Wild Game Day 2015-16 Stanley Cup Playoffs Round 1 Game 1
Series (0-0)
Wild Regular Season Record (38-33-11 87 pts) 5th Place Central Division. #8 Seed Western Conference Home Record (21-16-4) Road Record (17-17-7)
Dallas Stars Regular Season Record (50-23-9 109 pts) 1st Place Central Division, #1 Seed Western Conference Home Record (28-11-2) Road Record (22-12-7)
All-Time Record vs. Dallas Stars 23-37-1 @ Dallas 7-23-1
Regular Season Results 11/14 Wild 2 @ Stars 3 (OT) 11/28 Stars 4 @ Wild 3 (OT) 12/21 Stars 6 @ Wild 3 1/9 Wild 2 @ Stars 1 2/9 Stars 4 @ Wild 3
Site: American Airlines Center, Dallas, TX
Time: 8:30PM CT
TV: Fox Sports North (FSN) NBC Sports (NBCSN)
The most exciting two months of the year got under way last night with three round one games. The Wild begin their second season tonight in Dallas at 8:30.The numbers all favor the Stars, but this is the playoffs and strange things have happened before so nothing is certain.
The Wild will be without Zach Parise and Thomas Vanek, while Erik Haula will be a game time decision. So the offensively challenged Wild will have to rely on a tight checking defensive game plan. This may work to their advantage as they look to frustrate the high flying Stars. The Wild will look to counter off Dallas turnovers and must capitalize on their opportunities.
It is no secret that the Dallas goaltending is average at best and the defense is also an area of concern. Lindy Ruff, the Stars coach, is one of the very best coaches in the NHL. Ruff deserves a ton of credit for the record the Stars racked up and in my opinion, he deserves the Jack Adams.
It is the playoffs and the series will take on a life of it's own as they always seem to do. Seven game playoff series are much different than the regular season where schedules are unbalanced with back to backs and quirky travel. Injuries become more magnified and also present opportunities for surprise performances by unsung heros. The playoffs are where legends are born and many of those legends come from underdog stories.
The Wild are the biggest underdog in the 2016 Stanley Cup Playoffs, but they are also one of just seven teams that have been in the playoffs each of the last four seasons. Experience is a big factor come playoff time and the Wild will need to draw on that experience to help them overcome their recent rash injuries.
Devan Dubnyk is very capable of stealing a game or two which is a necessity if the Wild are going to win. The Wild defense is very mobile and will be called upon not only to thwart the Stars attack, but also lead the transition game as well. They will need to be opportune in the offensive zone and pick their spots to jump in on the offense to create scoring opportunities.
The Wild injuries have taken two veterans and the two biggest goal scoring threats out of the lineup. That is going to create opportunity for someone to step up. It is time for a changing of the guard in Minnesota as far as leadership is concerned. So with Parise and Vanek out Charlie Coyle, Nino Niederreiter, Mikael Granlund, and Jason Zucker need to emerge as the new face of the Wild offense. That means that they all need to elevate their compete level and bring it shift after shift, no let up.
John Torchetti has his work cut out for him. He has a golden opportunity to make a name for himself. The interim tag gives him the freedom to make every move he thinks is best. A playoff loss and he for sure is not retained, a playoff run and he most likely gets a contract.
Let's Go Wild! Let's Play Hockey!