3 Takeaways from the Wild’s 3-2 Win Over the Blackhawks – The Hockey Writers Minnesota Wild Latest News, Analysis & More

The Minnesota Wild celebrated their Native American Heritage Day by playing host to the Chicago Blackhawks on Friday, Nov. 29, the day after American Thanksgiving. The Wild were still bothered by the injury bug, as they were without Mats Zuccarello, Jonas Brodin, and Jakub Lauko. Marat Khusnutdinov was a game-time decision. He joined the team for warm-ups and made it onto the ice for the game. 

There were a few battles between the Foligno brothers throughout the game, as Nick played for the Blackhawks and Marcus for the Wild, but they kept it clean. The Wild forced a comeback and held onto it as they took the 3-2 win. In this article, we’ll take a look at how they were able to get the lead and keep it. We’ll start with the captain stepping up. 

Wild’s Captain Steps Up

On his birthday, Jared Spurgeon stepped up to get his first goal of the season and his second. He’s typically more of a behind-the-scenes player for the Wild, but against the Blackhawks, he found a way past Petr Mrazek and made it count for his first of the afternoon. Just under seven minutes later, Spurgeon took a shot on net that Mrazek couldn’t block, and it went in for the game-winner and his second of the afternoon. 

After missing most of last season, many wondered if Spurgeon would continue to play at a high level, but he’s proved he can do so this season. While he’s not scoring many points, he has six assists in 17 games and now two goals. He’s making a difference defensively with 28 blocked shots and 12 hits in those games. 

“He’s the captain for a reason; I didn’t get a chance to see his influence in the locker room. I think that you always know that the captain has respect from the team, but the respect that he has within the room, his leadership off the ice is vital even though you’re the captain and you’re not in, and you’re out, and he was really away from the team a lot. He still had it, but you can see the impact now of what he says in between periods what he talks about in the locker room after we leave or before we come in I think he does a really nice job of understanding in-game when the team needs a little bit of a push, he’s a vocal leader, and he backs it up with his play…” said head coach John Hynes in the postgame press conference of Spurgeon’s importance in the locker room.

He leads by example and did that against the Blackhawks, contributing twice offensively. Hopefully, this is just the start of production for their captain, as any bonus they can get offensively will help in their push to the postseason. 

Wild’s Top Players Making a Difference

The Wild’s Kirill Kaprizov continued doing what he’s done best this season: setting up his teammates. He’s a scoring machine, but he’s also been racking up assists like they’re goals, and he kept it up against the Blackhawks. Kaprizov saw an opportunity to take it down the ice and set up the perfect passing play with Marcus Johansson and Marco Rossi with Rossi scoring the goal.

Matt Boldy didn’t score a goal in the game, but he did tally an assist on Spurgeon’s goal and had the team lead of four shots on goal. He had thrown the puck towards the net on a backhand, which Spurgeon found the rebound on to tie the game. The goal may not have gone to him, but he made it happen by taking the shot. 

Joel Eriksson Ek got himself on the scoresheet in back-to-back games; he tallied an assist against the Buffalo Sabres and now against the Blackhawks. He helped on both of Spurgeon’s goals. On the first goal, Eriksson Ek did just like Boldy and tried to throw the puck to the net. Boldy caught it and took the shot that Spurgeon jumped on. 

The second goal started with Marcus Foligno kicking the puck to Eriksson Ek, who then threw it to Spurgeon. He had a clear shot at the net, took it, and the Wild went on to win the game. If the Wild can continue to mount this type of comeback, they can win games. 

Wild’s Hynes Willing to Make Changes

One of the reasons the Wild were able to mount a comeback was thanks to their coach, Hynes, and his willingness to make changes. Instead of keeping the same lineup that was getting close to results, but nothing was going in, he made changes. Even the top line wasn’t off-limits for Hynes as he swapped players out, and it worked. 

After putting Kaprizov with Johansson and Rossi, they scored. While Spurgeon’s defensive pairing remained the same and didn’t affect his goals, Eriksson Ek contributed two assists on the second line. Making the necessary changes when things are tough wins games. 

The other thing that helped the Wild, outside of making changes, was their mindset. They showed no signs of negativity when the Blackhawks scored their goals. They were clearly upset, but they didn’t let it overtake their mentality. Instead, they put their heads down and kept pushing until they found the back of the net and took the win. The Wild have now proven they are capable of comeback wins and getting others on the scoresheet as well. 

Wild Host Predators

The Wild secured two big points against the Blackhawks, and they’ll need to do it again when they take on the Predators in the second half of their home back-to-back. They’ll need to find a way to come out fast and try to get on the board first, so they don’t find themselves trailing in back-to-back games. However, they’ve proven to the fans and themselves that they can win in those scenarios, which is a huge confidence boost. 

Related: 4 Things the Minnesota Wild Are Thankful For This Year

They can build on this performance, learn from their mistakes, and stand strong against the Predators. The Predators will also be on the second half of a back-to-back but traveling while the Wild stay home. Hopefully, the Wild can string together another win and extend their streak to three straight.