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Ryan Hartman gets the last laugh on Jordan Binnington.

The St. Louis Blues and the Minnesota Wild have developed quite the personal rivalry this season, with that rivalry being centered around Minnesota Wild veteran forward Ryan Hartman and St. Louis Blues goaltender Jordan Binnington.

It wouldn’t be an understatement to suggest that there is some bad blood between the two men, especially after the National Hockey League’s Department of Player Safety suspended Binnington just last month for striking Hartman in the face with his blocker.

On Saturday night it would be Hartman’s turn to exact a measure of revenge on his rival, and he did so in spectacular fashion when he got the chance to mock Binnington after scoring a shorthanded goal on the Blues goaltender.

Hartman would create a turnover in the neutral zone which in turn cause Binnington to come charging out of his net in the hopes of stopping Hartman with a poke check. The crafty Wild veteran got to the puck first though and managed to avoid the contact from Binnington, giving him a clear path to the net. Hartman would not only bury the shorthanded goal as Binnington was forced to watch on, but he even wagged his finger in disapproval at the Blues goaltender after doing so.

To add insult to injury, Hartman would create another turnover in the neutral zone moments later which also resulted in another goal from the Wild.

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Minnesota Wild get terrible injury update

With the Stanley Cup Playoffs on deck, the Minnesota Wild will be needing all hands on deck if they’re to advance beyond the 2nd round of the annual tournament for the first time in 20 years. And while they got a huge piece of their lineup back today in the form of Kirill Kaprizov, they lost another. 

Center Joel Eriksson Ek has been listed as week to week by the team earlier today, a devastating blow with the postseason right around the corner. Additionally, gritty forward Oskar Sundqvist is also out, though he’s listed as day to day: 

He suffered the injury after he was struck by a slap shot from Pittsburgh Penguins forward Evgeni Malkin during last night’s 4-1 loss at PPG Paints Arena in Pittsburgh. 

So far this season, Eriksson Ek has tallied a career-best 38 assists and points (61) in 78 games played. 

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Young Wild fan goes off on Vegas goalie, gets shut down by her Dad

In case you missed it last night, the Minnesota Wild punched their ticket to the 2023 Stanley Cup Playoffs by earning a single point in a shootout loss to the Vegas Golden Knights.

And, while the Wild weren’t on the winning side of the game, there was plenty to cheer for if you’re a Wild fan. Especially a Wild fan of a certain age and with primo seats right behind the net.

Check out this young Wild fan absolutely GOING OFF on Vegas netminder Laurent Brossoit, then check out her Dad stepping in to cover her mouth when it’s obvious that she’s crossed the line.

Check it out:

Absolutely LOVE this moment, especially when the little girl looks up at her Dad and realizes what she said in front of him!

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Two NHL teams can clinch a playoff spot today, here’s how.

The Stanley Cup playoffs are right around the corner and as we draw closer and closer to the end of the 2022-23 regular season, more and more teams are starting to secure their spot in those very same playoffs.

On Monday, two teams in the National Hockey League will have the chance to officially punch their ticket into the 2023 Stanley Cup playoffs with both the Dallas Stars and the Minnesota Wild having the opportunity to lock themselves in for this season’s big tournament.

For the Stars, locking their spot in the playoffs will be relatively simple. All they have to do to officially advance tonight is pick up a win over their opponent, the Nashville Predators. Whether that win comes in regulation, overtime, or the shootout will make no difference, a win and the Stars will be in.

The other team that can secure their spot today is the Minnesota Wild, and in the case of the Wild there is an extra path to success. Like the Stars, the Wild will advance if they pick up a win in any fashion over their opponents tonight, the Las Vegas Golden Knights. However if they fail to do so they still have a way forward, thanks in large part to the aforementioned Dallas Stars.

Should the Wild fail to win but manage to force overtime, a single point combined with a win from the Stars over the Predators would also be enough to push them over the edge.

Will either of these teams advance tonight? Let us know your predictions in the comments.

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Wild confirm the worst for injured Mason Shaw on Monday.

The Minnesota Wild were very concerned over the weekend when forward Mason Shaw went down with what looked like a serious-looking injury, and unfortunately those concerns have now been realized.

On Monday, the Wild revealed that Shaw had torn the anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) in his right knee during Saturday night’s game between the Wild and the Las Vegas Golden Knights. Furthermore the Wild confirmed that Shaw would not be seen again this season, no surprise given the serious nature of his injury.

Shaw suffered the non-contact injury when he tried to quickly shift his momentum behind the Minnesota Wild net, only to catch an edge and send himself crashing awkwardly into the boards. His right leg appeared to take the worst of the blow at the time, and we now know that to definitely be the case given the injury update.

The Wild are playoff bound, so losing Shaw at this stage of the season will prove to be a big blow to the Wild’s bottom six.

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Mason Shaw suffers a gruesome looking injury on Saturday night.

It’s impossible not to feel bad for young Masow Shaw here.

On Saturday night, the 24 year old Minnesota Wild centerman suffered what at first glance appears to be a nasty looking knee injury in the first period of a game between the Wild and the Las Vegas Golden Knights. There was no real contact on the play and instead it was Shaw himself who, via his own forward momentum, propelled himself awkwardly into the boards.

Shaw appeared to catch an edge and lose his balance as he was backchecking on a play, resulting in his knee twisting awkwardly as he went into the boards. Considering the fact that Shaw has already dealt with 3 serious ACL injuries throughout his young career, the concern regarding his knee was immediate.

Shaw was unable to put any weight down on his injured leg, and was practically carried off the ice by his teammates.

Perhaps the most disturbing part of this incident was an angle from the Vegas feed that appears to indicate that Shaw is very aware of how bad things are. Shaw immediately hangs his head in resignation following the injury, already a bad sign, but if you watch closely he also nods towards the Wild bench at the end of this clip, as if to signal that he knows the situation is quite bad.

According to Wild insider Mike Russo, Shaw was unable to so much as walk down the runway, another bad sign.

Given Shaw’s injury history and the relatively close proximity of the Stanley Cup playoffs, you have to wonder if the Wild may have lost an important part of their bottom 6, perhaps even for the remainder of the season, at a very inopportune time.

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Minnesota Wild to be severely shorthanded vs. Avalanche

The Colorado Avalanche and Minnesota Wild are battling for supremacy in the NHL’s Central Division, and tonight’s matchup in the Rocky Mountains at Ball Arena is certainly of the important variety. 

But if the Wild are to gain a valuable two points in the standings, they’ll have to do so while even more shorthanded than they already are. Of course, they’re without the services of sniper forward Kirill Kaprizov, who continues to rehabilitate from his injury and doesn’t appear to have a solid timeline on a return; additionally, the newly acquired Gustav Nyquist continues rehabilitation of an injury of his own. 

Tonight, the Wild will be missing some serious sandpaper in their lineup owing to the absence of bruising forward Ryan Reaves thanks to an upper body injury, while forward Brandon Duhaime is battling an illness. But the good news is that a durable veteran could be taking shifts with Minnesota’s forward group. 

Defenseman Alex Goligoski is ready to make the leap to forward should the situation arise, according to head coach Dean Evason.

“A lot of different options for us, and we feel very comfortable,” coach Dean Evason said. “Talked to Goose this morning that he’s very comfortable playing forward. He’s excited about it if he gets the opportunity.”

Tonight’s projected lineup for the Wild is as follows: 

Forwards

Marcus Foligno-Ryan Hartman-Mats Zuccarello

Marcus Johansson-Joel Eriksson Ek-Matt Boldy

Sam Steel-Frederick Gaudreau-Oskar Sundqvist

Mason Shaw-Connor Dewar-Alex Goligoski

Defensemen

Jake Middleton-Jared Spurgeon

Jonas Brodin-Matt Dumba

Jon Merrill-John Klingberg

Goaltenders

Filip Gustavsson

Marc-Andre Fleury