The Minnesota Wild are one of the hottest teams in hockey, with a four game winning streak and sitting atop the Northwest Division, above, of all teams, the Edmonton Oilers. With 27 points, the Wild are also tied for the top of the overall standings in not just the conference, but the entire NHL.Minnesota recently closed out a five game road trip with three wins and two losses, and have now started a six game homestand, which they're taken the first two games for. Now, they'll play host to the tough Nashville Predators for the first of four games between the two teams this season.
Nashville took three of four between the two teams last season, it's lone loss coming at the Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul, but the teams are looking drastically different right now. New moving parts in Dany Heatley and Devin Setoguchi have been playing well for Minnesota, but the intensely strong goalie play of both Josh Harding and Niklas Backstrom have combined for a league-low, allowing 1.95 goals per game.
While the Wild are looking for a fifth straight win and sole possession of the top of the entire NHL standings, the Predators are looking to recover from one of their biggest losses this season, a 6-2 blowout at home to the aforementioned Oilers. The Predators fell down 3-0 after one period against Edmonton, and never recovered. That game closed out a five game homestand in which the Predators lost three games, and they'll look to have better luck on the road, starting at the Xcel Energy Center. They're starting a five game road trip on Wednesday.
The game is set for 8:00 p.m. eastern on Wednesday.