The disintegration of Sarah McLellan: After the All-Star break, the Wild are aiming for their fifth straight win, and a few of the bottom six forwards may be struggling to make the starting lineup.
For the fans: Throughout the game, the Wild will commemorate Black History Month. During the second intermission, young skaters from Mosaic Hockey Collective will engage in a shootout. On the concourse, that organization will be joined by DinoMights, Minnesota Hockey, BIPOC Play it Forward, Building A Better You, Black School Scholars Matter, and Par365. A part of the sales from the Black History Celebration jersey auction will go toward funding Minnesota Hockey’s Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion initiatives as well as the Minnesota Wild Foundation.
Opening bell: After sweeping a two-game road trip, the Wild will have the opportunity to win five straight games on Saturday when they head back home. The Wild (25-23-5) have won four straight games for the third time, with their top line leading the way in this most recent run. Over their last three games, LW Kirill Kaprizov, C Joel Eriksson Ek, and RW Matt Boldy have combined for seven goals and ten assists. The Buffalo team they’ll play against is coming off a 4-0 loss to Florida, but the Sabres (23-26-4) defeated Los Angeles 7-0 earlier in the week.
Observe him: Jordan Greenway, a left-winger with the Sabres, has scored four goals in his last seven games this season. In that decisive victory over the Kings, the former Wild forward recorded his most productive performance of the year with two goals and an assist. Greenway has 12 goals and 9 assists in 58 games with the Sabres since the Wild traded him to Buffalo in March of last year for two draft selections.
Wild LW injuries Marcus Foligno, right lower body D Jared Spurgeon (hip/back) and Pat Maroon (back). Sabres Owen D (upper body), Power RW D Mattias Samuelsson (upper body) and Jack Quinn (lower body).
