Watch CBS News
Jason Pominville scored for Minnesota in the second period off the back of Chicago goalie Corey Crawford's skate and the Wild beat the Blackhawks 4-2 on Friday night to even the Western Conference semifinal series at two games apiece.
in Game 3 of the Stanley Cup Playoffs, Keith Ballard helped the Minnesota Wild limit the Chicago Blackhawks, which is a big part of the game plan. "I think with their personal … there's more shots that become dangerous. They don't always have to be odd-man rushes or back-door plays or stuff like that – they've got a lot of skill in their lineup," Ballard said.
On Tuesday night's Game 3 of the Wild-versus-Blackhawks series, the Wild reported attendance was a record 19,416. So, Ruth and Greg asked: How does the Wild determine game attendance? "We get a report at the end of the night that tells us how many tickets were sold and that's the number, like every other sports team, we put out," said Wild spokesman Ryan Stanzel.
The Minnesota Wild are bracing for more aggression from the Chicago Blackhawks. Minnesota won a slower Game 3 to cut Chicago's lead in the series to 2-1. Game 4 is Friday, and the Blackhawks will be fired up to get their attack back on track.
History has a tendency to repeat itself. For the third playoff series in a row, the Minnesota Wild went into Game 3 at Xcel Energy Center looking for their first win, being down two games to none. And thanks to a pair of Finns, the Wild got that victory on home ice, defeating the Chicago Blackhawks 4-0. Chicago now leads the series two games to one with Game 4 on Friday night.
The Minnesota Wild have done a good job of putting the brakes on Chicago's high-flying offense through the first three games of the Western Conference semifinals. The Wild trail 2-1 in the series, but they have not allowed the Blackhawks to get more than 22 shots on net in a game yet. Now they get tough guy Matt Cooke back to help keep the defensive pressure going.
Erik Haula and Mikael Granlund scored goals less than 3 minutes apart early in the third period, and the Minnesota Wild recovered from a sluggish start for a 4-0 victory over the Chicago Blackhawks on Tuesday in Game 3 of the Western Conference semifinal series.
The Minnesota Wild are at a point where they are counting on the home ice carrying them. "That's the plan. We know in the first round we played pretty well here and we're excited to play here. But, you know, that doesn't guarantee much," said forward Zach Parise.
The Minnesota Wild have returned defenseman Keith Ballard to the lineup for Game 3 of their Western Conference semifinal against Chicago. Coach Mike Yeo confirmed the change after the pre-game skate Tuesday. Ballard replaced Nate Prosser on the third blue line pair.
The Minnesota Wild is in familiar territory Tuesday night as it hosts the Chicago Blackhawks at Xcel Energy Center in Game 3 of the Western Conference semifinals. The Wild trail Chicago 2-0 in the best-of-seven playoff series, but the good news for Wild fans as the team returns home is that they are 3-0 on home ice in the postseason so far.
The Minnesota Wild came back to the comfort of home, already trailing Chicago by two games in the Western Conference semifinals. They were in this position just two weeks ago, so there's obvious precedent for a rebound. But over that same time span, the Blackhawks are unbeaten.
Bryan Bickell had an open look on a break in the third period, and shot the puck off the crossbar. He then tried the other side of the ice, and that worked out quite well for him and the Chicago Blackhawks. Bickell had a goal and two assists, and the Blackhawks beat the Minnesota Wild 4-1 on Sunday to take a 2-0 lead in the Western Conference semifinals.
Center Andrew Shaw will miss Game 2 of the Chicago Blackhawks' playoff series against the Minnesota Wild due to a lower-body injury.
Chicago Blackhawks center Andrew Shaw is questionable for Game 2 of the Western Conference semifinals against the Minnesota Wild on Sunday because of a lower body injury. Coach Joel Quenneville said Saturday he doesn't expect Shaw to be out for an extended period.
It wasn't the first time the Chicago Blackhawks saw a spectacular goal from Patrick Kane. Yet, they were still amazed a day later. Kane scored twice in the third period on Friday night to lift the Blackhawks to a 5-2 victory over Minnesota. But it was his dash through the Wild zone on the tiebreaking goal that had his teammates still in awe Saturday.
