Game Nine: Wild 1, Canadiens 2

On the second night of back-to-backs, the Minnesota Wild found themselves on a huge number of power plays. Unfortunately for the Wild, they weren't able to convert any of the chances, even more frustrating after having spent over half of the second period with the advantage.

The scoring opened early, with Brent Burns taking a beautiful pass from James Sheppard, but the Wild weren't able to capitalize on any of their other chances. Josh Harding did his best to keep the team in the game, but offensive futility kept the Wild from putting any overly tough shots on Montreal's Carey Price.

Of course, one of the stories coming into the game was the showdown between Mikko Koivu for Minnesota, and his older brother Saku Koivu for Montreal. While both Koivus were buzzing with the puck, neither was able to turn the tide heavily for their team.

For the record, if Marian Gaborik had been on the ice, the game could have been very different. The Wild needed one more piece of offense, with a bit more precise of a shot, and Gaborik (and, to a lesser extent, Nolan) being injured took away the Wild's best options before the puck even dropped. Not saying that Gaby is the answer to what's currently plaguing the Wild, but the Canadiens play a style that is suited to his talents.

Game pluses:
- Brent Burns. Burns was able to play forward and defense, and was causing problems for the Canadiens. By the same token, he was only one skater.
- Josh Harding. After coming into the Dallas game in relief, Harding pulled together another strong showing, keeping his team in a game they could have lost by a lot more.
- Cal Clutterbuck. Once again, the kid used his body to make an impact. Need proof? Ask Roman Hamrlik.

Game minuses:
- Special teams. Going 0-for-10 on the power play hurt. Giving up a long 5-on-3 (questionable call or not) hurt even more. The Wild started the season amazing on the special teams. They need to get their groove back.
- Shooting. The Wild spent the game taking poor shots, or not shooting at all when they should. A prime example was the breakaway by Eric Belanger, who delayed too long before snapping a shot at Price.
- Dealing with speed. All three games that the Wild have lost this season have been to teams with a lot of speed. While the Wild is a fast team themselves, they seem to be unable to keep up with other teams' quickness.

Next up: The Wild begin a long road trip, not returning to the Xcel Energy Center until Nov. 13. The first game is Saturday, against the 4-4-0 Phoenix Coyotes.