wild gameday

7 P.M. VS. St. Louis • Xcel Center • FSN, 100.3-FM

Preview: The Wild, which has lost five of seven overall and two in a row at home, is coming off a 1-0 shutout loss against Chicago — the second time Minnesota was blanked in three games. The Blues, coming off a penalty-free game and 13-7-1 on the road (third-best in the NHL), have won five in a row since an awfully-played game by the Wild on April 1.

Players to watch: Blues G Brian Elliott is coming off consecutive shutouts and has a shutout streak of 129 minutes, 31 seconds going. Since replacing injured Jaroslav Halak in Minnesota on April 1, he is 4-0 with a .960 save percentage and 1.07 goals-against average. Since acquiring D Jordan Leopold, the Blues are 5-0. Wild D Ryan Suter, who leads the NHL in ice time per game (27 minutes, 29 seconds), has logged 31-plus minutes in two consecutive games and more than 30 minutes six times this year.

Injuries: Wild C Matt Cullen (lower body), RW Dany Heatley (shoulder) and G Josh Harding (symptoms related to multiple sclerosis) are out. Halak (groin), RW T.J. Oshie (foot) and RW Jamie Langenbrunner (hip surgery) are out for the Blues. C Scott Nichol (lower body) is questionable.

MICHAEL RUSSO