The Minnesota Wild will try to win again on Saturday when they face the Nashville Predators in St. Paul, Minn. after their 3-2 victory against the Chicago Blackhawks on Friday. Captain Jared Spurgeon scored twice and Marco Rossi added a goal, helping Minnesota secure its second straight win. Now, they are aiming for a third win in a row.
“Straight lines and simple hockey, that works for us,” Spurgeon said.
The Predators will be looking to disrupt the Wild’s winning streak. Nashville also played on Friday, losing 3-2 in overtime to the Tampa Bay Lightning at home. Captain Roman Josi scored both goals for Nashville, which earned one point but has now lost two straight games in overtime.
Nashville coach Andrew Brunette said the team needs to improve offensively.
“Nobody’s really feeling it,” Brunette said. “If you look up and down our roster, we’re having a hard time scoring. So, nobody’s really feeling great about their game. And usually when you don’t feel good about your game, these kind of things happen. So, we have to try to find a way to feel a little better about our game.”
Spurgeon has been important for the Wild this season after missing six games in October while recovering from hip and back surgeries. His leadership and contributions have helped Minnesota’s performance.
“Just having him around, having his leadership presence, it’s a night-and-day different feel as a group of guys,” Wild defenseman Brock Faber said. “Obviously, he’s the leader of that. His off-ice characteristics and on-ice (contributions) are just helping us a whole lot.”
The Predators may choose to play Scott Wedgewood in goal instead of Juuse Saros on back-to-back nights. Saros made 25 saves on 28 shots on Friday. Wedgewood has a 1-2-1 record with a 3.69 goals-against average and an .878 save percentage in five games (four starts) this season. He needs one more win to reach 50 career wins.
Wedgewood has faced Minnesota five times in his career, posting a 1-1-2 record with a 2.94 GAA and a .900 save percentage. The Wild are likely to start Filip Gustavsson in goal. Gustavsson has a 10-4-3 record this season with a 2.06 GAA and a .929 save percentage. In five career games against Nashville, Gustavsson is 2-2-1 with a 3.39 GAA and an .882 save percentage.
Josi said the Predators are focused on improving their offense. Nashville has been outscored 11-6 in its last three games.
“It’s hard to win in this league when you score two goals a game, and we’re working on it,” Josi said. “We’re trying to find it. I think we’ve got a ton of talent in here that can put the puck in the net. … The only thing we can do is press down and keep working on it and keep trying. Keep going to the net, keep shooting the puck.”
