2009-10 Game Seventeen: Wild 5, Maple Leafs 2

The way the season started, who could have expected that the Minnesota Wild would finish their game against the Toronto Maple Leafs by having won their fourth game in the last five? The Wild seems to be responding to the system coach Todd Richards has been trying to instill, and the positives are starting to roll their way. The team still has a long road ahead of it, but the positives are starting to show.

Of course, the Wild didn't make it as easy as the score showed, almost collapsing at the end of the game. With the score sitting at 4-2, the Wild took two quick penalties, and the Maple Leafs had an empty net, giving them, for all intents and purposes, a 6-on-3 power play. But leave it to a goaltender looking for his 100th win to keep the puck out of the net, and leave it to the oldest member of the team to get the puck to travel into the empty net to help secure the victory.

Game pluses:
- Mikko Koivu. Yes, Koivu had one of the late penalties (the always irritating delay of game call), but he also put together a three-point night behind a goal and two assists.
- Marek Zidlicky. Zidlicky has been quietly stepping up and improving his game all season, and he had another good one against the Leafs. He also notched a two-point game of his own.
- Niklas Backstrom. The tail end of the game, facing a 6-on-3, Backstrom did what he's done for his previous 99 wins, and he shut the door in cool, calm fashion. Any other goalie, and the Wild might have been looking at overtime.

Game minuses:
- Brent Burns. Burns keeps trying to do too much with the puck, even though he's acknowledged that simplifying his game makes him a better player. His puck mishandling almost lead to a Toronto short-handed goal.
- Third period. The Wild had a 4-1 lead, and they settled back into a bit of a trapping defense. Minnesota had trouble getting the puck out of their end of the ice, and even more trouble sustaining it.
- Late penalties. After being pinned in their zone most of the final 20 minutes, the Wild's penalties at the end of the game made things more interesting than they should have been. Backstrom kept the game firmly in Minnesota's grasp, but they shouldn't have been forced to kill off a 6-on-3 power play.

Next up: The Wild are undefeated this season against the Eastern Conference, and they hope to keep that going Thursday against the Tampa Bay Lightning.