Game Fifteen: Wild 3, Blue Jackets 2 (SO)

Saturday night, one of the teams was coming off of a game the previous evening, having landed in the host city at a little after one in the morning.

It was hard to tell that the Minnesota Wild were not the team in question. The Wild skated like they were fighting through molasses for most of the game, unable to put together any sort of flow, unlike the display they put on against Phoenix two nights earlier. The Blue Jackets, coming off of a big 6-1 victory over Buffalo the night before, kept pace with the Wild all night long.

There were some offensive flurries, but they were few and far between. The first period didn't see any sustained pressure until the end, as Benoit Pouliot scored a power play goal, and Kristian Husselius answered, bringing the period to a close at 1-1. After a scoreless second, the Wild got a goal from Eric Reitz (his first ever), but after a bad turnover from James Sheppard, Rick Nash scored to once again tie the game. Just as it did against Tampa Bay earlier this season, the game ended up falling to the shootout.

In the shootout, Niklas Backstrom stopped two Columbus skaters, with Nash prepared to come down the ice. Meanwhile, shooting second, Marek Zidlicky scored, and to keep Nash from getting his opportunity, Antti Miettinen, the Wild's previous shootout hero, slammed a shot past Steve Mason, as the Wild skated away with the 3-2 victory.

Game pluses:
- Cal Clutterbuck. Once again, the kid proved that he was willing to throw his body around the ice, and once again, he led the Wild in hits.
- Antti Miettinen. A goal in regulation would have been nice. Clinching the shootout? We'll take it.
- Brent Burns. Not only was the defenseman creating on the wing, but he showed class by scooping the puck out of the net for Eric Reitz after his first career NHL goal.

Game minuses:
- Legs. The Wild were the rested team, and yet they didn't show it. A speedy team needs to showcase that to do well.
- James Sheppard. Sheppard still hasn't calmed down offensively, and his miscue in the third period gave Rich Nash an easy goal.
- Shots. This goes along with the team's legs, but when they weren't skating, they also weren't getting quality shots. Both being missing will hurt them down the stretch.

Next up: Tomorrow night against the 11-4-2 Pittsburgh Penguins.