Scouting the Enemy: Anaheim Ducks vs. Minnesota Wild
October 17, 2014; Anaheim, CA, USA; Minnesota Wild goalie Darcy Kuemper (35) blocks a shot against Anaheim Ducks left wing Matt Beleskey (39) during the second period at Honda Center. Mandatory Credit: Gary A. Vasquez-USA TODAY Sports
The Anaheim Ducks embark on a two-game road trip, starting with a visit to Minnesota to take on the Wild. The Ducks played the Wild in their home opener, completing a third period comeback during a 2-1 win in the fifth game of the season. The Wild are 14-9-1 and 10th in the Western Conference with 29 points in the standings, but they are 7-2-1 in their last 10 games and quietly gaining momentum. The Wild are on their third game of a four-game homestand, going 1-0-1 thus far. This is a strong defensive club: they have allowed the third fewest goals in the Western Conference and NHL (behind the Chicago Blackhawks and Nashville Predators).
The Wild have quickly become one of the stronger teams in the NHL and have many well-known players on their team. To get even more information on the Wild, I asked Dustin Nelson some questions regarding the team. Dustin is the editor at Gone Puck Wild, the site that covers the Minnesota Wild at the FanSided network. Here, he answers questions about the team’s talented young forward group, a potential jump in their scoring, their terrific young defense corps, and realistic expectations for this 2014-2015 season.
October 17, 2014; Anaheim, CA, USA; Anaheim Ducks goalie Frederik Andersen (31) blocks a shot as center Ryan Kesler (17) helps defend Minnesota Wild right wing Nino Niederreiter (22) during the first period at Honda Center. Mandatory Credit: Gary A. Vasquez-USA TODAY Sports
1. The Wild are well known for having great forwards, including Zach Parise, Mikko Koivu, and Thomas Vanek. However, the Wild have gotten a surprising amount of strong play and contributions from their younger forwards, including Nino Niederreiter (who leads the team with 11 goals), Jason Zucker (who has 10 goals himself), Mikael Granlund, and Charlie Coyle. How large on an impact has the emergence of this group of forwards had?
Dustin: It’s huge. A lot of the veteran leadership on the Wild has been struggling offensively. Vanek has a solid number of points, but only two goals. Koivu had a long dry spell. Jason Pominville just came out of a slump on a bit of a fluke goal. Without Niederreiter, Zucker, Coyle, and Granlund, the team wouldn’t be doing as well as they are (though none of them have been mind-blowing; they’ve just been solid and fairly consistent).
October 17, 2014; Anaheim, CA, USA; Anaheim Ducks goalie Frederik Andersen (31) defends the goal as defenseman Francois Beauchemin (23) and defenseman Ben Lovejoy (6) help defend against Minnesota Wild left wing Zach Parise (11) during the first period at Honda Center. Mandatory Credit: Gary A. Vasquez-USA TODAY Sports
2. The Wild are second in the league in shots on goal per game (33.2), but they are 20th in shooting percentage (8.29%) and 12th in goals per game (2.75). The power-play has converted just seven of 78 opportunities for an abysmal 8.97%, which is the second worst rate in the NHL. They have scored two goals or fewer in 12 of their 24 games this season and are just 3-8-1 in those games. With the belief that the Wild continue to generate shots on net at this rate, should the Wild expect a bump in their goal-scoring?
Dustin: Not everyone would agree with me, but I’d say that it’ll rise. To my mind (and from their possession numbers, where they are first in Fenwick close) they’re going to start getting things going their way more often. The power play has been a source of frustration. They had a five-minute PP last game against the Montreal Canadiens and didn’t get a shot. Though, that’s maybe not indicative of how it’s gone for them: lots of shots and no goals has been the MO. But that’s a huge step forward for the Wild. Not scoring a ton of goals isn’t new, but the number of shots they’re getting is. This has always been a pass-first team, and they’re starting to shoot the puck a lot more. It’ll come around. Their puck possession game has been great.
October 17, 2014; Anaheim, CA, USA; Anaheim Ducks goalie Frederik Andersen (31) blocks a shot against the Minnesota Wild during the third period at Honda Center. Mandatory Credit: Gary A. Vasquez-USA TODAY Sports
3. When it comes to defense in Minnesota, Ryan Suter is the first name that comes to mind. However, the Wild have solidified their core on the back-end, signing Jonas Brodin to a six-year, $25 million extension and Marco Scandella to a five-year, $20 million extension as well. The Brodin deal buys out his first two seasons of unrestricted free agency, while the Scandella extension buys out the first three. Those are both good, affordable deals for top-four caliber defensemen. How much of an impact do those two have on the Wild defense, which allows the fewest shots on goal per game in the NHL (25.5)?
Dustin: Coming from someone who is watching these guys play a lot, I think they’ve got one of the most underrated top four groups in the league. Jared Spurgeon, Scandella, and Brodin are all very young and are coming of age – I’m throwing Spurgeon into that group. They’re activating off the blue line more than in previous years, and it’s leading to more defense-generated scoring than I’ve seen from this team in many years. Having Suter there is probably a part of that. He’s obviously got a bit of a leader pedigree, and the young players are definitely benefiting from that. All-in-all, the D-group in Minnesota is really young and bodes well for the future of the team. Christian Folin, a rookie, should be on the third pairing against the Ducks and has looked good following a short stint in the AHL. The team also just sent Matt Dumba down to the AHL. He’s just 20 and has a ton of potential: he’s a first round draft pick who is just playing his first AHL games and should be back with the NHL Wild this season.
Jan 28, 2014; Anaheim, CA, USA; Minnesota Wild left wing Zach Parise (11) celebrates with Minnesota Wild defenseman Marco Scandella (6) and Minnesota Wild center Charlie Coyle (3) after scoring a goal against the Anaheim Ducks during the third period at the Honda Center. The Minnesota Wild defeated the Anaheim Ducks 4-2. Mandatory Credit: Kelvin Kuo-USA TODAY Sports
4. Last season, the Wild surprised many with their first-round upset over the Central Division-winning Colorado Avalanche. The Wild then validated that win by going toe-to-toe with the Chicago Blackhawks before losing in six games. The Wild are currently tenth in the Western Conference, but they are just one point out of a playoff spot and have two games in hand to the 8th place Winnipeg Jets. What are the realistic expectations for the Wild this season?
Dustin: I don’t think that the Wild are going to win the division. It was a tough division before the Jets started to look good and Nashville took over. I think that they’re one of the top teams and have a bit of the LA Kings in them, in the sense that they’re a possession-driving team who don’t allow a lot of goals against. They aren’t going to win the Central but should be able to stick in playoff contention. It’s a formula that – optimistically – we’ve seen work in the playoffs. Making the playoffs is definitely an expectation, and from there, I think fans and the management in Minnesota really believe it’s a new season and that they can hang with anyone if they’re healthy.
October 17, 2014; Anaheim, CA, USA; Anaheim Ducks center Andrew Cogliano (7) moves in to score a goal against Minnesota Wild goalie Darcy Kuemper (35) during the third period at Honda Center. Mandatory Credit: Gary A. Vasquez-USA TODAY Sports
As always, I’m really appreciate Dustin for taking his time to answer my questions! Check out Gone Puck Wild for Dustin and his staff’s coverage of the Wild, and continue to visit Pucks of a Feather for Ducks coverage! Get ready for the game between the Wild and Ducks at 5:00 p.m. PT.
Jason Byun is the editor for Pucks of a Feather. He can be found on Twitter. For more Anaheim Ducks coverage, follow Pucks of a Feather on Twitter or like us on Facebook.