Dan Wallace: Dumba Set The Tone, Hartman With The Winner!

That was a hell of a clean hi. Maybe an interference minor.

And not surprised Domi jumped a guy being restrained, he learned it from the best.

That was a hell of a clean hi. Maybe an interference minor.

And not surprised Domi jumped a guy being restrained, he learned it from the best.
- jmatchett383

Yeah it was a bit late but not sure it was "dirty" per se.

Just an unfortunate result for pavelski.

No doubt Wild have the recipe to beat Dallas! Especially Robertson. After Steel blocked his shot and Foligno knocked him on his behind by the bench, he was clearly not as aggressive. Stay on the body boys!

Gus was spectacular and so was Jake. I get the feeling the Wild will be using both goalies in the playoffs.

Gus was spectacular and so was Jake. I get the feeling the Wild will be using both goalies in the playoffs.
- Minnyhock

They were both very good. While Dallas carried most of the play, I feel the Wild had the better looks.
When you think about it, outside of 9 seconds, Gus was pretty much perfect.

Seems that even absent 3 key players that everyone stepped up. I was very skeptical of Faber being placed in the lineup but was pleasantly surprised to see how well he handled his 3rd career as well as first Stanley cup playoff game.

Guess I can no longer doubt Evason.

As a long time opponent of Matt Dumba, I have to say he’s really pulled himself together this season since being benched. He’s played fairly well and last night was no exception. Granted his hit was clearly late but I did not see it as dirty or intent to injure. Just an unfortunate circumstance of how the hit was received.

And kudos to Sam Steel. I still don’t think he’s a top 6 center, but kid is a hell of a gritty player.

All in all the Wild got some puck luck last night and obviously capitalized on it, but they cannot rely on it to win this series. Aside from the fist period the Stars appeared to me as the early Victor. Hopefully the Wild can continue to disrupt the Stars zone entries and passing lanes.

Last but not least, I’m hoping Suter now has a target on his back for the rest of this series and hope to god the league is taking notice of his blatant dirty hits on Kaprisov.
I’m sure Deboer is pulling the strings but I’d really like to see some payback on Suter.

They were both very good. While Dallas carried most of the play, I feel the Wild had the better looks.
When you think about it, outside of 9 seconds, Gus was pretty much perfect.
- MNHawksfan[/quote]


Yeah it seemed like they lost every icing and PP d zone faceoff. That doesn’t seem to bother the Avs much but the Wild paid a price.

The weakest link now is Merrill. He’s had very noticeable regression this year with turnovers and bad icings. That Gaudreau penalty was after one of his turnovers. Maybe they will move Goligoski and him in and out of the lineup. Not ideal. Both should be 7th or 8th d men.

The Wild have to play physical and take away time and space without taking penalties to have success. Dallas is too good to allow them to freewheel it.

To be clear not a fan of either team , I hope they beat the crap out of each other but that was shoulder to shoulder all the way! Was it late? Maybe a tad bit but majority of the impact was head hitting ice after collision

Yeah it seemed like they lost every icing and PP d zone faceoff. That doesn’t seem to bother the Avs much but the Wild paid a price.

The weakest link now is Merrill. He’s had very noticeable regression this year with turnovers and bad icings. That Gaudreau penalty was after one of his turnovers. Maybe they will move Goligoski and him in and out of the lineup. Not ideal. Both should be 7th or 8th d men.

The Wild have to play physical and take away time and space without taking penalties to have success. Dallas is too good to allow them to freewheel it.
- Minnyhock

Couldn’t agree more with your take on Merrill. He’s a shell of his prime days and just looks overmatched every time he’s in a puck battle. He almost appears to panic if he’s handling the puck in his own zone. poop, Faber looked more like the veteran last night.

I don't believe the Dumba hit was dirty either. Now, was it a hit to rattle teeth a little bit....yes. I look at like I do with late hits on QBs in the NFL. I am ok with a close one in the 1st or early in the 2nd quarter....it makes that QB think "I need to get rid of the ball quickly". Same in hockey, players might not be able to wait out to make the right play that they want to, to avoid a big hit.

The Wild can't let their collective feet off the gas pedal now though. They need to continue the hard checks on Robertson, Johnston and Dadonov. I don't think those hits really bug guys like Hintz, Benn or Domi. As long as they keep everything legal and stay outta the penalty box.

But if Suter keeps it up with the constant crosschecks on Kaprizov (who was excellent in keeping his cool most of the game), retribution will come. I am hoping Reaves gets his mitts on Suter in game 3...especially if, somehow, the Wild also win game 2. I know Suter is still PO'd about how it ended in MN, so he is going to have the chip...I just hope it doesn't get KK to use his stick as a baseball bat on Suter's head eventually.

As for the talk on Merrill, I thought it was funny that he was the Gorg interview just before OT, when his time on ice had been cut down drastically. At least he was gracious in the interview. I wonder if Klingberg will be back for game 2 and Merill watches from the pressbox. If this series stays like this, doubt we will be seeing Walker or Rossi.