Today has been one of those weird days.  Actually, not just today, it's been several weird days.  Normally, I work my customer service job from home.  I love it, and even better it saves me a lot of money on gas.  Yet, starting last week, the computer my employer provides decided it was going to go on the fritz.  I was told that a new computer would be in my home call center after 11am on Friday, so I went in to work my shift.  Guess what, no computer.  So then I had to work Saturday's shift and today's shift in the call center as opposed from the comfort of home.  Then there's been the weather here in the Upper Midwest.  Instead of feeling like spring has sprung, many of us have felt like winter was still upon us.  I have some friends in Australia and New Zealand, and they're having their own weather oddities, in that instead of feeling like fall was starting, it still felt like summer had them in its grip.  My weird days continued into this afternoon.  Because I knew I wasn't going to be home when the game started, I set the DVR to record the game.  On my on-screen guide, I would join the game in progress.  By the time I got settled, there were just about five minutes left in the first, and I could not see the game.  For a while, I thought I was going to be writing a rant against Fox Sports North for subjecting Wild fans to Twins baseball and Timberwolves basketball.  I couldn't understand why those game would effect my viewing pleasure, nor could I understnad that other fans I know could watch the game.  Seems that I had a completely ditzy moment.  Instead of my on-screen guide set to "All Channels" it was set to "My Channels."  The Wild game I saw on the guide was for the HD feed.  I was thinking that there was no standard definition feed because it wasn't listed like the other games on tonight.  Once I realized it said "My Feed" I clicked a button on the remote, and low and behold, there was the Wild game.  So I missed the first period for absolutely no reason.  So because of that, I'm afraid you're not going to get anything about the first period.  I just hope you got to watch it when I did not.

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Minnesota Wild (22-16-3)  47pts  2nd in the Northwest

2.46 Goals For (21st)

2.46 Goals Against (13th)

18.1% Power Play (16th)

83.1% Penalty Kill (11th)

Top 5 Scorers:

1. #11 Zach Parise ~ 15G 18A = 33pts

2. #9 Mikko Koivu ~ 9G 24A = 33pts

3. #20 Ryan Suter ~ 4G 26A = 30pts

4. #29 Jason Pominville ~ 12G 17A = 29pts

5. #7 Matt Cullen ~ 7G 18A = 25pts

Top 3 PIM's:

1. #28 Zenon Konopka ~ 100 PIM's

2. #27 Mike Rupp ~ 67 PIM's

3. #44 Justin Falk ~ 40 PIM's

Top Goaltender(s):

1. #32 Niklas Backstrom (20-12-3)  2.36GAA  .914%SP  2SO

2. #35 Darcy Kuemper (1-2-0)  1.98GAA  .924%SP

3. #37 Josh Harding (1-1-0)  2.92GAA  .885%SP  1SO

Vs.

Calgary Flames (16-21-4)  36pts  4th in the Northwest

2.68 Goals For (12th)

3.37 Goals Against (29th)

19.9% Power Play (11th)

79.8% Penalty Kill (21st)

Top 5 Scorers:

1. #22 Lee Stempniak ~ 8G 20A = 28pts

2. #13 Mike Cammalleri ~ 12G 15A = 27pts

3. #40 Alex Tanguay ~ 11G 16A = 27pts

4. #20 Curtis Glencross ~ 15G 10A = 25pts

5. #24 Jiri Hudler ~ 8G 16A = 24pts

Top 3 PIM's:

1. #15 Tim Jackman ~ 55 PIM's

2. #16 Brian McGrattan ~ 39 PIM's

3. #5 Mark Giordano ~ 30 PIM's

Top Goaltender(s):

1. #35 Joey MacDonald ~ (7-6-1)  2.84GAA  .903%SP

2. #34 Miikka Kiprusoff ~ (6-13-2)  3.61GAA  .872%SP

3. #37 Leland Irving ~ (2-1-1)  3.33GAA  .883%SP

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"Like sand through the hourglass, so are the Days of Our Lives" which is the intro to the famous NBC soap opera.  Its amazing how much an NHL season can be like a soap opera minus the love triangles.  There are disappointments, betrayal, happiness and times of sorrow.  For the Minnesota Wild they've had more then their fair amount of drama as they've had to replace some of the pivotal members of its cast with some younger players with mixed results.  In any soap opera, when a main character leaves its often shrouded in mystery.  Thanks to the way injury disclosure is handled in the NHL, when a player leaves the lineup due to a malady more often than not all you'll get is 'lower body' or 'upper body' injury.  Timetables are seldom shared but when yor team is struggling the fans wait anxiously for that player's return and it never seems to be soon enough.  The waiting is the worst part, especially as you watch the results and see unfavorable results flash across the ticker.  That unfavorable scores draws out the agony.  If you can get a few victories the gloom lifts and everyone is happy.    

So where are the Wild faithful right now?  Anxious and a little shaken.  With the team's points cushion all but gone the Wild are hanging on to 7th place by just 1 point above 8th place Detroit and just 3 points ahead of 9th place Dallas.  So unless the Wild wish to feel disappointment just like an ill-fated soap character they need to put up or shut up.  Its up to the club to turn its game around otherwise they'll find out they only have One Life (point) to Live.  So will the Wild manage to earn a crucial victory over Columbus or will the Blue Jackets and the other clubs chasing Minnesota gain some more ground?  

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Minnesota Wild (22-16-2)  46pts  2nd in the Northwest

2.48 Goals For (21st)

2.48 Goals Against (12th)

17.9% Power Play (16th)

82.8% Penalty Kill (12th)

Top 5 Scorers:

1. #9 Mikko Koivu ~ 9G 24A = 33pts

2. #11 Zach Parise ~ 15G 17A = 32pts

3. #20 Ryan Suter ~ 4G 25A = 29pts

4. #29 Jason Pominville ~ 11G 16A = 27pts

5. #7 Matt Cullen ~ 7G 18A = 25pts

Top 3 PIM's:

1. #28 Zenon Konopka ~ 100 PIM's

2. #27 Mike Rupp ~ 67 PIM's

3. #44 Justin Falk ~ 40 PIM's

Top Goaltender(s):

1. #32 Niklas Backstrom (20-12-2)  2.38GAA  .914%SP  2SO

2. #35 Darcy Kuemper (1-2-0)  1.98GAA  .924%SP

3. #37 Josh Harding (1-1-0)  2.92GAA  .885%SP  1SO

Vs.

Columbus Blue Jackets (18-16-7)  43pts  4th in the Central

2.32 Goals For (27th)

2.46 Goals Against (10th)

13.0% Power Play (28th)

85.0% Penalty Kill (6th)

Top 5 Scorers:

1. #10 Marian Gaborik ~ 12G 13A = 25pts

2. #22 Vinny Prospal ~ 10G 14A = 24pts

3. #55 Mark Letestu ~ 9G 13A = 22pts

4. #42 Artem Anisimov ~ 11G 7A = 18pts

5. #51 Fedor Tyutin ~ 2G 15A = 17pts

Top 3 PIM's:

1. #40 Jared Boll ~ 88 PIM's

2. #17 Brandon Dubinsky ~ 49 PIM's

3. #11 Matt Calvert ~ 32 PIM's

Top Goaltender(s):

1. #72 Sergei Bobrovsky (15-10-6)  2.01GAA  .931%SP  4SO

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"Pressure putting down on me, pressing down on you that you no man ask for, under pressure, that burns a building down, splits a family in two, puts people on  streets, it's the terror of knowing, what this world is all about, watching some good friends, screaming let me out," these are the lyrics to Queen's song Under Pressure.  I wonder if they are feeling a little pressure right now?  By they, I mean the Minnesota Wild.  After going on an unprecedented 7-game win streak the team has lost 5 of its last 7 games and now currently sits in 7th, with just 3 points separating themselves from 8th place Detroit.  That is not a good place to be.  However if any member of the Wild, from the coaching staff to the players tell you there is no pressure don't believe it.  Its all around them.  Wild majority owner Craig Leipold didn't spend $198 million this summer on Zach Parise and Ryan Suter and then 'ok' the move to pay another hefty price to bring in Jason Pominville at the trade deadline because he's hoping to just get close but not necessarily get into the playoffs.  In fact, Leipold only added to the mounting pressure and anxiety swirling about the club when he told the Minneapolis Star Tribune's Chip Scoggins, "“It’s not just about making the playoffs. We want to win our division. That is our goal from this point forward. We want the third seed.”  The Wild are currently 4 points behind the division leader, but at the rate the Wild are losing...er winning games making up those 4 points seems like a pretty steep hill to climb. 

The Wild really only have themselves to blame.  Tuesday night's loss to the 1st place Blackhawks was a frustrating one.  Minnesota was playing fairly well, limiting the powerful Blackhawks offense but one defensive breakdown turned out to be rather costly while the team's inability to generate much pressure in the 3rd period makes one question whether this team is really battling fatigue.  So can the Wild turn it around against St. Louis, a team that has owned the Wild the last few seasons or will the Blues just add to the pressure already building up around the team?   

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Minnesota Wild (22-15-2)  46pts  2nd in the Northwest

2.54 Goals For (18th)

2.49 Goals Against (11th)

18.3% Power Play (13th)

82.6% Penalty Kill (12th)

Top 5 Scorers:

1. #9 Mikko Koivu ~ 9G 24A = 33pts

2. #11 Zach Parise ~ 15G 17A = 32pts

3. #20 Ryan Suter ~ 4G 25A = 29pts

4. #29 Jasn Pominville ~ 11G 16A = 27pts

5. #7 Matt Cullen ~ 7G 18A = 25pts

Top 3 PIM's:

1. #28 Zenon Konopka ~ 100 PIM's

2. #27 Mike Rupp ~ 67 PIM's

3. #44 Justin Falk ~ 38 PIM's

Top Goaltenders:

1. #32 Niklas Backstrom (20-11-2)  2.39GAA  .915%SP  2SO

2. #35 Darcy Kuenper (1-2-0)  1.98GAA  .924%SP

3. #37 Josh Harding (1-1-0)  2.92GAA  .885%SP  1SO

Vs.

St. Louis Blues (22-14-2)  46pts  2nd in the Central

2.74 Goals For (12th)

2.55 Goals Against (15th)

21.6% Power Play (7th)

83.9% Penalty Kill (9th)

Top 5 Scorers:

1. #25 Chris Stewart ~ 16G 14A = 30pts

2. #20 Alex Steen ~ 7G 18A = 25pts 

3. #57 David Perron ~ 9G 14A = 23pts

4. #21 Patrik Berglund ~ 15G 7A = 22pts

5. #42 David Backes ~ 5G 17A = 22pts

Top 3 PIM's:

1. #75 Ryan Reaves ~ 65 PIM's

2. #42 David Backes ~ 48 PIM's

3. #46 Roman Polak ~ 42 PIM's

Top Goaltenders:

1. #41 Jaroslav Halak (6-5-1)  2.14GAA  .899%SP  3SO

2. #1 Brian Elliott (7-6-1)  2.89GAA  .884%SP  2 SO

3. #34 Jake Allen (9-3-0)  2.33GAA  .911%SP  1SO

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The State of Hockey and Chicago are the 'home' to two of the most memorable group of brother's in the history of American cinema.  For the Windy City its Jake and Elwood Blues played by Saturday Night Live original cast members John Belushi and Dan Akroyd.  The pair of trouble-making musicians who go on a mission from God to save an orphanage they once belonged to formed the plot for the film the Blues Brothers.  For Minnesota you have a trio of brothers from the "Iron Range" of Dave, Jeff and Steve Hanson played by real life professional hockey players Steve and Jeff Carlson from Virginia, Minnesota and St. Paul's Dave Hanson.  The brothers from the cult classic hockey film Slap Shot who loved playing with toy cars when they weren't beating the hell out of their opponents on the ice as they hoped their thuggery could save their hockey team from being dismantled.  The brothers and their films share some interesting comparisons.  Both sets of brothers were made famous in part due their choice in eyewear.   The Blues' and their classic sunglasses which they even wore at night and the Hanson's for their taped up coke-bottle glasses which the players did their best to keep on even in the middle of a hockey fight.  Both sets of brothers were no strangers in getting into trouble with the law and both were great crowd pleasers.  But which group of brothers kicked more ass?    

Which 'brothers' kicked more ass, the Blues brothers or the Hanson brothers?

The Blues Brothers certainly started their share of fights but they spent most of their time running or morte often driving away.  It was in their various car chases that they managed to send a whole group of Illinois Nazi's jumping off the side of a bridge as well as the destruction of a shopping mall in addition to countless police, sheriff and state patrol cars as they raced to the Cook County Assessor's Office in downtown Chicago.  So on a property destruction level, the Blues Brothers win hands down.  While the Hanson Brothers didn't have an old police car to drive, they road a bus with holes bashed in the side to make it look mean.  And unlike the Blues who ran away from the fights they created they fought ferociously making the Charlestown Chiefs one of the most feared teams in the Federal League standing up to such thugs as Ogie Oglethorpe, Tim "Dr. Hook" McCracken and Gilmore Tuttle.  Only the national guard could finally reign in the Blues Brothers while the only thing stopping the Hanson brothers was the flagging economy in Charlestown.  So which group of brother's kicked more ass?  That's up for you to decide.  Meanwhile in the NHL, the Western Conference's top team faces off the upstart Minnesota Wild.  Will the Blackhawks be singing Sweet Home Chicago by game's end or will they be singing the blues? 

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Minnesota Wild (22-14-2)  46pts  2nd in the Northwest

2.60 Goals For (16th)

2.53 Goals Against (11th)

18.5% Power Play (13th)

82.4% Penalty Kill (13th)

Top 5 Scorers:

1. #9 Mikko Koivu ~ 9G 24A = 33pts

2. #11 Zach Parise ~ 15G 17A = 32pts

3. #20 Ryan Suter ~ 4G 25A = 29pts

4. #29 Jason Pominville ~ 11G 16A = 27pts

5. #7 Matt Cullen ~ 7G 18A = 25pts

Top 3 PIM's:

1. #28 Zenon Konopka ~ 98 PIM's

2. #27 Mike Rupp ~ 65 PIM's

3. #44 Justin Falk ~ 38 PIM's

Top Goaltender(s):

1. #32 Niklas Backstrom (20-10-2)  2.44GAA  .913%SP  2SO

2. #35 Darcy Kuemper (1-2-0)  1.98GAA  .923%SP

3. #37 Josh Harding (1-1-0)  2.92GAA  .885%SP  1SO

Vs.

Chicago Blackhawks (29-5-4)  62pts  1st in the Central

3.24 Goals For (1st)

2.08 Goals Against (2nd)

16.9% Power Play (21st)

85.6% Penalty Kill (5th)

Top 5 Scorers:

1. #88 Patrick Kane ~ 20G 26A = 46pts

2. #19 Jonathan Toews ~ 19G 21A = 40pts

3. #81 Marian Hossa ~ 13G 10A = 23pts

4. #20 Brandon Saad ~ 9G 13A = 22pts

5. #2 Duncan Keith ~ 2G 20A = 22pts

Top 3 PIM's:

1. #52 Brandon Bollig ~ 47 PIM's

2. #65 Andrew Shaw ~ 30 PIM's

3. #2 Duncan Keith ~ 29 PIM's

Top Goaltender(s):

1. #50 Corey Crawford (15-4-4)  2.01GAA  .922%SP  2SO

2. #30 Ray Emery (14-1-0)  2.02GAA  .920%SP  2SO

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The monotone voice, the blazing speed, the lack of variety in his one on one moves, and the glass groin he possessed dazzled and frustrated Wild fans for years.  He teased you with his skill, a streaky player who in certain moments could look like one of the most gifted players in the league and at other times a player who was disconnected and genuinely didn't want to be there.  Then of course there was the man who brought him here, Doug Risebrough.  The former Wild general manager who did about all that he could to try to assist the Trencin, Slovakia-native's health but in the end couldn't get a deal done and the Minnesota Wild were forced to watch the most talented player they have ever drafted walk away for nothing in return.  The void left by Marian Gaborik's departure hurt the team for years (as well as poor drafting) and ultimately it cost Risebrough his job.  Now Gaborik has been traded for the first time in his career, in a deadline day deal by the upstart Columbus Blue Jackets who have been scratching and clawing their way towards the Western Conference playoff picture under new GM Jarmo Kekalainen and Team President John Davidson.  Former Wild coach Todd Richards has managed to spark his bizarre collection of veterans and youngsters into being one of the most successful teams in the league through the month of March.  There is as much hope in Columbus now as there has been since the team hired Ken Hitchcock as coach and who led the team to its first and only ever run to the playoffs.  The playoff 'run' was a 1st round sweep at the hands of the Detroit Red Wings, and the team spiraled downward ever since.  The red-headed stepchild of the NHL has had plenty of bad luck along the way, including losing its franchise player Rick Nash in summer trade and the disastisfaction of Jeff Carter to stay with the Blue Jackets who was dealt to Los Angeles at last year's deadline.  The Blue Jackets faithful, the few that are left, feel their team has paid its dues and taken its lumps and now its time for its fortunes to turn around and Gaborik is supposed to push them over that last hurdle.  Wild fans can tell any Columbus fan what happens when you rely on Marian Gaborik.  You end up disappointed.    

However the Wild as of late haven't had much more success than its expansion cousin.  So the Wild probably shouldn't be talking too much trash when they venture to Nationwide Arena Sunday night, an arena where they've typically struggled to win games.  The Blue Jackets will be hungry and motivated and hoping to extend the Wild's 3-game losing streak.  Can the Wild dig deep and stem the tide with a crucial win in Columbus or will the Blue Jackets and Marian Gaborik have the last laugh?  

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Minnesota Wild (21-14-2)  44pts  2nd in the Northwest

2.60 Goals For (18th)

2.60 Goals Against (15th)

17.3% Power Play (18th)

81.7% Penalty Kill (15th)

Top 5 Scorers:

1. #9 Mikko Koivu ~ 9G 24A = 33pts

2. #11 Zach Parise ~ 15G 16A = 31pts

3. #20 Ryan Suter ~ 3G 25A = 28pts

4. #29 Jason Pominville ~ 10G 15A = 25pts

5. #7 Matt Cullen ~ 7G 18A = 25pts

Top 3 PIM's:

1. #28 Zenon Konopka ~ 96 PIM's

2. #27 Mike Rupp ~ 65 PIM's

3. #44 Justin Falk ~ 38 PIM's

Top Goaltender(s):

1. #32 Niklas Backstrom (19-10-2)  2.52GAA  .910%SP  1 SO

2. #35 Darcy Kuemper (1-2-0)  1.98GAA  .923%SP

3. #37 Josh Harding (1-1-0)  2.92GAA  .885%SP  1 SO

Vs.

Columbus Blue Jackets (16-15-7)  39pts  4th in the Central

2.29 Goals For (30th)

2.55 Goals Against (12th)

14.8% Power Play (27th)

85.6% Penalty Kill (5th)

Top 5 Scorers:

1. #10 Marian Gaborik ~ 10G 12A = 22pts

2. #22 Vinny Prospal ~ 10G 12A = 22pts

3. #55 Mark Letestu ~ 9G 11A = 20pts

4. #51 Fedor Tyutin ~ 2G 15A = 17pts

5. #42 Artem Anisimov ~ 10G 6A = 16pts

Top 3 PIM's:

1. #40 Jared Boll ~ 86 PIM's

2. #17 Brandon Dubinsky ~ 53 PIM's

3. #24 Derek McKenzie ~ 32 PIM's

Top Goaltender(s):

1. #72 Sergei Bobrovsky (13-9-6)  2.09GAA  .929%SP  3 SO

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