Alex Bader
The Minnesota Wild faltered in their effort against the Ottawa Senators as they fell by a score of 4-3 despite putting 42 shots on Forsberg. The Wild dropped to 1-1 on the road trip and lost to the Senators for the first time in nine games.
It was a poor start from the Wild, but they played a much better end to the game. They couldn't overcome the poor start. The Wild have to remember they cannot look down upon on teams that sit below them in the standings.
BADER'S TAKE:
Zuccarello is a key player for this Wild team.
Let's hope that for whatever the reason that kept the star forward out of the lineup against Ottawa, is resolved quickly and he can rejoin the lineup on Thursday.
He is a key player for the top line and on the power play. He is a key distributor and facilitator on the ice. He is a huge leader which can hurt to miss in a game like tonight.
There is no surprise that the Wild's power play struggled without the star winger leading the way.
Kirill Kaprizov was also a player who felt the absence of his best pal in Zuccarello. He tried to do too much at times. He had chances but was stopped by the Senator goalie.
We cannot blame Talbot for the goals. Minnesota's poor play in front of him led to the goals and plenty of chances. Talbot had to make several saves to keep the Wild in the game.
Game Recap:
The Minnesota Wild got off to a very poor start. They missed passes in the skates and missed shots wide.
Talbot let the first shot in and gave Ottawa an early 1-0 lead. Chabot got the goal for the Senators.
Wild had chances, but went 0 for 2 on the power play in the first period.
Brady Tkachuk scored a power-play goal for the Wild to give the Senators a 2-0 lead. Talbot couldn't get back to the left side after being dragged out to the right post.
The Wild responded well in the second and completely dominated the period - for the most part.
Kevin Fiala scored to give the Wild some life early in the second. He had a goal and an assist in the game. He has 13 goals and 24 points in the last 19 games.
Six minutes later, Jared Spurgeon jumped up in the play and scored to tie the game.
However, a lucky bounce off a blocked shot led to a perfect shot for Tim Stutzle. He scored to give the Senators the 3-2 lead going into the third period.
The Wild needed a strong start to the period.
Merrill Hustled to a loose puck and skated down the left circle and sniped it in to tie the game early in the third period.
Chabot scored his second of the game to give the Senators the 4-3 lead with 5:45 left in the game.
Minnesota pulled Talbot with just over a minute left in the game. They had a blitz of chances but couldn't pull out the goal.
What's Next:
Minnesota will face off against the Toronto Maple Leafs on Thursday. They will have less travel time and hopefully, they can be ready to play when the puck drops.
They will have to play hard and bounce back after what was a disappointing result tonight.
Minnesota dropped to 31-14-3, they sit third in the central division with 65 points. The Blues have 66 points and the Avalanche have 76 points. The Wild have two games in hand on both.
The Maple Leafs are 32-14-3 and sit in fourth in the Atlantic division.
Thursday, Feb. 24, 2022. puck-drop at 6:00 p. m. central time
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