Minnesota Wild Rallying to Continue 8-Game Winning Streak
By Santagata JJ
The Minnesota Wild Are Striking Gold As of Late by Earning Their Eighth Consecutive Win. Minnesota is Now Rallying with Their 8-Game Winning Streak and Plan to Keep the Luck Going.
If you follow the NHL then you are probably familiar with some of the recent winning streaks right now. One of these streaks belongs to the Minnesota Wild’s eight-game win streak. Minnesota did, in fact, clinch a playoff berth last year, but it was short lived.
The Wild look different this year and I cannot tie my head around the reasoning behind the Wild’s success this season. The rebirth of Eric Staal? The addition of veteran coach Bruce Boudreau? Devan Dubnyk remarkable start? The distribution of point production? All those reasonings are legitimate possibilities behind Minnesota’s success this season. The one that stands out most is the addition of Bruce Boudreau.
Adding Bruce Boudreau
Boudreau served 5 years with the Washington Capitals from 2007-2012, recording 201 wins through 329 games. In Washington, Boudreau made the playoffs 4 out of the 5 years during his time, winning 17 playoff games. In addition to that, out of Boudreau’s 5 years in Washington, he led Washington to 1st in the division four times.
Boudreau was then sent to Anaheim for 5 years, where he yet again made the playoffs 4 out of 5 years. Therefore, leading Anaheim to the top of the division four times as well. Winning 21 playoff games.
Boudreau has a successful track record during his 11 years as a head coach. And yet again Boudreau has made an immediate impact on Minnesota’s season this year. Now he is leading Minnesota to 2nd in the Central division and on a 8 game win streak as of right now. Therefore, Boudreau has been a huge benefit for the team.
Staal Bounces Back
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Now this obviously is not the only reason Minnesota has been off to such a great start but it has had a prominent role. Eric Staal has been on the decline since 2012, between barely cracking 20 plus goals for the past four years, constantly missing time due to injuries. Therefore, Staal has not been the Eric Staal we knew in Carolina from 2005-2011.
In fact, Staal recorded one of his best years in his career during his second term in Carolina, reaching the 100 point mark and scoring 45 goals. Furthermore, with Staal’s recent play it seems he’s getting his 2005-2006 Carolina days back. Staal is currently posting 25 points (10 G, 15 A) in 31 games this season and has a lot of time to rack up more points.
Devan Dubnyk Between the Pipes
Devan Dubnyk seems to be on a mission this season. He just recently recorded his league-leading 5th shutout of the year Tuesday night in Minnesota’s 2-0 win over Colorado.
Dubnyk’s numbers are off the charts this season with statistics he hasn’t posted in a long time. With a 1.55 goals against average, .948 save percentage and 5 shutouts, it’s fair to say that Dubnyk is a major reason behind Minnesota’s success.
Many successful NHL teams thrive off good goaltending and that’s exactly what the Wild are doing this season. Additionally, this team knows that with Dubnyk in net one or two mistakes in the gray areas will be turned away by their goalie.
Minnesota Wild Moving Forward
The Wild have a tough remaining of December coming up. With the Montreal Canadiens, New York Rangers, Nashville Predators, New York Islanders and, lastly, finishing the month off with Columbus.
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By no means is this a walk in the park for Minnesota. Therefore it will be a true test for this team being that four out of the five teams they play are playoff contending teams. Lastly, the Wild’s winning streak is in jeopardy as they embark on a three-game road trip Thursday night.