Sharks at Wild
The San Jose Sharks try to put together consecutive victories for the first time since the beginning of the month as they continue their five-game road trip against the Minnesota Wild on Saturday afternoon. San Jose dropped the first two games of its trek before erasing a two-goal, third-period deficit to escape Edmonton with a 4-3 shootout triumph over the Oilers on Wednesday. The Sharks now look for their first winning streak since opening March with victories over Nashville and Vancouver.
Minnesota will attempt to extend its season-high winning streak to five games. After topping Colorado at home on March 14, the Wild had a perfect three-game road trip as they defeated the Avalanche, Vancouver Canucks and Detroit Red Wings. Devin Setoguchi scored twice and Niklas Backstrom made 36 saves on Wednesday as Minnesota posted its first regulation victory in Detroit since Jan. 3, 2006.
TV: 2 p.m. ET, CSN California (San Jose), FSN North, FSN Wisconsin (Minnesota)
ABOUT THE SHARKS (13-10-6): Left wing Ryane Clowe has missed two games with a shoulder injury and is questionable for Saturday. Clowe has yet to score a goal this season but notched an assist in three of the last five games prior to his injury. Logan Couture registered his 12th career two-goal performance against Edmonton and defenseman Dan Boyle scored the decisive tally in the shootout. Captain Joe Thornton recorded his 777th career assist in the victory, giving him sole possession of 35th place on the all-time list. He had been tied for the spot with Jean Ratelle.
ABOUT THE WILD (17-10-2): Setoguchi has been an offensive force of late. He enters Saturday with a five-game point streak during which he has collected six goals and two assists. The veteran has posted two-goal performances in two of his last three contests and has notched at least one point in 10 of his last 11 games. Minnesota has gone 13-5-1 over its last 19 contests after beginning the season 4-5-1. Center Mike Rupp and defenseman Tom Gilbert each have missed two games with lower-body injuries.
OVERTIME
1. Minnesota has won three straight meetings with San Jose after losing three in a row.
2. The home team has captured seven of the last eight games in the all-time series.
3. San Jose concludes its road trip Monday in Anaheim, where it suffered a 5-3 loss in the second game of the trek this past Monday.
PREDICTION: Wild 3, Sharks 2