Since we last met the Minnesota Wild…
IN: Devin Setoguchi, Dany Heatley, Mike Lundin, Darroll Powe, Justin Falk, Nick Johnson (claimed off waivers from the Penguins). While blockbuster trades gave their offense a boost, the biggest change comes behind the bench: they’re off to a 8-4-3 start under Mike Yeo.
OUT: Brent Burns, Martin Havlat, Cam Barker, Andrew Brunette, Chuck Kobasew, Patrick O`Sullivan, Jose Theodore, James Sheppard
INJURED: Guillaume Latendresse (concussion), Clayton Stoner (hand), Greg Zanon (groin), Mike Lundin (back).
With Latendresse out, Johnson joins the top line, and Powe shifts to the 3rd.
Heatley – Koivu – Johnson
Setoguchi – Cullen – Bouchard
Powe – Brodziak – Clutterbuck
Staubitz – Peters – Gillies
Schultz – Zidlicky
Spurgeon – Scandella
Prosser – Falk
In Net: Harding has taken over for Backstrom of late, and will get the start again tonight.
Kings lineup: Penner is out with a hand injury, just when he starts generating good chances. Brad Richardson will take over for him on the second line. Moreau, Hunter, and Fraser are all still in. Good job, Colin.
It’s the 1000th game of Terry Murray’s career, and everyone is still angsting about goals. While the team has been generating some more chances lately, they’re still not burying enough. There are all these losses! AAAAAAAAGH!
It may be encouraging to realize that their collective shooting luck has been pretty bad at even strength (4.9%). That’s an absurdly low figure. Last season they shot 8.7% (league average was a bit over 9%). Basically, even for a Murray team, they haven’t gotten many breaks. I expect that to correct at some point. Let’s hope it starts tonight.
Or hire a shaman. That works too.