shootout win in the first meeting in St. Paul on November 28 and a 5-2 win in Colorado on February 26. Kirill Kaprizov, who is T-2nd among all Stanley Cup Playoff skaters with nine points (2-7=9), led the Wild with six points (3-3=6) against the Avalanche. Jesper Wallstedt, tonight’s expected starter, went 1-1-1 with a 2.55 GAA and a .932 SV% in three starts against Colorado.
The injury bug has struck the Wild again. It played Game 6 against Dallas without defenseman Jonas Brodin, who is battling a lower-body injury and is out for at least Games 1 and 2 against Colorado. Minnesota will now be without top center, Joel Eriksson Ek, who will miss at least the first two games of the series with a lower\\-\\body injury. Eriksson Ek leads all Stanley Cup Playoff skaters with 84 face-off wins and has also tallied five points (3-2=5) in six games.
Rest vs. rust has been and will be a topic of conversation for this Second Round series. Colorado, who swept the Los Angeles Kings in the First Round, has not played a game since last Sunday, April 26. Meanwhile, Minnesota comes into the series only having two days off between rounds and learned late Friday night that it would be on a plane to Colorado Saturday afternoon.
“It’s the situation we’re in,” said Wild Head Coach John Hynes this morning. “I think it’s both ways. For us, we’ve had a couple of days here to rest and recover but you’re in that game mode. You don’t really get out of it.”
Minnesota looks to win at least one game in Colorado before heading home for a three-day break between Games 2 and 3. Minnesota won two of its three road games against Dallas in the First Round, including Game 1. Hynes said this morning he is ‘hopeful’ Eriksson Ek could return for Game 3. For now, it will have to adapt the “next man up” mentality it has taken on all season long.
