Game Sixty-six: Wild 4, Sharks 5 (OT)

Playing the conference leaders for the second time in less than a week, for a while it looked as though the Minnesota Wild were experiencing deja vu all over again. A poor first period, a three-goal lead, and a fluky goal all helped make it feel as though the final game of the season series would be almost a carbon copy of the last game that the Wild had played against the San Jose Sharks.

This time, the fluky goal was scored by the Sharks, and credited to Joe Thornton, after a shot was blocked by Nick Schultz, bounced up over the head of Niklas Backstrom, and ended its journey in the back of the net. At the end of the rough first period, the Wild were staring at a two-goal deficit, and a huge mountain to climb. Things didn't get much better when Thornton scored his second goal of the game, giving the Sharks a three-goal cushion, but that's the point where the ice started tilting the opposite direction. Peter Olvecky fought hard to get his second NHL goal, giving the Wild a glimmer of hope that they could pull off the impossible twice in a week.

That hope was extended when Pierre-Marc Bouchard fired a shot from the circle that blew past Brian Boucher, closing the gap to one goal. The Sharks looked to put an end to the Wild's chances with a sharp angle goal, but that's when Owen Nolan turned on his game, and scored his 400th and 401st career goals, tying the score at 4-4, and giving the Wild one point. That was all they could muster, as the Sharks scored the game winner in overtime, but that single point keeps the Wild in the playoff hunt as they embark on a three game trip to Colorado, Dallas, and St. Louis.

Game pluses:
- Cal Clutterbuck. Clutterbuck notched an assist on the Olvecky goal, and also provided a team-record ten hits in the game. He was able to create offense simply by continuing to use his body as a bowling ball. Clutterbuck's going to be feeling all of those hits this summer, but right now, he's doing exactly what he needs to do to spark the team.
- Owen Nolan. The veteran scored both of his goals thanks to good puck awareness, and placing himself right where he needed to be. His two goals also kept the Wild from being the last team with a 20-goal scorer.
-Mikko Koivu. Making up for a miscue earlier in the game, Koivu helped complete the Wild's comeback, and almost put the pieces together again in overtime. Once again, as Koivu goes, so goes the Minnesota Wild.

Game minuses:
- Niklas Backstrom. Sure, the first San Jose goal was fluky, and the fourth Sharks goal was from an impossible angle, but Backstrom seems to be floundering a bit at this point in the season. He needs to tighten up if the Wild want a chance.
- Marc-Andre Bergeron. The Wild defenseman has a cannon of a shot, but has made too many defensive miscues. Too often, the player who kept the Wild from holding the offensive zone was wearing number 47 in red.
- Mikko Koivu. He gets credit for pulling it together, but San Jose's short-handed goal was partly because of a Bergeron mistake, and partly because Koivu wasn't backchecking as hard as he should have. He may have been near the end of a shift, but applying his speed earlier than he did may have stopped the goal, and changed the complexion of the game.

Next up: The Wild head to Denver to play against the Colorado Avalanche on Thursday night. Colorado is in the position to play spoilers, but the Wild could get a boost from taking three of four points from San Jose and their fellow passenger, Marian Gaborik.