Wild vs. Blackhawks 1/25/2011 Official GDT

Wild vs. Blackhawks post-game and more

Persistence is rewarded with a little luck as Wild earn 4-2 road victory over Chicago

Written by Derek Felska | 25 January 2011

Every year the President of the United States issues his State of the Union address around the last week of January. In essence it is sort of a parent-teacher conference for the nation. Depending on how you view the nation this can be a time for some anxiousness, ego-boosting or just a general lack of concern of any kind. Either way, the President is going to do his best to tell you where America stands, areas where its making progress and problems or concerns that need to be addressed. Normally, those are outlined in a rather general fashion and delivered in a way that even when most signs are not too promising there is at least something positive that can be gained from the struggle and that there is hope things will be better in the future. In professional sports its much the same way as leagues like the NHL, NBA and Major League Baseball have their season's somewhat split by an All Star break. The NHL is slightly different in the fact that the Olympics occasionally are the reason for this break in the regular season. For those players not invited to play in this game, its a chance to heal up, get some much needed rest and or family time. When these breaks occur its also time for the fans and members of the media to reflect on the '1st half' of the season and seriously consider the direction of the team. Each team does its very own "State of the Union", although mostly in private to evaluate the progress that has been made and attempt to look for solutions to the concerns and problems if they can be had. Instead of the President leading this reflection its a team's General Manager and other upper office staff; like Professional and Amateur Scouts, coaches, and sometimes even hired outside consultants. It does not matter if you're President Barack Obama or a high school Social Studies teacher like myself, you may have say some things that could be uncomfortable to hear or help add validity to what a nation / child may already be doing, but no matter what its likely to stir up some additional conversation. Or at least you hope it does.

Going back to the parent-teacher conference thing, what grade would you give the Wild? (please vote in our poll) If you had that chance to talk about what needs to be done for the team to qualify for the post-season what changes would you suggest? Or do you believe the team going in a different direction altogether? What do you think Wild General Manager Chuck Fletcher say about the team's direction once the All Star break begins after tonight's game against the Chicago Blackhawks? The last few games have offered a mixed picture to anyone looking for a clear path for the Wild. The team had managed to string together some great road wins, but then had some struggles as well. Minnesota played like a team that was desperate and hungry on Saturday night against San Jose in a 4-3 loss. Without question, San Jose who was at the time in a virtual tie with the Wild probably felt a little better after the win, and it is fitting that Minnesota plays another team close to the playoff picture edge in Chicago. The Blackhawks are still a very formidable team, but they look far less invincible than the squad that won the Stanley Cup last season. Will the Wild give Chuck Fletcher reason to believe this team is one that has the strength and perseverance to fight their way into the playoffs with a win tonight or will they make him wonder if the team is too fragile mentally, emotionally, physically and lacking the endurance to overcome the early season hole it dug for itself? (click on the link for the rest of the article)

Sometimes its better to be lucky than good, but the Wild were good enough to be lucky tonight is what I think what we witnessed tonight. There is a full post-game as well as a high school boys hockey report featuring South St. Paul and Bemidji. Enjoy!

pretty ugly game, and the Hawks should have had that third goal IMO. Backstrom did some nice acrobatics to bail us out a few times, and the defense to block a few shots in the crease was nice as well.

Clutterbuck impresses me on so many levels. he blocks a shot that clearly hurt like hell and gets up when he sees the puck still in the zone to try and help out. I hope he stays in a Wild uniform for a long time.

00Xtremeninja wrote:

Clutterbuck impresses me on so many levels. he blocks a shot that clearly hurt like hell and gets up when he sees the puck still in the zone to try and help out. I hope he stays in a Wild uniform for a long time.

This.


Clutter is just one of those guys who puts 110% on the ice at all times. I love it. I hope he sticks around for a long time too!

Havlat has been a machine for the past month. He totally deserved the All Star nod.

fuck yeah he does. glad to see him panning out for us after a bad year last year.