Sharks at Wild
The Minnesota Wild have had plenty of time to recover from their whirlwind stretch of playing five contests in seven days. Presumably refreshed, the Wild open a season-high five-game homestand on Monday against a San Jose Sharks club that saw Timo Meier score five goals in its last four contests.
Minnesota, which is clinging to the final wild-card spot in the Western Conference, likely spent the weekend scoreboard watching after shutting out NHL-best Tampa Bay on Thursday and suffering a 6-2 setback to Florida the following night. "It's a challenge," Wild coach Bruce Boudreau told reporters. "But you either accept the challenge and embrace it, and say, 'I can now show what I'm really all about,' or you hide from it and the opinions go the other way." Meier has received rave reviews for his recent play, highlighted by his two-goal performance in San Jose's 3-2 overtime victory versus St. Louis on Saturday. "He keeps adding layers to his game," Sharks coach Peter DeBoer told reporters of the 22-year-old Meier. "... I thought he had good legs. He was one of the guys I thought was really going. I actually double-shifted him a few times to keep him going because I think he felt good."
TV: 8 p.m. ET, NBC Sports Network, Sportsnet One, Sportsnet East, Sportsnet Pacific
ABOUT THE SHARKS (41-19-8): Joe Thornton has one goal and three assists in his last four games to push his career point total to 1,467, tied with Hall of Famer Stan Mikita for 14th place in NHL history. The 39-year-old has picked up 41 points (12 goals, 29 assists) in 47 career contests versus Minnesota, with one goal coming in San Jose's 4-3 win on Nov. 6. Star defenseman Brent Burns notched a pair of assists in that game and has 18 points (five goals, 13 assists) against his former club.
ABOUT THE WILD (33-28-8): Victor Rask is ready to return to the lineup on Monday following a lower-body injury sustained on Feb. 12 against Philadelphia. "Good to be back with the boys skating. It has been longer than I thought," the 26-year-old Swede told reporters. "These guys have been taking good care of me, the trainers, so it has obviously (taken) a little longer than we thought." Zach Parise, who scored in the first encounter with San Jose this season, has recorded 20 points (nine goals, 11 assists) in 23 career meetings with the Sharks.
OVERTIME
1. San Jose C Logan Couture lifted his career point total to 17 (nine goals, eight assists) against Minnesota with two tallies in a 4-0 win on Dec. 18.
2. The Wild own a 9-2-1 in their last 12 home contests against the Sharks.
3. San Jose captain Joe Pavelski, who leads the team with 36 goals, has collected 33 points (17 goals, 16 assists) in 40 career matches with Minnesota.