A quick turnaround might be a blessing in disguise for the slumping Minnesota Wild.
Minnesota will not have much time to dwell on Saturday night’s 6-2 home defeat against the Utah Mammoth, the Wild’s fifth loss in their last six games.
Instead, they will turn their focus to a matchup against the San Jose Sharks on Sunday evening in St. Paul, Minn. It marks the second installment of a six-game homestand for the Wild.
Minnesota coach John Hynes is trying to keep his players from allowing the early-season slump to affect their confidence. He spoke after the team’s latest setback, which led a few players to give postgame interviews in which they were particularly hard on themselves.
Hynes said the Wild need to prevent a tough moment from becoming something bigger.
“Right now, you’re going through a tough stretch where it doesn’t go your way in certain areas,” Hynes said. “It’s a group, they take it hard, obviously. We all do.
“But right now, you have to focus on the things that are going to give you a chance to be able to win. You’ve got to be consistent with them, and we’ve got to stay with it.”
Meanwhile, San Jose is looking for a bright spot as it closes a four-game road trip. The Sharks went 0-4-2 in their first six games before posting a 6-5 overtime win over the Rangers in New York on Thursday. But they followed that up with a 3-1 loss at the New Jersey Devils on Friday.
Sharks coach Ryan Warsofsky wants his team to play hard but also to play smart. He cited too many penalties as a problem in San Jose’s most recent defeat.
“We’ve got to keep our sticks down,” Warsofsky said. “We’ve got to keep our legs moving. We have to understand where we are in shifts and manage those situations.”
The Sharks could start either Alex Nedeljkovic or Yaroslav Askarov in net. Nedeljkovic is 1-2-1 with a 4.00 goals-against average this season, and Askarov is 0-3-1 with a 4.82 GAA.
In four career starts against Minnesota, Nedeljkovic is 1-2-1 with a 4.29 GAA. Askarov is 0-1-0 with a 3.04 GAA in one career start against Minnesota.
The Wild will likely counter with Jesper Wallstedt in net one night after Filip Gustavsson made the start against Utah. Wallstedt is 1-0-1 with a 2.35 GAA in two starts this season, and he never has faced the Mammoth in his brief career.
Wild forward Marcus Johansson will try to stay hot after scoring two goals Saturday evening.
“I think Marcus has been very consistent,” Hynes said. “I think his speed’s a factor every night.
“I think his ability to make plays has been strong. He’s shooting the puck when he’s in the areas to be able to shoot it. It just seems that wherever we put him, that line seems to be able to be effective.”
–Field Level Media
