Montreal Canadiens seek consolation as they host Minnesota Wild – NHL Preview
Considering the recent performance, it would not come to anyone’s surprise to see Montreal Canadiens placed at the bottom of National Hockey League (NHL) Eastern Conference.
Their playoff hopes are crushed, but they still have the ability and opportunity to destroy the chances of other teams.
On the other hand, Minnesota Wild too are not looking very good. They still can reach the comfort zone in the Western Conference, but some failures from them coupled with triumphs of other teams have made this task difficult.
Both these teams are going to face each other on Thursday, March 1, 2012, at Bell Centre, Montreal, Quebec, Canada.
Let’s have a look at both of them.
Canadiens
They started the last month by losing two games in a row and when the month ended they were on a five-game losing streak.
The recent defeats came against New Jersey Devils (3-1), Dallas Stars (3-0), Washington Capitals (4-1), Florida Panthers (4-2) and Tampa Bay Lightning (2-1).
The scores clearly indicate that Canadiens are struggling to score goals and the mood of the players can be judged by the remarks of winger, Max Pacioretty. He said of the team’s failures:
"It's the worst feeling in the world. The mood is down, everyone's upset. It's definitely not fun. We've got to find a way to break out of this."
After playing 64 games, Canadiens have the conference-lowest 58 points.
Wild
Wild have maintained a relatively better record than Canadiens.
Last month, they underwent one of the most prominent skids by losing seven games in a row.
The recovery from the slump indeed allowed them to win some games, but it still could not prevent defeats.
In their last game, the Wild were stunned by Los Angeles Kings.
Kings got three goals in the first period and one in the second while the final period went goalless.
Wild, on the other hand, could not score even a single goal.
Their coach, Mike Yeo, said after the game:
"We had nothing offensively. There was too many things missing in our game to even have a sniff offensively. Puck support, battle level, going into hard areas, making plays, executing. It's kind of a long list."
Wild are placed at 12th spot in the Western Conference with 65 points after 63 games and are six points behind the eighth ranked Dallas Stars.
Predictions
Wild have a slight edge but they have to be strong on offence.
The sum of goals scored by both the teams might stay under six.
If Canadiens win, the winning margin will be less than two goals.
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