The start of the season has featured mixed results for the Minnesota Wild.
Wild coach John Hynes hopes that the good outweighs the bad when his team faces off against the Los Angeles Kings on Monday night in St. Paul, Minn.
It will be the third game for Minnesota. The Wild recorded a 5-0 win in their season opener Thursday at the St. Louis Blues, only to suffer a 7-4 home-ice loss to the Columbus Blue Jackets on Saturday.
“Like every player, and like the team, it’s a work in progress,” Hynes said. “Nobody right now is a finished product two games in, and your team’s not. Whether it’s individual players or the team, we just keep moving.”
The Wild will take on a Kings squad wrapping up a three-game road trip. Los Angeles beat the Vegas Golden Knights 6-5 on Wednesday in the shootout round to open the trip, then fell short 3-2 against the Winnipeg Jets on Saturday.
“They were ready to start. We weren’t,” Kings coach Jim Hiller said. “That was really clear.”
Hiller will look for Los Angeles to have a faster start against the Wild. He said the Kings regrouped well in the second and third period against Winnipeg, and despite the loss, he said the final 40 minutes marked the best back-to-back periods his team has played this season.
Kings defenseman Mikey Anderson agreed. He said he and his teammates could take positive lessons from their response as they turn to face the Wild.
“It’s good for the group to watch that, build from it,” Anderson said. “(It’s about) getting pucks in, forechecking, getting them back and trying to play direct.”
Wild goaltender Filip Gustavsson (1-1, 3.03 goals-against average) likely will make his third start in net. He will look to bounce back after allowing a half-dozen goals against the Columbus Blue Jackets.
Gustavsson has appeared in eight career games against the Kings. He is 3-4-0 with a 2.25 GAA and a .926 save percentage in those contests.
If Gustavsson gets his first rest, the Wild could turn to backup netminder Jesper Wallstedt. He has five career games under his belt but has not played this season.
The Kings likely will counter with Darcy Kuemper, who is 0-2 with a 3.63 GAA in two starts. Kuemper has allowed seven goals on 50 shots for an .860 save percentage.
The 35-year-old Kuemper is 5-7-1 with a 2.76 GAA and a .905 save percentage in 14 career games against Minnesota. He played his first five seasons with the Wild.
Anton Forsberg (1-0-0, 4.66 GAA) could get the start if the Kings sit Kuemper. Forsberg is 2-4-0 with a 2.33 GAA and a .925 save percentage in six career games against the Wild.
Los Angeles’ No. 1 line of Andrei Kuzmenko, Anze Kopitar and Adrian Kempe are tied for the team lead with three points in their first three games.
Kirill Kaprizov and Matt Boldy lead the Wild in scoring. Both players have two goals and four assists through their first two games.
–Field Level Media
