16Ws— Stanley on 7th Playoff Blog. Game 1 Vs. Blues.
Everyone please, relax.
It was just one game. It was just game one.
Good luck getting into the chiropractor today as the entire Wild fanbase will need an adjustment after doing sailor dives off the bandwagon and straight into the ditch. A buddy of mine from, you guessed it, Wisconsin made the following observation, “There’s no grit to this fan base.” Yes, we know. But there are plenty of tight sphincters, and nervous nellies.
To help you cope with the inevitable stress of the playoffs, we’re introducing 16Ws—The Stanley on 7th Playoff Blog. It’s a way too restrictive format, where after each playoff game we will make a series of observations, each starting with the letter “W.” Here goes the first one:
Who plays goalie in Game 2? One side says Fleury’s aggressive style is too much for our Scandinavian sensibilities. While we know he’s a playoff gamer, he slides around as much as that old grease track ride at Camp Snoopy. And while he makes the first save, he’s too often on the faceoff dot moments later. It’s hard on the heart. So, we switch to Talbot. Besides, Minnesota is the ultimate “one of us” state, and Talbot has been here longer. This side wants the quiet feet of the more predictable and robotic Talbot.
The other side says if we make changes now, it shows panic. This side believes we should double down on Flower. We played well 5 on 5, and you’re not going to win games when you don’t score. Last night wasn’t about goaltending.
We need more hate. We started tweeting the official Saint Louis hate list last night. We only made it as far as Brayden Schenn for his first period nuke of Dumba, and Perron who singlehandedly destroyed us with his tinted shield and weird facial hair. Who would the Blues have on their hate list for Minnesota after Game 1? Maybe Spurgeon for the “ankle incident?” Well, that’s not enough. The Wild win a hard and heavy series against the Blues. Last night’s game showed us clearly the Blues don’t want to play that way. All the more reason we should. It’s time for the 7th Street Savages to show up.
Why doesn’t someone tell Fiala he can shave? We know he’s just trying to be one of the playoff guys, but we can tell he’s getting itchy. Besides in a world of playoff porcupines, Kevin is a dolphin. Ken dolls don’t come with razors. Just shave, be beautiful, and fill the net.
Where is Goose? You want to talk about panicking, how about not playing the dude who is +10000000000000 just because it’s playoffs. For the Wild to score we’re going to need to take some chances, and activate the defense. Old #47 is more than comfortable dipping all the way down behind the opponent’s net to shake things up. Oh, look he’s +10000000000001 now.
Who is going to do the Let’s! Play! Hockey! chant? I don’t know why I even care, but can’t we please just once have offensive linemen shot-gunning beer out of walleye gills. Or Brock Lesnar screaming like it’s a WWE promo? Heck, I’d settle for Justin Jefferson doing the gritty while he gets the Xcel pumping. And, no, I’m not above calling P.J. Fleck back in.
Was Moose 100%? He didn’t have a hit until late in the game. He didn’t seem to be the aggressor all night. Wonder if he’s feeling okay?
We don’t need kids at playoff games. As fans we need to do our part. That means when it’s playoffs, it’s serious. If you’ve brought someone to a game that either has to plug their ears or leave before the end of the game—you’ve made a mistake. Bring your brother, your dad, your wife, your favorite teacher. Don’t bring a kid. The playoffs are an 18+ deal. At least high school age, please.
Nope.
We must control our emotions. The Wild had a little bit too much Odie from Garfield in our game last night. A little too much sophomore at prom. The Wild were a bit spazzy. We pulled some hair. Two signature moments where the Blues showed us exactly what the composure of a Cup champion look like where when Vladamir Tarasenko baited Greenway into a penalty, only to laugh at him for taking the bait. And that delayed penalty at the end of the game where the Blues were content to just pass the puck and waste a few minutes of clock. That was like being pecked to death by a duck.
We need to make this goalie uncomfortable. Husso said he was nervous, and that the building was loud. He’s young, that was his first playoff start, and he was waiting for the Zamboni to get off so he could be first out at pregame skate. People will say that you can’t shake a steady Finn like Husso, but I disagree. If he is playing as solid as he was last game, we’re going to need to bump him and talk and scrum, and take the extra whack.
We need to be better as fans. All it took was one loss for group texts across the State of Hockey to be tearing letters off sweaters, second guessing, and essentially yelling “SHOOT!” every time the Wild had the puck. It’s not the ’21-22 Minnesota Wild Hockey Team’s problem this entire state has sports PTSD. We need to get over ourselves, and earn our way back into the fox hole. We need to find that grit.
We need to trust this team. Go ahead and watch the postgame video of Coach Evanson, Flower, Fiala and Foligno. They sure don’t look like they’re worried. As Evanson put it, “history shows us this won’t bother us.” The Wild looked like they had the answers to the test after the game, saying things like “history’s history,” and “it means nothing” even after being badgered by reporters about their lopsided record against the Blues. But maybe Fleury had the best, and most Flower, line of all time, when he said, “come back with a smile.” COME BACK WITH A SMILE. Yes, let’s do that. Or maybe a shit eating grin.
