NHL Game of the Week: Detroit Red Wings vs. Minnesota Wild

The Minnesota Wild will face off against the Detroit Red Wings on Thursday night. Minnesota is currently fifth in the league, and Detroit is sixth.

Both teams have a win percentage over 0.600. Detroit is hoping to continue its momentum and success to end the season strong and enter the playoffs for the first time since the 2014-15 season.

The Red Wings are coming off a game against Toronto on Wednesday night. Minnesota beat Toronto on Monday, winning 6-3, but is coming into this game off a 4-3 loss to the Canadiens.

Detroit has lost 5 of their 7 second back-to-back games this season, and have only won both once. They seem to struggle especially when there is travel between, and the trip from Toronto to Minneapolis-St. Paul is not insignificant.

Lucas Raymond and Alex DeBrincat lead the team in points, with 53 and 52, respectively. For the Wild, Kirill Kaprisov has 59 and is followed by Matt Boldy’s 51. New addition Quinn Hughes holds the third-most points on the Wild, notably collecting 21 points in his 19 games so far with Minnesota.

Minnesota has slowed down slightly in January, coming off a 10-5 December that helped maintain its top-three standing. Their goaltending is also cooling off slightly and settling into more sustainable numbers.

Jesper Wallstedt is still top 15 in the league in save percentage, and Filip Gustavsson is just outside of the top 20.

They both have above .900 Sv%, and GAA below 2.70. While these are still good numbers for a goalie tandem, they have crept down from the extraordinary stats at the beginning of the season. Additionally, Wallstedt has had a sub .900 Sv% in his past three games, all of which Minnesota lost.

John Gibson has emerged as the starter for the Red Wings, starting 30 of their 50 games so far. His stats have been average at best, but are still better than his partner Cam Talbot’s. Gibson has a .902 Sv% and 2.74 GAA, while Talbot has a .892 Sv% and a 2.95 GAA.

The Red Wings are in the middle of the league for both goals against and goals for, and their penalty kill is just one below average. Their power play helps them stand out and win games, currently positioned at sixth in the league.

Minnesota is in the top 15 for power play, goals against, and goals for. However, they have struggled a bit on the penalty kill with only 77.2%. Detroit's power play strength may help them exploit this weakness and could be a big difference in the game.

Last season, the Wild and Red Wings split their season series in two close games. Minnesota won the first matchup in overtime, 4-3, and Detroit took the second 3-2.

The Red Wings will look to continue their upward momentum and improve their performance on back-to-backs. The Wild will be hungry for this win, coming in off another loss, as they try to maintain their standing.

Jenny Karamus is a first-year majoring in broadcast journalism. To contact her, email jrk6308@psu.edu.