3 Takeaways From Wild's 2-1 Loss to Stars – Hockey Writers – Minnesota Wild

The Minnesota Wild ended their quick two-game homestand against the Dallas Stars on Saturday evening, Nov. 16. Whenever these two teams meet, things tend to get heated, and the Wild went into the game down to three of their best players: Jonas Brodin, Joel Eriksson Ek, and Mats Zuccarello.

For those who haven't seen the updates, Brodin and Eriksson Ek are day-to-day and could return soon, but Zuccarello is out for a few weeks as he recovers from the surgery he had when he left their last game against Montréal. Canadiens. That meant Michael Milne made his NHL debut, and Liam Öhgren was back with the Iowa Wild.

Wildcat fans also saw familiar faces on the Stars roster, such as Matt Dumba and Sam Steel. Dumba made himself visible at the beginning of the game when he took down Jakub Lauko, which led to a fight. The game is stable, although the Stars came out victorious, the Wild stayed until the end, Filip Gustavsson did everything possible to keep it in the game. We'll start with the Wild getting their game very late and go from there.

Wild Found Game Too Late

The Wild excelled this year when they came out and quickly took control of the game. If they allowed the other team any room, they struggled, and without their three key players, that made it worse. They had small pieces of solid play, but they would lose the puck and have to chase the Stars to get it back.

Obviously, the Wild are struggling without Eriksson Ek, Zuccarello, and Brodin, but they still have Kirill Kaprizov, Matt Boldy, Marco Rossi, and others. They have to find a way to get their spark back quickly and not let the other team establish their game. Easier said than done, especially when we're up against a strong Stars team with a lot of potential, and the Wild hung in there until the end.

Although they made a lot of mistakes, their efforts throughout the game kept them in it most of the time. Gustavsson deserves a lot of credit, as he stood up and made great saves when needed. He did everything he could to give his team a chance, they finally found their spark but it wasn't until the last minutes of the game.

Kaprizov's goal from Jared Spurgeon was just what the team needed to get themselves back on track, but there were just over five minutes left in regulation. They went up after that goal and controlled the game with shot after shot, but they couldn't solve Oettinger, and they got several pipes that didn't miss to be a goal. The Wild must improve on that late-minute effort and find a way to translate it into their game if they want to win without Eriksson Ek, Zuccarello, and Brodin.

Wild's Penalty Kill Stalls

The Stars are a team known for getting under the Wild's skin, and when they tried their best, the Wild held their breath. The Wild held on to their game except for a few fights, which was expected when the two teams played. They struggled in attack but did not get out of hand with revenge despite the Stars trying hard.

They played a bit and came close to crossing the line but held their own. The referees allowed both teams to play again, and the Wild used that to get physical. Aside from the fight calls, the Wild only took one minor penalty early in the game, but they killed it and didn't take any more minors. That penalty kill and the team's stay outside the box have been big factors in their ability to stay in the game.

“We knew that coming into this season it would take time; it was one of the biggest areas that we had to prepare and teach and get the guys into the system that we wanted to play. Not just the system, the details within the system and I think the guys understand it, doing it at a high level, the attention to detail is strong. The places we emphasize in a lot of different places about capital punishment are like, but I also think that's also something; sometimes everyone says the first 10-20 games there will be parts, there are many parts of our games that have been on point from the beginning until now, the penalty kill would take time….” said John Hynes in their press conference after the game about the severity of penalties in the last few games including the Stars.

Wild's Milne makes an impression

With injuries to Eriksson Ek and Zuccarello, the Wild had to make some roster changes, and while no one was surprised when they brought in Öhgren, everyone was curious to see how Milne would do. He didn't get points on the board but it wasn't for lack of trying. He had a great NHL debut, and like Brock Faber, he didn't let any emotions get to him. He was aggressive, he went after the puck, and he threw his body a little.

Milne played excellent hockey and fit well in his line with Marat Khusnutdinov and Jakub Lauko. All three had a very tough game against the Stars and used speed throughout the game. They beat the Stars until press time using their bodies when they needed to. Milne was in center field, and registered three hits and impressed the coaching staff.

Related: Minnesota Wild Recall Michael Milne as Team Leader in San Jose

“I thought he did well, I was happy for him and his family, obviously getting your first NHL game is special and it was nice to see him, to know him before this, because I hadn't seen him and found out. I saw him tonight and I thought he did well. He is a fast player. I thought he made good decisions, he got his feet wet; and with other games you come in, your first NHL game, it might be a different style of game, but when you play a team like we played tonight, it's a tough game, I thought he did well,” Hynes said in a press conference after the game when asked about his thoughts on Milne's first game.

Wild Back on the Road

The Wild will return to the road to face the St. Louis Blues on Tuesday, Nov. 19, and hopefully, they'll be able to use some of the momentum they got from the end of this game and put it into the beginning. of that game. They could also have Eriksson Ek and Brodin back in their lineup, which would be a big addition.

At times it looked like the Wild would fall back into old ways and let the Stars dominate the game, but they found a way to stay in it despite a few mistakes. Hopefully, the Wild can get their roster together and get back on the winning track when they take on the Blues.