Searching for Puck Luck, Wild Face Blues
As St. Patrick’s Day approaches, the Minnesota Wild are hoping for a little bit of Irish luck—or, in their case, puck luck—when they host the St. Louis Blues on Saturday night in Saint Paul, Minn.
Wild Looking for Offensive Breakthrough
Minnesota has been playing solid hockey but hasn’t always been rewarded on the scoreboard. Coach John Hynes believes his team is doing everything right—except getting the bounces.
“We’re playing some really good hockey, but we’re not getting the bounces. We’re not getting any puck luck,” Hynes said.
The Wild (33-26-9) have won all three previous meetings against St. Louis this season, outscoring them 14-7 in those matchups. The most recent showdown on Jan. 7 ended in a 6-4 Wild victory, with Marcus Johansson and Jacob Middleton each tallying a goal and an assist.
Minnesota’s offense is led by Matt Boldy (55 points), Marco Rossi (53 points), and Kirill Kaprizov (52 points in just 37 games). However, Kaprizov remains sidelined due to injury.
Blues Desperate to Stay in Playoff Hunt
The Blues (35-30-4) enter Saturday winless in their last two games, including a 5-3 loss to the Pittsburgh Penguins on Thursday. St. Louis is still battling for a Western Conference wild-card spot, but every point matters as the season winds down.
“Every game is important for us,” Blues forward Zachary Bolduc said. “I think our mentality was good (in our last game). We didn’t give up.”
Robert Thomas leads St. Louis with 52 points, followed closely by Jordan Kyrou (50 points) and Dylan Holloway (48 points).
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Goaltending Matchup
- Minnesota: Filip Gustavsson (25-14-4, 2.57 GAA, .915 SV%) and Marc-Andre Fleury (12-8-1, 2.72 GAA, .904 SV%)
- St. Louis: Jordan Binnington (20-21-4, 2.83 GAA, .897 SV%) and Joel Hofer (11-7-3, 2.87 GAA, .900 SV%)
Binnington has struggled at times this season, while Gustavsson has provided steady goaltending for Minnesota.