It’s official: the preseason is halfway over, which means the regular season for the Minnesota Wild is under two weeks away. Hometown fans witnessed the top line together for the first time this preseason when they faced the Colorado Avalanche for the second time in less than a week on Thursday, Sept. 28.
The Wild dressed several roster regulars, while the Avalanche’s big names have yet to debut this season. The home team jumped on the board early and held the lead from the first all the way to the end. The Avalanche got within one goal a couple of times but couldn’t get any closer as the Wild won 4-2 and moved to 3-1 in the preseason, and none other than the Wild’s star got things started.
Kaprizov Shines as Usual
Kirill Kaprizov did what he does best and opened the scoring just 32 seconds into the game. If anyone was worried about how he’d play after having a tough postseason following a return from injury, they aren’t anymore. Even if it was just a goal in the preseason, it’s still a great confidence booster to hear the crowd cheer and knock any rust off.
He didn’t keep it to just one goal either; he scored the game’s final goal. He opened and closed the game with goals and had a team-leading six shots on goal in 19 minutes of ice time. It’s been repeated enough that it is only the preseason, and most players aren’t going 100 percent, but to see Kaprizov score in his first game is a great sign. Hopefully, he can turn it up again when the regular season starts, and everything will run smoothly.
Wild’s Faber & Brodin Pairing
While it was the debut of the Wild’s top line, the defensive pairing of Brock Faber and Jonas Brodin was also on display for the first time in the preseason. It’s been all over the news the past few weeks that Faber has spent the summer working hard to be ready for his first 82-game NHL season.
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The pairing did quite well, with three total points throughout the game. Brodin scored a goal, while Faber had two assists, the first on Kaprizov’s first goal and the second on his linemate Brodin’s goal. Faber was quiet on the shot front, but Brodin was behind Kaprizov with five shots on goal.
Everyone knows Brodin carries the weight of the time on ice amongst the defense, and that has some worried if Faber can keep up. He got his first small dose against the Avalanche when he played 21 minutes, and Brodin played 22. It’s only the first game, so he won’t show signs of fatigue yet, but seeing his progression as the season moves forward will be interesting.
Wild’s Areas to Improve
The Wild’s shots on goal didn’t make the list, but their faceoff percentages, power play, physicality, and blocked shots were all outdone by the Avalanche. They outshot the Avalanche 35-27 but only won 46.3 percent of their faceoffs compared to 53.7 percent for their opponent. Faceoffs have always been a struggle for the Wild, and even in the preseason, they can’t get away from it.
Thankfully, they didn’t let in any shorthanded goals, but they also didn’t score on either of their power play chances despite having some of their best players on the ice. The Wild have also struggled with the balance of too little or too much physicality, and against the Avalanche, they were outhit 16-4.
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The final area that needs improvement involves their defense and blocking shots. Usually, they’re pretty good at blocking every shot possible, but this time, they were outdone by the Avalanche 18-12. Hopefully, as the preseason continues, the Wild will tighten these areas up because, in the regular season, they won’t slide by so easily.
Wild Nearly There
The Wild have played three preseason games and have three more left before the regular season starts. They’ll remain at home Saturday, Sept. 30, to play host to the Chicago Blackhawks and their famed Connor Bedard, who was just in Minnesota a couple of weeks ago for the Tom Kurvers Prospect Tournament.
Following the game against the Blackhawks, they’ll play the Dallas Stars again and then finish up with the Blackhawks once more before starting the regular season on Oct. 12. The Wild will continue to rotate their roster until they get their entire NHL lineup to ensure they get some game time in as practice before it becomes the real deal. Hopefully, they can perfect all of their systems to produce success.
