Game preview: Boston Bruins @ Minnesota Wild | Nov. 25, 2009

Winners of three-straight, the Boston Bruins conclude their four-game road trip tonight as they square-off against former teammates in Chuck Kobasew and Sherriff Shane Hnidy, and the Minnesota Wild.

For this East vs. West game preview, founder of the HockeyWilderness.com Nathan Eide, and writer Bryan Reynolds of HockeyWilderness.com and  ProHockeyNews.com have set aside some time to break down the opposing Wild. Be sure to follow them on Twitter, as they are posting some fantastic stuff about the Wild around the clock.

Action begins at 8pm EST at the Xcel Energy Center, St. Paul, Minnesota.

Home Team: Minnesota Wild (8-12-2, 18 Points, Last in Northwest Division, 14th in Western Conference, 5-3-2 last 10)

Who’s Hot: (BR)Honestly, no one. Well, maybe Niklas Backstrom? Backstrom has often been the only thing between the Wild and complete embarrassment. While the team has had a multitude of defensive break downs, Backstrom has stood his ground and continues to prove he is one of the best in the business.

The Wild have no offensive stars. The scoring seems to be by committee, and no one is willing or able to step up and be the go-to guy. Captain Mikko Koivu leads the team with 21 points (6 G, 15A), putting him at 37th in the league. Left wing Andrew Brunette leads the team with 8 goals.

(NE) Owen Nolan scored twice against the Islanders and is second on the Wild in goals scored this season. Even at 37, the man from Belfast is still a force with which to be reckoned. Andrew Brunette has a three game point streak and has six points (2g, 4a) in his last six games. Bruno leads the team in goals with eight. Mikko Koivu leads the Wild with 21 points in 22 games (6-15). The captain is looking to take more responsibility and has been taking more and more shots as the season progresses. Niklas Backstrom is 17-3-3 against the Eastern Conference dating back to the start of the 2007-2008 season. This season, he's only 8-9-2, but has a .909 save % and a 2.66 GAA

Who’s Not: (BR)If you follow the logic from above, the entire team is not hot. Being specific, however, this would fall squarely to Martin Havlat. Brought in to be the offensive stud, Havlat has just 8 points (2G, 6A), with just 3 points (1G, 2A) in the past month.

I would have included Brent Burns in this area, but since he was just diagnosed with a concussion, he is a non-factor at this point.

(NE) The Wild power play. Sure, they scored against the Islanders, but they were 0-21 at home prior to that goal by Mikko Koivu. Martin Havlat. Much has been stated about Havlat's shortcomings this season, and is uncertain for tonight's game with the Bruins, but even in the game, Havlat's eight points are vastly underperforming his contract and expectations.

What to Watch For: (BR) The Wild’s inability to put together a 60-minute effort. They have yet have a decisive win and are a team more likely to find a way to lose. The power play, while it has been effective at times, has been a momentum killer in recent games.

Watch for defensive miscues throughout the game, especially on the power play. This is also a team that is always looking for the next pass rather than taking a shot at the net, so watch for a highlight reel goal, even if it is the only one they score.

(NE) A close game. Of the Wild's nine home games this season, eight have been decided by one goal, and the Wild are 6-2-0 in them.

Who to Watch For: (BR)The Wild have shaken up their roster in recent days, due to both injury and personnel changes. They claimed center Andrew Ebbett off waivers from Chicago, and traded former fourth overall draft pick Benoit Pouliot to the Montreal Canadiens for Guillaume Latendresse. As mentioned above, defenseman Brent Burns has been diagnosed with a concussion, joining forwards Petr Sykora and Pierre-Marc Bouchard on the IR with the same injury. It will be interesting to see how the players can form chemistry with the revolving door on the roster.

The reason most Wild fans are still watching is to watch Cal Clutterbuck hit people. Clutterbuck has made his name as the pain in the rear that hits you hard and draws penalties. He is a prototypical agitator, and his mouth rarely stops. He also has a heck of a snap shot coming down the wing, and that should be respected. He is also not afraid to camp in front of the net and grind away in hopes of a dirty rebound goal.

(NE) Andrew Ebbett. Nobody really knows what to expect from the recent signee, but he's playing his first game in Iron Range Red, and as such, all eyes will be on him.

Shane Hnidy. Playing against his old team for the first time is always a storyline, and with Brent Burns going out with a concussion, The Sherriff will be asked to take on more minutes. How will he react facing the B's for the first time.

Cal Clutterbuck. The player opposition fans love to hate, Clutterbuck will hit anything that moves, say anything to get under the skin of opposing players and has picked up his offense.

Injury Report: (BR) Burns, Sykora, and Bouchard out with concussions (Bouchard has missed the entire season). Havlat has a "lower body injury", but Coach Richards sounded positive he would be back in the lineup against the Bruins. Havlat did miss the last game with the injury.

Home Team: Boston Bruins (11-8-4, 26 points, 3rd Northeast Division, 6th Eastern Conference, 3-1-1 last five)

Who's Hot: Patrice Bergeron has been nothing short of exceptional all season long for the B's. Bergy's 18 points leads the team by a five point margin, and his 61 shots ties Zdeno Chara for the top of the list. In the last three road games, Bergeron has a scoring line of 1-4-5 (plus the lone shootout winning-goal against Atlanta) a plus-2 rating, and 10 shots on net, while winning nearly 60-percent in the face-off circle.

Tuukka Rask has been solid between the pipes for the Bruins while Tim Thomas nurses his "minor undisclosed injury".  Rask has posted a 3-1-0 record, while Thomas has been riding the pine, with a .912 save-percentage and 2.50 goals-against average. Even if Thomas is ready-to-go, I'm sure it would be hard for Coach Julien to sit the hot handed Rask.

Who's Not: After scoring six of his nine points on the season within the first nine games of this 2009-10 campaign, Steve Begin has been held pointless in his last six contests with a minus-3 rating. Although he has been stellar on the penalty-kill units, his offensive production has definitely tailed off. Begin has been solid all season long, so I don't expect the scoreless streak to last too much longer.

Also Matt Hunwick, who signed to a two-year contract this past off-season was expected to be an offensive weapon on the blue-line, has just one assist and two shots on goal in his last six games. I've been crossing my fingers for the night that we see the 24-year-old Hunwick as a healthy scratch, so he can watch Johnny Boychuk play his position for the press box.

What To Watch For: The Bruins power-play has been much improved this past week. After being dead-last in the league with the man-advantage, Boston has gone 3-for-9 in their last three games on the power-play. In their three games prior: 1-for-11. With their No.1 center back in action on the PP1 unit, it's just a matter of time before Marc Savard starts lighting the lamp with the man-up.

Who To Watch For: Blake Wheeler has two goals in his last five games and is definitely on the verge of breaking-out. The 23-year-old has been playing with the fire of a 40 goal scorer and it's just a matter of time before he starts scoring in bunches. With the way he has been crashing the net and digging for loose pucks, keep close tabs on No.26 in this one.

Line Combinations:

Marco Sturm—Marc Savard—Byron Bitz
Milan Lucic—Patrice Bergeron—Mark Recchi
Blake Wheeler—David Krejci—Michael Ryder
Shawn Thornton—Steve Begin—Daniel Paille/Vladimir Sobotka

Zdeno Chara—Derek Morris
Andrew Ference—Dennis Wideman
Matt Hunwick—Mark Stuart

Tuukka Rask—Tim Thomas

RELATED ARTICLE:

• Bruins find their stride on the road

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