Game Forty-Two: Wild 6, Coyotes 3

The Minnesota Wild entered the second half of the season looking to distance themselves from what had gone wrong in the first half. Aside from some scary moments in the third period, they did just that, as they were able to score almost at will, defeating the Phoenix Coyotes 6-3 at the Xcel Energy Center.

The Wild got the scoring going early, jumping out to a quick 1-0 lead before the first minute had even expired, thanks to the return of Marc-Andre Bergeron and his monstrous slapshot. Owen Nolan put a puck home later in the period, giving the Wild a rare two goal first period. Meanwhile, the Wild was able to play more physically than Phoenix, and they spent much of the game keeping Phoenix from getting good shots.

That is, until the third period. After a quick goal by Mikko Koivu, giving the Wild a 4-1 lead, the team seemed to rest a bit on its heels, and suddenly found themselves involved in a 1-goal game. Thankfully, for Wild fans, Cal Clutterbuck was able to snag a breakaway and bury the shot, providing the insurance goal that the Wild craved.

Game pluses:
- Cal Clutterbuck. He was a physical presence all over the ice, notched an assist, and scored a very deserved goal in the third, to help solidify the Wild win. Clutterbuck may not be a big guy, but you couldn't tell that the way he played against Phoenix.
- Marc-Andre Bergeron. Maybe it's something about coming back from injury, but, like Owen Nolan, Bergeron returned to the team, barely practiced, and scored a big goal in his first game back. Heck, even fellow returner Derek Boogaard almost got a goal.
- Balanced scoring. The Wild did more than just score six even-strength goals. They did it with six different goal scorers. This distribution of offense is exactly what the team needs, with no real breakout offensive threats.

Game minuses:
- Officiating. There wasn't a penalty called until late in the second period. While some of the incidents that happened earlier could be brushed aside to let the teams skate, there were other times where the penalty was so glaringly obvious that something should have been called. Maybe the whistles were frozen.
- Third period collapse. While the Wild were able to pick themselves up off the ice, there was still no reason why a Phoenix team that had been outplayed all game suddenly found themselves within one goal of tying the game.
- Brent Burns. Maybe he was trying to do too much, but there were a few too many times where Burns dished the puck right to a Coyotes player, or where he got beat badly. He certainly didn't look like himself on the ice.

Next up: The Wild find stay at home to play against the Edmonton Oilers, who share a 21-18-3 record with the Wild. It will be the first meeting between the divisional opponents.