The Wild has two more games to go before a three-day holiday break, and goalie Alex Stalock will handle the first test against the Jets Saturday afternoon at Xcel Energy Center.
Wild tabs Alex Stalock to face Jets in matinee matchup at home
The Wild returns home for a brief two-game homestand starting Saturday vs. the Jets before the three-day holiday break.
December 21, 2019 at 6:15PM
No.1 Devan Dubnyk is expected to suit up Monday vs. the Flames.
Stalock wasn't feeling well Thursday in Arizona but was able to back up Dubnyk that night in Dubnyk's return to action after missing more than a month while his wife Jenn dealt with a medical situation.
"He feels better," coach Bruce Boudreau said of Stalock. "It's a quick turnaround for a guy that hasn't played in [30-plus] days to all of a sudden come back with no practice the day before to play again. So, we didn't think it was really prudent to put [Dubnyk] in today."
This two-game homestand has the chance to give the Wild some momentum going into the break.
It wrapped up a three-game road trip in Arizona with a thrilling 8-5 win over the Coyotes and totes a 12-game point streak on home ice into action against Winnipeg – a run that's just one game shy of tying the franchise record 13-game streak.
Not since the home opener has the Wild lost in regulation in St. Paul.
"You got two before the break and could conceivably if you're lucky and play great have 43 points going into the break," Boudreau said, "which is not too bad for a team that started out the way we started."
Projected lineup:
Zach Parise-Eric Staal-Mats Zuccarello
Ryan Donato-Luke Johnson-Kevin Fiala
Jordan Greenway-Nico Sturm-Luke Kunin
Marcus Foligno-Victor Rask-Ryan Hartman
Ryan Suter-Jared Spurgeon
Jonas Brodin-Carson Soucy
Brad Hunt-Matt Dumba
Alex Stalock
Key numbers:
6-1: Record for the Wild vs. the Jets in the last seven games at Xcel Energy Center.
46: Second-period goals by the Wild, which is the second-most in the NHL.
9: Points for center Eric Staal during a five-game point streak.
7: Points for defenseman Ryan Suter during his five-game point streak.
7: Hits for winger Marcus Foligno in Thursday's win over the Coyotes.
About the Jets:
Winnipeg is just three points ahead of the Wild, sitting in the first wild-card spot in the Western Conference. The Jets have dropped their last two games to go 5-4-1 in their last 10 games. Ten of their 20 wins have come on the road (10-6-1). Center Mark Scheifele's 16 goals and 36 points lead the team. In the previous matchup with the Wild this season, winger Patrik Laine scored twice and had two assists.
Widely known that Minnesota sports fans are among the most suffering in the nation, this holiday season has the chance to become special, given the recent success of the Vikings, Wolves, Lynx and Wild.
