In his first home game as Minnesota Wild head coach, John Torchetti experienced his first defeat with the team.
It wasn’t in much doubt, either, as the New York Islanders beat Minnesota 4-1 to end the Wild’s winning streak at four games.
Special teams were a big problem for the Wild. The Islanders went 2-for-3 on the PP while Minnesota failed to connect on five opportunities. Going further, Frans Nielsen even added a shorthanded goal.
That’s a frustrating effort, something that wasn’t lost on Minnesota’s interim head coach.
Torchetti: "We had no pushback tonight." #mnwild
— Minnesota Wild (@mnwild) February 24, 2016
Even so, the locker room was uniformly down, so there’s still some holdover optimism.
Dumba: "Just a little bump on the road...that's not our game and we know that. We're going to be better in Philly." #mnwild
— Minnesota Wild (@mnwild) February 24, 2016
Minnesota’s attention remains on the East to finish the month. They face the Flyers on Thursday, then take on division leaders in the Capitals and Islanders during the weekend.