Wild Shutout Oilers 3-0, Again.

For the 2nd consecutive game, the Minnesota Wild shutout the Edmonton Oilers 3-0. Nicklas Backstrom recorded his 5th shutout of the season, turning aside 22 Oilers shots. The win puts the Wild at 102 points, a franchise record. The Wild set another record Thursday night, running their shutout streak to a consecutive 146:33, snapping the old mark of 132:52 (2003).
The Wild got on the board 6 minutes in, with Mark Parrish taking a great centering pass from Mikko Koivu. Coming straight from the bench, he walked down the slot and fired a wrist shot for a 1-0 Wild lead. Boogaard should get some credit, camping his enormous body in front, creating havoc on the Oiler goaltender.
In quite possibly one of the goofiest plays of the season, Keith Carney, known as a "stay-at-home" defensive specialist, breaks down the left side and beats Markkanen short side for a 2-0 Wild lead with just over a minute to play in the 1st. After intercepting a pass in the neutral zone, Carney races the other way. Boogaard almost collides with him, and jumps out of the way (if you haven't seen a replay, i would recommend it). After the goal, Carney is tripped and lays on the ice, almost seems out of breath, as teammates celebrate and laugh with the veteran defenseman.
In a game the Oilers seem they will not come back in, Marian Gaborik steps in and adds yet more insurance, taking a great pass from Wes Walz through the neutral zone. Gaborik takes two strides and is well ahead of the Oiler defenseman, makes a move that makes Markkanen looks foolish. Wild lead 3-0.
With the Wild win, they put pressure on Vancouver to win at home against Colorado, which they didn't. The Avalanche defeated the Canucks 3-1, keeping the divison hopes for the Wild alive.

One Man's View
Do you have any idea how it feels to hit 3 pipes, and be stuck at 19 goals on the season? I don't, but Pierre Marc-Bouchard does. Trying to become the 5th Wild player to do so, Bouchard missed 3 goals by a total of 3 inches. Regardless, Bouchard has had a phenomenal season, and won't need 20 goals to get praise from this guy. What else is there to say but another win against an Oiler team that has only won 1 game since the last February trade deadline? A win is a win, however.

Looking Ahead
Unless the Canucks go on a "losing streak" (i know it's hard to believe they can do that), it looks as though the Wild will be matched up with the Anaheim Ducks if they do not win the division. At this point, I don't care who the Wild face because it should be them afraid of us, not the other way around. The Wild are one of the hottest teams in the NHL at the best possible time of the season. Be afraid, be very afraid.