Games Sixty-three, Sixty-four, and Sixty-five

The Minnesota Wild entered San Jose looking to put the Canadian swing of their road trip and their lack of movement at the trade deadline behind them. What better team to try to rebuild focus against than the one of the best in the West? The Wild started the game rough, going down 3-0, but quick goals in the second put the Wild into a competitive spirit, and a dump-in by Marek Zidlicky took a weird bounce and squirted into the net, tying the game at 3. After a late San Jose power play was killed off, the Wild took the game into overtime, and, with 13.3 seconds remaining, Mikko Koivu was able to gather a pass from Brent Burns and drop the puck into the open net. Suddenly, Minnesota looked like they might have that fire they've been missing so long.

A mere two days later, the Wild were in Los Angeles, trying to keep themselves from getting swept by the Kings. Unfortunately for Minnesota, Niklas Backstrom was very shaky in net, Josh Harding gave up a goal on the first shot he faced, and the Wild just couldn't mount their second comeback in a row, as they fell 4-3 to the Kings. Los Angeles stifled the Wild passing game by simply being aggressive at their own blue line, and Minnesota just couldn't find an answer to that pressure.

Entering Anaheim, the Wild were looking at a 1-4 road trip, but were still only three points out of the eighth and final playoff spot. A win over the Ducks could really help their chances, and the team stepped up, securing the 3-2 victory. The Wild actually took a 3-1 lead late into the game until a late whistle allowed the Ducks to knock the puck from underneath Niklas Backstrom's pads, giving them a chance to get an equalizer.

Pluses:
- Dan Fritsche. He may not have scored any goals against San Jose, but he played a great game, and was able to provide energy to a floundering team.
- Kurtis Foster. Making his first start just shy of a year since breaking his femur, Foster played a solid game, and didn't make any glaring mistakes in the loss to Los Angeles.
- Stephane Veilleux. The Wild's preseason goal leader put two pucks into the net against the Ducks, and helped put the Wild one point away from another playoff spot.

Minuses:
- First period. The Wild have had problems with the first period all season, so they just decided to take one off completely. Unfortunately, they did so against the San Jose Sharks, and found themselves down 3-0 before they could really get their skates under them.
- Niklas Backstrom. The usually solid netminder was worse than shaky against the Los Angeles Kings, allowing two rare five-hole goals. Luckily for Wild fans, he was able to bounce back and play a strong game against Anaheim.
- Marek Zidlicky. A defenseman can jump into the offense once in awhile, for added effect and to provide a chance. When it leaves a spot open, or, even worse, when that defenseman can't keep the puck in the offensive zone more often than not, maybe they should be a little more stay-at-home. With Foster and John Scott being in the line-up, none of the Wild defense can afford to have any more lapses.

Next up: The Wild return home to face the San Jose Sharks, hoping to close out the season series 3-1. There couldn't be a better, and more dangerous, time to play the Sharks, who are embroiled in a long losing streak.