The 2014-15 Minnesota Wild: Goaltenders

Photo: Andy King/Reuters

Last year, the line for Minnesota's goaltenders was "just good enough is no longer acceptable". Well, they were just that. They were beyond good enough. They were great. Minnesota used five goalies in the 2013-14 season and all five played a role in helping the Wild reach the postseason for a consecutive season.

Good & Bad: The Remaining Roster Hopefuls

Photo: Wild.com

With the end of training camp/preseason on the horizon, lets take a look at the good and bad in each of the remaining players who are still in contention for a roster spot.

Preseason Game Four & Lineup Thoughts

Photo: Brace Hemmelgarn/USA Today

In last night's fourth preseason game, Minnesota edged Pittsburgh 4-1. Jason Pominville netted a hat trick, Darcy Kuemper made 32 saves, and Ilya Bryzgalov was killing time by taking selfies with fans on the bench. Onto the notes...

2013-14 Season In Review: Ilya Bryzgalov

Photo: Matt Kartozian/USA Today

Ilya Bryzgalov turned out to be a good trade deadline acquisition for the Wild.

3 on 3: Game One

Photo: Bill Smith/Getty Images

Wild made a third period rally to tie the game at two last night. But then Chicago turned on the jets, and dusted Minnesota 5-2 in Game One. Lets break out some three on three.

Key Players For The Wild Against Chicago

Photo: Hannah Foslien/Getty Images

Wild/Blackhawks begin tonight. Lets take a meander at the player the Wild need to step up (or continue on, in one case) as they open up the second round.

Key Players For The Wild Against Colorado

Mikael Granlund (left) and Erik Haula (center) are key players for Minnesota.
Photo: Brace Hemmelgarn/USA Today

Earlier today, we looked at five keys to victory for the Wild in their opening round series against Colorado. Now, we take a look at who the Wild need to be at their best from an individual standpoint.

Minnesota Wild Keys To Victory

Tomorrow the Wild and Avs take part in the third all-time playoff meeting between the two clubs. We took a introductory look at how the two clubs stack up against each other this year on Monday, going over your basic stats and what not.

So now as we dive in to the more specifics of this series, we are going to be looking specifically at what the Wild need to do in order to beat the Avalanche in round one.

Regular Season Wrap-Up

As we gear up for the playoffs on Thursday, lets take a look back at the Wild finest individual and team moments from the 2013-14 regular season.

Team Record: 43-27-12, 98 Points (2nd best record in franchise history)
Standings: 4th in Central Division, 7th in Western Conference

April Wrap-Up

A look back at the regular season's final month.

Team Record: 4-1-1 in April, 43-27-12 overall
Standings: 4th in Central Division, 7th in Western Conference

Save of the Year?

In last night's 4-0 win over the lifeless Penguins, Wild goaltender Ilya Bryzgalov made a serious bid for the NHL save of the year when he robbed James Neal in the second period.

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.

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.