Stanzel’s Sports Takeout — BREAKING NEWS: 4-20-23.
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The Wolves and Wild are each home Friday and Sunday.
Wild’s Surprise Starting Goalie Falters in 7-3 Game 2 Loss
I said earlier this week that I’d give consideration to starting Marc-Andre Fleury in Game 2, because Filip Gustavsson must be exhausted from his franchise-record, double overtime Game 1 win. But I wouldn’t have brought myself to do it.
Dean Evason has a little more skin in the game than me, and a little more ice in his veins too. Deano went to the future Hall of Famer, and the Stars started quick, overwhelmed the Wild and Fleury often and went on to a 7-3 win to even the series 1-1. The Wild had never before allowed seven goals in a playoff game. Game 3 is Friday at 8:50 in St. Paul.
It’s very likely if the Wild makes a run, both goalies would have to play, and play well. But Gus was SO good in Game 1. Maybe he wasn’t feeling 100% - or even 90%. The two goals he gave up in Game 1, he’d like to have back. But a year after waiting a couple games too long to get the second goalie in, Evason may have gone to the bullpen a little early. You knew the Stars would elevate their game 20 percent in Game 2; Fleury hadn’t played in a week.
Now, the entire Wild team wasn’t any good. Dallas was always winning this game. But it’s not against the rules for your goalie to make a save that he shouldn’t.
He was tested early, as Roope Hintz scored on a shorthanded breakaway - his first of three goals including two breakaways - after Jared Spurgeon couldn’t hold the puck in the zone. Tyler Seguin, elevated to the Stars’ top power play unit with the injury to Joe Pavelski, made it 2-0 midway through, towards the end of a double minor to Jake Middleton. Replays showed it was his stick that hit the Stars player, but it was lifted up by another Star.
The Wild made it 2-1 late in the first on Oskar Sundqvist’s goal, but the Stars scored two quick goals in the opening 5:34 of the second period. The first came after a Jon Merrill penalty - the Stars went 3-for-6 on the power play last night and are 6-for-11 in the series.
Despite being down three, the Wild got within one after Marcus Johansson and Frederick Gaudreau scored 11 seconds apart midway through the second. But four minutes later, Fleury was beaten cleanly two times in 48 seconds for a 6-3 margin. Evason didn’t look like he even contemplated taking out Fleury, who dropped the puck on goal one and half-*ssed a pokecheck on goal two.
Seven players got 10-minute misconducts late - including four for the Wild, plus Ryan Suter - as the referees tried about 40 minutes too late to get things under control. Hintz became the first NHL player with an even strength, power play and shorthanded goal in separate periods of a playoff game since some guy named Mario Lemeiux in 1996.
The Wild was going to lose this game anyways, but they’ve lost some control of the narrative. Deano will have to answer two days of questions about the goaltending decision, which honestly may be a blessing and it’ll take away from the trainwreck of a blueline, and complete no show from a veteran like Mats Zuccarello. The team’s trade deadlines are playing unbelievable, but the original Wild has not been good. Gustav Nyquist, in his fifth game since missing three months with an arm injury, has been the Wild’s best forward hands down. If I were Evason I’d strongly consider elevating Nyquist opposite Kirill Kaprizov, whose BF Zuccarello has been a no show for six weeks, especially the two playoffs games once Kaprizov came back from injury.
Fleury wasn’t the only lineup change, as No. 1 center and Game 1 hero Ryan Hartman couldn’t go with a lower body injury. That elevated Sam Steel, who scored in Game 1 but isn’t a NO. 1 center, to the top line, and the Wild had to play Matt Boldy out of position at center. Speaking of centers, does Joel Eriksson Ek return for Game 3? Probably.
You’d have to think it’s Gus’ net for the rest of the series. But…
Wolves Uncompetitive in First Half, Down 2-0
It’s hard to imagine the first three halves of the playoffs going any worse for the Timberwolves. While the penultimate 12 minutes of last night’s Game 2 in Denver got better, Minnesota still heads home down 2-0 after a 122-113 loss at Ball Arena. Game 3 set for Friday night at Target Center. The Wolves, who got a playoff franchise-record 41 points from Anthony Edwards, have never been swept in a best-of-seven series.
The Wolves weren’t competitive for a single moment in the first half. The Nuggets outscored the them 13-0 on the fast break in the first quarter. The Wolves had six field goals and allowed 12. The Wolves didn’t score a field goal in the last five minutes of the opening quarter. Their alleged star, Karl Anthony Towns, had one shot, two fouls and four turnovers at halftime, and showed his typical frustration.
The lead got as high as 21 and was 15 at halftime, and that’s when Minnesota’s actual star, Edwards, took over. The Wolves erupted with a 19-4 run early in the third, including 14 straight points. Minnesota outscored the Nuggets 40-23 in the third and took a two-point lead into the fourth.
But as happens when you have to rally from 21 down, the Wolves couldn’t hold off a better team late, especially with KAT and Rudy Gobert each having five fouls. Gobert picked up an ill advised technical foul midway through the fourth after objecting to a foul. KAT went silent again (other than complaining about fouls), and ANT couldn’t do it all alone. The Wolves have played four games since the regular season has ended - KAT has gone scoreless in the fourth twice.
This team is repeatedly not ready for big games. Their stars aren’t their best players in big spots. As the old adage goes, you can’t trade 12 players, but you can fire one coach, and in my opinion that should happen. It’ll be an interesting summer too, as Tim Connelly, first-year head of basketball ops who traded for Gobert, could suddenly be a candidate for the same job with his hometown Washington Wizards.
Twins Blow Out BoSox
Runs come in bunches or not at all for the Twins, who scored three in the first, four in the third and another three in the sixth of a 10-4 win over the Red Sox at Fenway Park last night.
The Twins roughed up Corey Kluber, who’s 0-4 with a 8.50 ERA and got booed by the home crowd. Minnesota scored 10 times despite Carlos Correa going 0-for-5. Edouard Julien hit a homer in the first inning, while Joey Gallo returned to the lineup with a three-run homer. Trevor Larnach also hit a three-run shot.
Joe Ryan does nothing but win, improving to 4-0 with a 3.24 ERA. Remarkably, most of the Twins’ high offensive outputs this season have come with Ryan on the mound. He allowed three runs in six innings.
Kenta Maeda is back on the mound after missing his last start in a 12:30 matinee today at Fenway.
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