Wild defense improves, but offense takes a holiday

Keeping the puck out of the net used to be the Wild's problem.

Now putting it in the net is giving them trouble.

The Wild have stopped letting in six and seven goals a game, plugging the hole that was their crease at the beginning of the season during an impressive turnaround that has them as one of the stingiest teams in the NHL lately.

But results still have been a mixed bag, with a lack of run support mitigating the defensive improvement.

"We're not scoring any goals," coach Dean Evason said. "That's the start of it. We have to simplify our game if we want to have success."

Offense wasn't always a challenge for the Wild.

They potted at least three goals in their first seven games, and 11 different players capitalized. The Wild started 0-3 and 1-3-1 because of the leak in their own end, the team's 5.40 goals-against average worst in the league and goaltenders Marc-Andre Fleury and Filip Gustavsson sporting grisly sub-.900 save percentages.

Since Oct. 25, the Wild boast the second-best goals-against average at a trim 1.70, and only twice in those 10 games have they surrendered more than two regulation goals.

Over his past seven starts, Fleury is 5-2 with a 1.70 goals-against average and .939 save percentage.

He picked up his first shutout with the Wild and 72nd overall, which is the most among active netminders, last Friday by blanking the Kraken 1-0. Fleury now has shut out 28 NHL franchises, which is tops in the league. As for Gustavsson, he has a 1.64 goals-against average and .947 save percentage in his past three appearances.

"It's not only us," Gustavsson said. "The defense core has stepped up a lot, too, and they don't give too many chances. But it's been a big difference how we play, too. Hopefully give the defensemen some confidence with us back there."

Both goalies have combined to stop 123 of 127 shots during the last week, getting tagged for just four regulation goals in four games. But the Wild won only twice.

After their one-goal victory at Seattle and then going into hibernation while San Jose rallied for a 3-2 shootout win on Sunday at Xcel Energy Center, the Wild have racked up 41 goals, which is bottom third in the NHL.

What's even more grim, though, is their production at 5-on-5: They're 29th with 22 tallies.

That means a chunk of their goals have been courtesy special teams, with the power play netting 12 and the penalty kill supplying three.

"Right now it feels like everybody wants to score, and everybody goes to the net hard," Joel Eriksson Ek said. "But sometimes there's so much people that it's hard for the puck to come through."

Although the Wild aren't near the top of the league in scoring chances and high-danger chances, their expected goals at 5-on-5 are 28, according to Natural Stat Trick, so there's been some disconnect.

Still, this is the issue that requires fixing now that there's been a crackdown on goals by the opposition.

"Any time you struggle offensively, what does everybody talk about?" Evason said. "Simplify your game, shoot the puck, get to the net, get dirty goals, pay the price, all that kind of stuff. When you're struggling to score goals, you don't go, 'Let's just pass east-west. Let's back pass. Let's spin-o-rama. Let's throw pucks across the blue line.'