Wild can't get offense on track in loss to Flames

CALGARY -- Everything set up well for the Wild on Thursday night against the Calgary Flames.
Playing against the League's most prolific offense when it plays on home ice, Minnesota limited the homestanding Flames to just two goals and 20 shots on goal.
It held a 31-20 shots-on-goal advantage.

It drew more power plays and was set to face a penalty kill that was ranked among the bottom in the League.
But for one reason or another, the Wild just couldn't find the finish in a 2-0 loss to the Flames at the Scotiabank Saddledome.
It wasn't as if the Wild played poorly. It wasn't the same team that showed up in a 3-2 win against the Vancouver Canucks on Tuesday and it certainly wasn't the same effort in a tough-luck 5-3 loss to the Toronto Maple Leafs back in St. Paul on Saturday.
But the Wild has played worse than it did on Thursday and won on numerous occasions this season.

The devil was in the details.
"I thought we were sloppy," said Wild coach Bruce Boudreau. "Right from the get-go, they had two really good chances in the first five minutes. I always think, for the most part, our effort's there. But for a lot of our guys, they weren't handling the puck well."
Playing his 100th game in the NHL, Wild goaltender Alex Stalock faced down a stiff test in the opening minute when Flames' forward Johnny Gaudreau busted open for a clean breakaway.

Stalock was up to the challenge.
A minute or so later, Andrew Mangiapane ripped a shot off the crossbar.
"It gets you in [the game] right away," Stalock said. "It was a big chance for them but that's the way they play, they go. When they get a turnover they go, and a save there is huge."
Calgary, which scored nine goals 48 hours earlier in Columbus, seemed ready to push the pace early. But eventually the Wild settled in and actually outshot the Flames 11-8 in the opening 20 minutes.
Minnesota was mostly outstanding in the second period, save for the first minute or so of the frame, when Gaudreau was again leading the charge for Calgary. He fed Elias Lindholm on a 2-on-1 break and Lindholm scored 50 seconds in for a 1-0 lead.
After that, the Wild outshot the Flames 14-8 the rest of the period and had its fair share of chances to tie the game.
But it didn't have many grade-A chances.
Minnesota possessed the puck more in the period and tried to get its forecheck working, but Flames goalie Mike Smith, like Stalock, is a mobile goaltender unafraid of playing the puck.
Nearly every time the Wild dumped the puck in, Smith was there playing it, stopping it or re-directing it.
"When you do dump it, it has to be in a good spot. Otherwise he comes out and stops it every time and it makes it really difficult to forecheck on," said Wild forward Eric Staal. "We had pockets of good play. we did have enough chances to at least get one, but it's frustrating to finish like that."
Lindholm's second goal of the night less than 90 seconds into the third period made the mountain even steeper for the Wild on a night when it just didn't have its best offensive game.

Wild players were frustrated afterward, the feeling being that an opportunity for more was missed. Stalock was outstanding, making 18 saves, limiting a Flames offense averaging more than four goals per game on home ice to just two.
Unfortunately for Minnesota, it just didn't have the opportunity to match.
Some of that fault lays with the Wild, while some is also a credit to Smith.
"Little sloppy at times. Credit them in the neutral zone. I thought they were pretty good of bottling it up and didn't do a good enough job of consistently entering with possession or making them turn and play a little bit more in the offensive zone," Staal said. "But still, we had enough looks and competed hard. Al played great. Just a frustrating one."

No update on Koivu

Wild captain Mikko Koivu was injured in the third period when he was on the receiving end of a knee-on-knee hit from Flames defenseman Mark Giordano. Koivu remained on the ice momentarily but was steaming mad once he got up and skated off.
Koivu skated by the penalty box to have a quick word with Giordano, who was assessed a two-minute minor for tripping, then left the ice and did not return to the game. Boudreau had no update on his status for Friday's game in Edmonton.
"He stuck his leg out pretty good if you guys saw the same thing I did," Boudreau said.
If Koivu is unable to go against the Oilers, it's likely the Wild would try and go with its current crop of forwards. Matt Hendricks, who can play both center and wing, was a healthy scratch on Thursday. The Wild is not skating before the game Friday morning, so clarity on Koivu will not be known until Boudreau meets with the media two hours prior to puck drop.
Related:
Postgame Hat Trick: Flames 2, Wild 0