Ex-Flame Craig Conroy had a break-out performance with his new team, the LA Kings, last night. He was instrumental in their come from behind victory (5-4) victory over the Avalanche. Playing on a line with Demitra and Frolov, Conroy had 3 assists and the GWG. Congratulations are in order! I was a big fan of Conroy while he was a Flame and wish him the best in his new surroundings. On a secondary note, the Avalanche lost for the second time this season after leading by 3 goals. Ouch. Apparently the usually rock-solid Rob Blake is struggling, while Joe Sakic is hardly producing big numbers. The impending return of sniper Milan Hejduk will no doubt inject some life into the struggling Avs. And at least they have the play of rookie Marek Svatos to celebrate (5 goals in 7 games).
And also...
What is going on with the Minnesota Wild? Another blow-out victory against a supposedly "superior" San Jose team last night (6-1). So far, the Wild have made fools of the Flames (6-3), Canucks (6-0) and the Sharks (6-1). All by that same 6 goal total and all in spite of being out-shot in the third period. In addition, Minnesota is near the top in the league in GF (27 - 5th), Powerplay (31.2% - 1st) AND Penalty Killing (95.5% - 1st). Impressive!
okay..so they possess some good talents and underrated players (White, Rolston, Walz, Bouchard, Kuba), but half the Wild roster is made up no-name and bubble type players. Kyle Wanvig? Matt Foy? Brent Burns? Jon Doe? (okay, I made that one up) How are they doing it?
Whatever their secret, be it good coaching, team chemistry, speed, luck, or sorcery, the Wild sure are looking good right now. However, I predict that this trend simply cannot continue for the entire season. Look for teams like San Jose and Calgary to turn things around come mid November, while the Wild's lack of depth eventually catches up to them...
