Minnesota Wild host Chicago Blackhawks at Xcel Energy Center – NHL Preview
The Chicago Blackhawks were defeated by Minnesota Wild in their last game, but the former is seeking revenge as they travel to play Wild again.
Blackhawks have already qualified for the National Hockey League (NHL) playoffs this season and Wild are already eliminated from the playoff contention. So, the result of the game will not affect the position of any team in the season, but it will certainly
satisfy egos of many players.
The matchup will take place on Thursday, April 05, 2012, at Xcel Energy Center, Saint Paul, Minnesota.
Here is a look at both teams.
Blackhawks
They are ranked at sixth spot in the Western Conference with 98 points after 80 games.
Last month, Blackhawks played 14 games and won 10 of them. However, the start to the month of April was not pleasing for them as they were defeated by Wild.
Wild scored twice in the first period while Blackhawks could only manage one goal. Both teams scored two goals each in the second period and Blackhawks scored the only goal of the final period to level the score and force the game to overtime, which also
went goalless and shootout was called.
In the shootout, Wild scored two times while Blackhawks could get only one scoring move and lost the game. The final score settled at 5-4.
Blackhawks’ right wing, Patrick Kane, said after the game:
"It was good to get one point at least. Sometimes those teams are tough to play, with some young guys trying to prove themselves, and you could see at the start they were going to play chippy and make some kind of statement."
Wild
They are ranked at 12th spot in the Western Conference with 79 points after 80 games.
In their last game, Wild got their three-game winning streak snapped after getting defeated against Nashville Predators.
Wild will play the last two games of the regular season on their home ice. After facing Blackhawks, they will play the final game of the season against the Phoenix Coyotes.
Predictions
Blackhawks will have an edge.
The sum of goals scored by both teams might stay under six.
If Wild win, the winning margin will be less than two goals.
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