MLB Front Page
NBA Front Page
NHL Front Page
NFL Front Page
The Minnesota Wild head to Toronto to face the Maple Leafs in the first of a four-game road trip.
The Wild (6-10-0) are coming off 3-2 victory over the Dallas Stars while the Maple Leafs (3-7-5) are coming off a 5-1 victory over the Detroit Red Wings. Both games were played Saturday.
The Series
This is the only meeting of the season between the two teams. Last season, the Wild defeated the Leafs 6-1 at the Xcel Energy Center. Pierre-Marc Bouchard led the Wild with two goals and Niklas Backstrom stopped 27 shots in the victory.
Injury Report
The Maple Leafs are without former Michigan Wolverine defenseman Mike Van Ryn (knee). He is out for the season following knee surgery. The Wild will not have forward Pierre-Marc Bouchard (concussion) and forward Petr Sykora (concussion) for the game.
Maple Leafs Player to Watch
Tomas Kaberle. The defenseman leads the Leafs with 18 points, two goals and 16 assists. He has two goals and 11 assists in the last seven games for the Leafs. It is the most points he has scored in the first 15 games of the season in his 11-year career.
Guaranteed Goal
Owen Nolan. The veteran forward led the Wild in goals last season, but has just two goals in 16 games this season. He played mostly on the fourth line so far this season, but because of Sykora’s injury he is expected to play on the second line with playmaker Martin Havlat and Eric Belanger.
Final Score Prediction
Wild 5, Maple Leafs 2. The Wild and Maple Leafs are two of the worst teams in the NHL in the standings this season, but are playing its best hockey to date. The Wild are 5-5 over the last 10 games and the Leafs are 3-3-4. The Wild should record its second road win of the season Tuesday in the Air Canada Centre.
