Time To Roll With Bryzgalov

Photo: Bruce Kluckhohn/Getty Images

Darcy Kuemper, you have done an outstanding job getting the Wild this far. At the age of 23. you showed great skill and poise as the number one goaltender for the Minnesota Wild since early January. You basically carrying the Wild on your back through January and February will not be long forgotten when we come to the end of the regular season.

Ilya Bryzgalov Makes A Young Fan's Night

No one was happy with the Wild last night. They were losers of a 5-2 game at home against the sinking Vancouver Canucks. The team dominated most of the play, but failed to score on several great opportunities.

Mike Yeo and the Final 10 Games

Mike Yeo has a difficult ten games ahead. Photo: Carlos Gonzalez/Star Tribune

It has been no secret in the first two years of Mike Yeo's tenure as Wild head coach: The Wild tend to falter down the stretch.

Have Some Faith

Photo: Dave Reginek/Getty Images

Disclaimer: This is not a "someone should be fired" post. If you are looking for that, there should be another site out there that fits your needs.

You see that, Wild fans? Take a good look. What do you see on that page?

Vanek Watch: Load Up On Hats!

Photo: Darlo Ayala/Montreal Gazette

After going scoreless in his first five games as a member of the Montreal Canadiens, Thomas Vanek took to the ice last night to end his drought and get the first goal behind him.

Mikko Koivu Becomes the Wild All-Time Leading Scorer

Marian Gaborik (left) had been the Wild's previous franchise leader in points.

Shortly following the Wild's 6-0 victory over the Islanders last night, the NHL changed the scoring on Justin Fontaine's third period goal. Fontaine was previously credited as scoring unassisted on the goal, but it then was changed to have helpers from Matt Moulson and Mikko Koivu. The assist gave Koivu his third helper of the night, and put him into the all time franchise lead in points scored with 438 points.

Jason Pominville's Powerful Slapshot

Remember Brian Rolston? Yeah, that guy who would often take slapshots in the shootout.

Well until recently, Rolston had boasted the most powerful slapshot in Wild history. Wild F Jason Pominville is giving Rolston a run for his money in the clap bomb department.

It's Been A While

Jarome Iginla is the all time leading scorer against the Wild with 35 goals and 30 assists.
Photo: Jared Wickerham/Getty Images

Happy St. Patrick's Day to you all. Tonight, the Wild are in Beantown to take on the Eastern Conference powerhouse, the Boston Bruins, holders of a 45-17-5 record (best in the East).

Where Do We Go From Here?

Photo: Ann Heisenfelt/AP

Last night, the Wild again took another gut wrenching loss in a late season game to the Edmonton Oilers, 4-3, in a shootout. The loss comes after Minnesota took a commanding 3-0 first period lead, but fell asleep at the wheel and allowed Edmonton to get back in the game.

Chalk Talk: How Does Matt Moulson Score?

Last week, the Wild acquired Matt Moulson in a trade with Buffalo. Prior to last year's lockout shortened season, Moulson had put four consecutive  30+ goal seasons on the board. That might be the quietest streak of consecutive 30+ goal seasons, you will ever come across.

A Tribute to #9

Every so often, a team gets a chance to draft that once in a generation type of player. A player who can instantly change the fortune of your franchise and electrify the home crowd with just one stride down the ice.

Vanek Watch: Headed To A Contender!

As expected, Thomas Vanek's stay on Long Island was brief. Photo: Getty Images

Earlier in the year, Thomas Vanek was moved from Buffalo to the New York Islanders in the hopes of providing a spark to the struggling team.

A New Face In The State Of Hockey: Matt Moulson

Matt Moulson

Left Wing

Height: 6'1"

Weight: 200

Shoots: Left

Born: November 1, 1983

Birthplace: North York, OntarioOntario
Acquired: Via trade with Buffalo on 3/4/14

A New Face In The State of Hockey: Cody McCormick

Cody McCormick

Center

Height: 6'2"

Weight: 224

Shoots: Right

Born: April 18, 1983

Birthplace: London, Ontario, Canada

Acquired: Via trade with Buffalo on 3/4/14

Wild Acquire Moulson, McCormick

Matt Moulson will don his third different jersey this year. Photo: USATSI

Just prior to the 2 PM CDT trade deadline, Chuck Fletcher made another trade deadline move with Buffalo. This year, he acquired Matt Moulson and Cody McCormick from the Sabres in exchange for Torrey Mitchell and the Wild's second round pick in 2014 (acquired from Winnipeg last summer for Devin Setoguchi) and in 2016.

A New Face In The State Of Hockey: Ilya Bryzgalov

Ilya Bryzgalov

Goaltender

6'3"

213 lbs

Catches: Left

Born: June 22, 1980

Birthplace: Togliatti, Russia

Acquired: Via trade with Edmonton on 3/4/2014

As noted yesterday, the Wild made a trade yesterday with a little over 24 hours from the trade deadline. They acquired goaltender Ilya Bryzgalov from the Edmonton Oilers in exchange for a 2014 fourth round pick (the one acquired from Buffalo in the Jason Pominville trade). Bryzgalov is a 10 year NHL veteran, making stops in Anaheim, Phoenix, Philadelphia, and Edmonton along the way. 

A Busy Tuesday: Backstrom Shut Down, Mitchell Wants Out

Will Chuck Fletcher move Torrey Mitchell today?

Shortly after the team acquired Ilya Bryzgalov yesterday, GM Chuck Fletcher stated that due to the injury Niklas Backstrom has sustained, he will be shut down and will more than likely be done for the season. The announcement that Backstrom will be shut down was not surprising in the least given he has not played since January 30th and the Olympic break did very little to help heal his abdominal injury.

Wild Acquire Ilya Bryzgalov

Ilya Bryzgalov will be coming to Minnesota.

Literally not even an hour after head coach Mike Yeo responded to trade rumors about the team getting another goalie, the Wild ended up trading for another goalie. That goalie was Ilya Bryzgalov.

The Good and Bad of Available Goalies

Jaroslav Halak may never play one second for Buffalo. Photo: Pat Iverson

With the trade deadline in just over a day, the Wild have been highly linked to being interested in getting a goalie to backup Darcy Kuemper for the season's final 20 games. So lets take the pros and cons of each of the goalies who are potentially available for the Wild to pickup here in the next day.

Down The Stretch

Its a long road to the playoffs for the Wild. Photo: Ben Nelms/Getty Images

Take a good look at the standings folks. Just sit there and appreciate that nice little cushion the Minnesota Wild have built for themselves in the Wild Card spot as they enter the final 21 games of the 2013-14 season. Because when they hit that 82 game mark, they will probably be thanking their lucky stars they had that seven point advantage over the second spot.

February Wrapup

It was a Olympic shortened month for the Wild which only saw them play five games. Even though there werent that many games, we still will take a look back at the month of February.