In other words, show up tonight against a very good San Jose Sharks team.
Preview: The Wild, after winning three in a row, is 0-1-1 in two games since the holiday break. The Sharks had won four in a row before the Los Angeles Kings shellacked them 4-0 on Monday. On Nov. 2, in a game that the Wild was outshot 36-16, Niklas Backstrom shut out the Sharks in St. Paul 1-0. That stopped a five-game losing streak to San Jose. The Wild is 3-10-3 in its past 16 games against the Sharks (2-5-2 at home).
Players to watch: C Logan Couture leads all NHL rookies and the Sharks with 18 goals (five on the power play). He's tied for the rookie lead with 25 points. Stars Dany Heatley and Joe Thornton are tied for the team lead with 32 points. Thornton has 19 points in 23 games vs. the Wild. LW Ryane Clowe and C Joe Pavelski always play the Wild tough. Wild RW Cal Clutterbuck and D Brent Burns lead the Wild with 10 goals each. Burns is tied for second in the NHL among defensemen in goals and 15th in scoring (21 points).
Numbers: The Wild is 2-5-1 in its past eight at home (outscored 28-18). ... The Wild is 13-2-4 when scoring the game's first goal and 12-2-2 when it scores three or more goals. ...
Injuries: Sharks C Torrey Mitchell (lower body) is questionable.
Wild will go with the same lineup tonight against San Jose as the Columbus game, except for Niklas Backstrom in goal.
Preview: The Wild, after winning three in a row, is 0-1-1 in two games since the holiday break. The Sharks had won four in a row before the Los Angeles Kings shellacked them 4-0 on Monday. On Nov. 2, in a game that the Wild was outshot 36-16, Niklas Backstrom shut out the Sharks in St. Paul 1-0. That stopped a five-game losing streak to San Jose. The Wild is 3-10-3 in its past 16 games against the Sharks (2-5-2 at home).
Players to watch: C Logan Couture leads all NHL rookies and the Sharks with 18 goals (five on the power play). He's tied for the rookie lead with 25 points. Stars Dany Heatley and Joe Thornton are tied for the team lead with 32 points. Thornton has 19 points in 23 games vs. the Wild. LW Ryane Clowe and C Joe Pavelski always play the Wild tough. Wild RW Cal Clutterbuck and D Brent Burns lead the Wild with 10 goals each. Burns is tied for second in the NHL among defensemen in goals and 15th in scoring (21 points).
Numbers: The Wild is 2-5-1 in its past eight at home (outscored 28-18). ... The Wild is 13-2-4 when scoring the game's first goal and 12-2-2 when it scores three or more goals. ...
Injuries: Sharks C Torrey Mitchell (lower body) is questionable.
Wild will go with the same lineup tonight against San Jose as the Columbus game, except for Niklas Backstrom in goal.
