The Minnesota Wild were looking to extend their winning streak to three games when they took on the New York Rangers for the second time in less than a week on Thursday night, Nov. 9. It was the middle of their three-game road trip and also the first night of a tough back-to-back. Again, they got off to a rough start with an early goal by the Rangers that set the Wild back on their heels.
They chased the Rangers for most of the first period but showed some of the life we’ve recently seen in the second. It was later in the period, but the Wild got one on the board and, from that point, had plenty of chances. Again, they could only convert the one time and left the second period tied at one.
In the third period, the Wild have been strong, but the Rangers took control with an early goal to take their second lead. The Wild were caught a little on their heels again but continued to fight more than in the first. They had chance after chance but couldn’t convert and took a penalty at possibly the most crucial point of the game.
It looked like the Wild would kill the penalty and get back into the action, but with just a couple of seconds left, the Rangers forced one past Marc-André Fleury to go ahead by two. The Wild finally found their energy and started to push hard, but the Rangers’ goaltending was strong and kept the Wild off the board. The Rangers added one more empty net goal to seal the deal and ended the Wild’s win streak with a 4-1 victory.
Wild Can’t Break Habits
The Wild started the game strong with some great efforts by the third line, but the rest of the team didn’t continue the energy, and things seemed to fall flat. They allowed the Rangers to skate circles around them in the first period. The Wild did get some decent chances, but nothing substantial. An intense opening minute was an improvement, but they must keep that energy level up throughout the game.
The Wild allowed the Rangers to break into their zone, hardly pressured; their first goal was an example of this. They broke right in and had the Wild chasing, and by the time they caught up, the puck was in the net. The Wild have to get more comfortable holding the puck in their defensive zone instead of trying to break out poorly, leading to turnovers.
The Wild must be more confident in their passing and get back to playing their style. They’ve been playing desperate this season, but not the right kind of desperate. Urgency is good but with a purpose and plan. If the Wild want to get back to winning, they have to be disciplined through the whole game and stick to their strategy. They’ve shown small pieces of it, but they stray away.
Wild’s Power Play Woes
Unlike most of the games the Wild have played this season, there was a shortage of penalties for both sides in this game. The Wild had just one power play opportunity, and they continued with the five-forward set as their number one unit. Things didn’t work out well, and it took until the second unit was on the ice to even get into the offensive zone.
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The Rangers bottled up the power play unit at the blue line and forced the Wild to turn over the puck nearly every chance they had. The second unit tried to keep things simple and found their way in, but unfortunately, time ran out. However, shortly after the power play expired, the Wild got their lone goal due to the efforts of the second unit.
As stated numerous times this season, the Wild have plenty of talent on their power play, but they try to overdo things. They focus too much on the perfect pass, and they couldn’t do that against the Rangers, who block every single shot that comes their way. They needed to get their shots off quickly, and hopefully, they will in their next game.
Wild’s Major Issue Plus Bright Spots
One thing that has been an issue this season is that the Wild struggle to communicate. In their losses, they have made mistakes that could’ve easily been remedied by better communication. Several issues in their game against the Rangers wouldn’t have happened had they been talking back and forth. Hopefully, they can get back to that sooner rather than later.
We could go on and on about the mistakes the Wild made in their loss, but it’s time to give credit and hope to the few bright spots in the game. The first goes to Fleury, who struggled to stop the first couple of goals initially, but after that, he made some huge saves to keep his team in it. Of course, he let in three goals, but the team has to take some of the blame. On his chase for history, he also set a new record, taking over third place in the NHL for all-time saves with 25,808.
In good company 🙌
— Minnesota Wild (@mnwild) November 10, 2023
Flower has moved into third place for all-time saves in @NHL history with 25,808 saves. #mnwild x @StarTribune pic.twitter.com/2PbibNhqJo
The Wild’s newest addition, Zach Bogosian, was acquired in a trade just the day prior for a 2025 seventh-round draft pick. Just hours before Bogosian’s arrival, the Wild sent Calen Addison to the San Jose Sharks for a 2026 fifth-round draft pick and Adam Raska to make room for the Bogosian acquisition. He played 14:44 and let his presence be known with three hits plus two shots on goal.
The final honorable mentions go to Brock Faber, Marco Rossi, and the third line of Marcus Foligno, Pat Maroon, and Joel Eriksson Ek. Faber and Rossi continue to play strong, with a few mistakes, but overall, their efforts must be mirrored by the entire team. They force things to happen, and their level of speed is impressive. The third line showed the energy the team needs to produce all game, and hopefully, they can spark the team to rise to that next level.
Wild Face Sabres
Despite the Rangers being without Igor Shesterkin, Jonathan Quick, Adam Fox, and Filip Chytil, the Wild still couldn’t get past them. However, they won’t have much time to dwell on the loss as they’ll face the Buffalo Sabres in the second game of their back-to-back. The Sabres have a pretty equal record to the Wild, so seeing how they play each other will be interesting.
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The Wild’s defense has to watch out for Minnesota native and leading scorer for the Sabres, Casey Mittlestadt, plus Jeff Skinner, Tage Thompson, and Rasmus Dahlin. Meanwhile, the offense has to find a way past the goaltending of either Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen or Devon Levi. Hopefully, the Wild can bounce back and have a big win over the Sabres to come home on a high note before they head to Sweden for the Global Series.