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Wednesday, Jan. 3 8:00pm ET
Wild's unbeaten streak reaches seven games | ||
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BOX SCORE
ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) -- Playing in his home state for the first time in a decade, Atlanta Thrashers goalie Damian Rhodes gave his friends and family a top performance. Rhodes stopped 35 of 36 shots as the Thrashers earned a 1-1 tie with the Minnesota Wild, and snapped a two-game losing streak. The tie extended Minnesota's unbeaten streak to seven games. "I was a little extra nervous tonight," Rhodes said. "My brother got a suite for our family, and there were about 40 friends of mine here, so it was pretty special." Minnesota looked ready to ruin the homecoming early in the first period when Wild defenseman Curtis Leschyshyn scored his first goal of the season. It gave Minnesota the lead on the power play just 2:25 in. But Atlanta's Donald Audette tied it with a power-play goal just more than two minutes later. After that, it was a goalie battle, with Minnesota's Jamie McLennan and Rhodes stopping everything else. Minnesota outshot Atlanta 5-1 in overtime and 36-22 for the game, but the Thrashers held on. The Wild couldn't score despite 16 shots in the third period. "In the first two periods, they did a pretty good job of bottling us up," Minnesota assistant coach Mike Ramsey said. "In the third period we did a much better job of getting the puck deep in their end." The Wild's best opportunity for the go-ahead goal came in the late stages of the third. Chris Tamer was whistled for cross-checking with 2:21 remaining in regulation, giving Minnesota a late power play. Atlanta held the Wild to two shots during the advantage and the game went to overtime. "In the third we really tapered off and gave them a lot of chances, but Rhodes was solid," Thrashers coach Curt Fraser said. "Playing on the road, as beat up as we are, this is a good point for us." All the offensive action came very early. Leschyshyn set up on the blue line and sent a rising shot at the Atlanta net. The puck hit the inside of the right post and landed behind Rhodes. "The puck was past me before I saw it, but I glanced back just in time to see it hit the post," Rhodes said. "I was hoping it would hit and bounce out, but then I heard the horn go off. I thought that goal was kind of flukey, and I think I played much better after that." Audette answered 2:11 later with his 20th goal. Andrew Brunette took the puck deep into the right corner of the Minnesota zone and fired a pass across the front of the goal. Audette, at the left of the crease, snapped the puck in before McLennan could get into position. The teams matched each other in the second and early in the third before Atlanta faded in the final 10 minutes. "As the game wore on, we skated a little better and made better decisions with the puck," said Leschyshyn, who was held without a goal in his previous 98 games. "We made fewer turnovers and had some opportunities, but Rhodes made some great saves for them." Game notesMinnesota holds the league's longest current unbeaten streak. The Wild's last defeat was Dec. 14 at Washington. ... It is the sixth time in nine seasons that Audette has scored at least 20 goals. ... Minnesota defenseman Brad Bombardir is the team's captain for January. ... Atlanta right wing Jeff Odgers went to training camp with the Wild, but was claimed on waivers by the Thrashers in late September. He is pictured in both teams' media guides. |
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