Busy Minnesota sports week

This past few days has been truly up and down for the Minnesota teams I follow. We saw a youngster get his first shot in the NHL and a veteran hang up his skates along with a basketball star looking a little more like his last year self just amongst a few of the headlines.

The Wild coming off a big road victory Monday in Calgary go to Vancouver the next night and fall just short. The Wild faced Vancouver last week at home and got beat 4-1 and with that came fans showing their displeasure as the boos rang throughout Excel Center. Tuesday the Wild did lose on the road to the same team but this one was a more respectable even though still a loss. The excitement for me was the start of rookie goalie Darcy Kuemper for the Wild. A young man’s first ever start in the NHL and it was on the road. I thought giving up only 2 goals was a very nice night for this rookie goaltender to this powerful Canucks team.

Wednesday former Wild player, Andrew Brunette announced he was retiring. He played 6 seasons for the Wild. He played 2001-2004 for the Wild left for Colorado for 3 years and then back to Minnesota. I will always remember the year the Wild’s playoff run in 2002. The Wild were down 3 games to 1 against Colorado and came back to win 4-3. Who will ever forget that Brunette scored the winning goal in game 7 against Avalanche goalie Patrick Roy? It was the last goal Roy ever gave up because he retired. What a year that was for the Wild.

Thursday the Wild hosted Colorado and lost in a shootout. I really thought when Mikko Koivu scored the goal ahead goal it was just a matter of playing defense and winning 3-2. The sad part as a minute later Colorado scored to tie it up. It seemed the Wild were so fired up then came bad luck watching the puck go off the Wild defensemen’s skate into the goal and tie the game. What a heartbreaker of a game.

I am in hopes of the first line staying in tack with Koivu, Zach Parise and Dany Heatley. I really like how they played Thursday night.

The Twins opened Training camp Wednesday and have a lot of new guys so it will be interesting to see how the year will go. The vets Mauer, Morneau and Josh Willingham are going to need a big offensive year. The pitching is a big question make. I think even a bigger question is who will play centerfield this season? I was shocked when Denard Span was traded to Washington and even more shocked when Ben Revere went next. I loved Revere and Span’s speed as it was such a joy to watch these guys track down balls where many players could not have come close. I wish both ex-Twins a lot of luck in the future and am thankful for what they did in the Twins outfield when they played.

The Timberwolves won Monday on the road and then Wednesday night lost at home to the Utah Jazz. It was the last game before the All Star break. The team has a losing record but I am psyched for the future to see what these men can do in the second half. I am not saying playoffs but I do believe this team will compete better.

The Wolves were down 11 with 2 minutes left and thanks to the hustle and no quit the team just about stole a game from the Jazz. Ricky Rubio played like a man possessed. The hustle was so impressive and to see him 1 rebound from his first career triple double is mighty impressive. Derrick Williams is playing much better as he grabbed 16 rebounds which is a new personal high. He had 23 points to go along. I love the play of Nikolai Pekovic with his steady play. I believe assuming the team stays healthy this second half will be much more enjoyable to watch. Go Wolves!

The Minnesota Gophers basketball team got a much needed win against border rival Wisconsin. The way the game started out I thought it was going to be a long night for the Maroon and Gold. It was nice to see even though the team started out slow it just did not quit. This is a huge win for not only the Big 10 standings but for a hopeful invite to the big dance.

I was shocked when I read it was Wisconsin’s first loss in 50 games when leading with 5 minutes to go in the game. That is a heck of a streak the Gophers ended.

We are going to need the seniors, Trevor Mbakwe and Rodney Williams to take the leadership in driving the team to the goal of March Madness. The team cannot be too over confident because now they go on the road to Iowa where it is never easy.

This Minnesota team had a top 10 ranking for a while and are now out of the top 25. It is not too late just need better consistency in scoring.

A win over Wisconsin and a loss to Iowa will be devastating so the team needs to come out and take command on the road. The team has good players and players who are capable of big things. It is February with March coming fast so come on Gophers show us you want big things.

This week had highlight goals, passes, dunks and low lights with home losses but still have no regrets of being a Minnesota fan. It seems every night of the week you can watch one of the teams. I have Minnesota sports fever.

Thanks for reading

Purplestick