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Wild Nation: Minnesota searches for consistency Print
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Written by Blake Benzel   
Wednesday, February 08, 2012 01:04
Wild Nation is a weekly blog following the Minnesota Wild, written by Blake Benzel. You can e-mail Blake at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it or follow Blake on Twitter: @bcbenzel.
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Wild in Trouble After Loss to Columbus

The Minnesota Wild just couldn’t keep up the momentum that they’d gained in their last five games on Tuesday night against the Blue Jackets, and worst, the loss was a predictable one.

As Mike Russo pointed out, check out the times when the Wild have returned home in the middle of a road trip – it’s a clear-cut momentum killer. They did it in December after winning their seventh in a row against Phoenix and that started a month-long skid that sent them from the top of the NHL to struggling to stay in the playoff race. They did it before Tuesday’s game and, lo and behold, they laid an egg on Tuesday in their 3-1 loss.

They were off their game all night long and were outplayed by the worst team in the league. If you want to make the playoffs, these are the games that you have to show up for and that you have to win. They did neither.

“It’s a game of one-on-one battles,” Minnesota coach Mike Yeo told reporters after the game. “They got the better of us by a large margin in that department.”

After a game like this, as a coach, it’s important to address the reasons you didn’t win and look on to the next game, because dwelling on losses like Tuesday’s can be very counterproductive.

The good news? The Wild’s tough stretch of the season is officially over with the team still in the playoffs.

They play 18 of their final 29 games at home, where they’re 13-7-3 this season. That doesn’t equal success, but it is a positive for a team that is in desperate need of positives right now. Minnesota needs to understand that they’re not going to out-skill their opponents. Regardless of whether or not Mikko Koivu is in the line up or not, they just don’t have the skill players to be able to hang with the likes of the Detroit Red Wings and the Chicago Blackhawks – it’s just not going to happen.

They way they’re going to get back on track is by winning battles and playing a team game. That’s how they got to the top of the NHL and that’s how they’re going to make the playoffs this season.

Prosser Re-Signs with WildNate Prosser

Nate Prosser signed a two-year, one-way deal with the Wild on Tuesday. I’m just going to be straightforward and say I love this signing.

Prosser is one of those “unsung” players that makes teams click. He’s likely never going to be a 50-point defenseman, but his defensive play is the kind of play that really makes a difference on the team. He’s mobile and he can move the puck and he’s been great in his own zone this season.

Let’s put it this way. He’s played 24 games and he has 65 blocked shots. That says just about all you need to know about his game.

“He’s a pretty sharp guy,” Yeo told the Pioneer Press. “We saw it last year, how much experience was a benefit to him, and we’ve seen it again this year at this level.”

Prosser has been so steady that he’s even getting more ice time per game than the Wild’s steadiest shutdown defensemen Nick Schultz and Greg Zanon. He’s fourth among defensemen on the Wild in power-play ice time per game and third on the team in shorthanded ice time per game. If that doesn’t scream steady, I don’t know what does.

Prosser’s one-way deal doesn’t start until next season, so there’s still the chance that he could jump around a bit more this year but, with the way the Wild have struggled and the way that he’s played I highly doubt that he does. 

Photo by Getty Images
Last Updated on Wednesday, February 08, 2012 14:20