The team that pitched three shutouts in a row earlier this month is the same group that's given up 30 in seven games since.
That was the reality Wild coach Bruce Boudreau was trying to come to grips with after a 7-2 wakeup call was issued to his team Monday by the Jets at Bell MTS Place.
"It's almost impossible for me to think," Boudreau said.
More than understand why this switch flipped, the Wild has to come up with a solution.
And soon.
After a scheduled day off Tuesday and a practice Wednesday, the team hosts the upstart Golden Knights Thursday before a visit from the Blues Saturday – a week after St. Louis clipped the Wild 6-3.
"We gotta figure it out," defenseman Ryan Suter said. "In the past, we've always been able to keep it level-headed. You win a game, not a big deal. You lose a game, not a big deal. But you compete every night. You play every night, and we're getting away from that. We're showing up when we want to. Half of us show up. It's too hard, especially in our division. Teams are too good. We need everybody showing up every night."
Here's what else to watch for after the Wild's loss to the Jets.
- Defenseman Jared Spurgeon missed the game due to a groin strain, his first absence of the season.
"I don't know how serious it is," Boudreau said. "I hope it's not too serious."
- Look for No.1 Devan Dubnyk to return to the crease when the Wild resumes play Thursday.
Backup Alex Stalock certainly wasn't the problem against the Jets, but Boudreau didn't give Stalock a mercy pull. Instead, he had Stalock play the entire game.
"It was 4-2 after two," Boudreau said. "It wasn't really his fault that they were going in. Once it started in the third, (Dubnyk) had been sitting on the bench for two hours. I'm not going to put a guy in for the last 10 minutes when you know you're not going to win the game where he can pull a groin, pull a hamstring trying to make a save to help his teammates. Didn't make any sense for me."
- It was a rough night for defenseman Kyle Quincey.
Not only did Quincey rack up 16 minutes in penalties, but he was a team-worst minus-3.
"I'm not going to call out players in front of the media or anything, but we'll have to re-evaluate where we're at," Boudreau said when asked if he can keep playing Quincey.
Fourteen of those penalty minutes came after center Bryan Little's goal in the third period, as a scrum broke out between Quincey and winger Nikolaj Ehlers.
"He came up, and I gave him a shot and then he came at me, and I think the ref just had enough of me to tell you the truth," Quincey said. "I'm not sure why I got a 10. He definitely came at me, and I definitely took him down. But (defenseman Dustin Byfuglien) had me in a headlock. So at the end of the day, I think the ref didn't want it to get out of control and he didn't want me doing that."
