Games Sixty-eight and sixty-nine

The season is quickly becoming a lost cause for the Minnesota Wild, and that's their own fault. After suffering a shootout loss to the worst team in the West, Wild fans had to hope that playing against two teams also fighting for a playoff spot would give the Wild some life.

Unfortunately, the Wild decided that they wanted to keep playing the game only when down by a couple of goals. Dallas jumped out to a 2-0 lead on the Wild Saturday night, and skated away with a 3-2 OT win. Sure, the Wild got a point in the standings, but a win would have vaulted them into 7th place, where the loss dropped them to 10th. But Dallas was already ahead of Minnesota in the standings. Surely the Wild could do something against a team that they were trying to hold off from sneaking back into contention.

As it turns out, the Wild seemed to think that the St. Louis Blues were very similar to the San Jose Sharks, and spotted them three goals, only to try and mount a comeback and eventually fall 5-3, and drop further in the playoff chase. This all coming shortly after Wild GM Doug Risebrough called the players out, asking for stronger play, less complaining about the schedule, and a better team mindset. Of course, when this is coming from the person who hasn't really drawn in players to help support the young Wild core, those comments may have actually been seen as a negative, instead.

Game pluses:
- Andrew Brunette. It's recently been made clear that Brunette is skating on a damaged knee. And yet he still notched four points in the two games over the weekend, playing strongly.
- Cal Clutterbuck. Clutterbuck took multiple shots to the head in these two games, and still refused to pull back from his game, insisting on bouncing off of opposing players.
- Owen Nolan. Even when Nolan isn't scoring, he's creating problems and traffic in front of the net, and he continues to fight for the puck, no matter what the situation.

Game minuses:
- Giving away the lead. The Wild played with a porous defense in both games, and had a hard time putting shots on net, especially against St. Louis. While the team has put together some thrilling comebacks, they can't keep trying to play from behind.
- Penalties. The Wild spent far too much time in the penalty box, and sometimes for really bad calls. A prime example? Marek Zidlicky flipping the puck out for a delay of game while Cal Clutterbuck was serving a four-minute double minor, resulting in a long 5-on-3. The Blues scored, then scored again, and put the game just out of reach.
- Defense. Again, Marc-Andre Bergeron and Marek Zidlicky have trouble keeping the puck in the offensive zone. Kim Johnsson and Nick Schultz make ill-advised passes. John Scott is still adjusting somewhat to the NHL level. Martin Skoula tries to do too much on his own, and ends up out of position. For a defensive-minded team, the Wild have some of the least-consistent blue liners in the league.

Next up: The Wild try and keep their slim playoff hopes alive when the play the Colorado Avalanche at home Tuesday. Will St. Patrick's Day bring luck to Owen Nolan and the rest of the Wild?