Niklas Backstrom
G FA
Thu 12/19/13 11:21 AM

Niklas Backstrom will get the nod for Minnesota on Thursday against Pittsburgh. The Wild placed Josh Harding on injured reserve Wednesday night, so that he can make a minor adjustment to his treatment protocol for multiple sclerosis. Backstrom is slated to start Sunday versus the New York Rangers as well, but he might not play the following night when Minnesota visits Philadelphia.

Niklas Backstrom
G FA
Fri 12/13/13 2:50 AM

Niklas Backstrom blocked 36 of 39 shots in Minnesota's 3-1 loss to San Jose Thursday evening. Backstrom played a solid game and the Sharks scored all of their goals on power-play. He lost his fourth consecutive game and he now has a 2-5-2 record with a 2.93 goals-against average and .900 save percentage. Look for Josh Harding to start the next game for the Wild.

Niklas Backstrom
G FA
Thu 12/12/13 4:07 PM

Niklas Backstrom will start Thursday for Minnesota versus San Jose. Josh Harding played well in Wednesday's loss to Anaheim, but the Wild will use Backstrom for the second game of their back-to-back situation. Backstrom has lost his last three outings.

Niklas Backstrom
G FA
Fri 12/6/13 10:35 PM

Niklas Backstrom could not bail out a fragile Wild defense as he allowed four goals on 41 shots in Friday's 4-0 loss to Columbus. It was certainly hard for Backstrom to break a personal two-game losing streak with such a lousy effort from his teammates in front of him. The Finn falls to 2-4-2 on the year with a .897 save percentage and 2.91 goals against average.

Niklas Backstrom
G FA
Fri 12/6/13 4:56 PM

Niklas Backstrom will play between the pipes on Friday. Backstrom spent four games on the bench, despite allowing just six goals in his previous three contests. He seems to be turning his season around, but he's unlikely to reclaim the starting job as long as Josh Harding remains dominant.

Niklas Backstrom
G FA
Sat 11/30/13 12:57 PM

Look for Niklas Backstrom to get the start Saturday night in the second of back-to-back games against Colorado. He looked fine in his last start Wednesday against Phoenix so if you need a goalie Backstrom may not be a bad play.

Niklas Backstrom
G FA
Thu 11/28/13 12:33 AM

Niklas Backstrom was solid on Wednesday suffered a loss in the Wild's 3-1 loss to Phoenix. Backstrom blocked 23 of 25 shots, but his teammates didn't offer much in the way of support so he was saddled with his second consecutive loss. His record stands at 2-3-2 after the loss while his GAA is 2.77 and his save percentage is .896.

Niklas Backstrom
G FA
Wed 11/27/13 12:35 PM

Niklas Backstrom will play between the pipes on Wednesday. Josh Harding (hamstring) is feeling better, but he will be eased back into the lineup by serving as the backup goaltender. Backstrom has a 2.88 GAA and .892 save percentage in nine games this season.

Niklas Backstrom
G FA
Mon 11/25/13 11:06 PM

Niklas Backstrom allowed two goals on 20 shots Monday, but was saddled with a loss in a 3-0 defeat at the hands of the Blues. Minnesota was unable to generate much offense in the contest, partially due to the injury suffered by their most dangerous forward, Zach Parise. With the loss, Backstrom's record falls to 2-2-2 while his GAA is now 2.88 and his save percentage is .892.

Niklas Backstrom
G FA
Sat 11/23/13 7:05 PM

Niklas Backstrom picked up a 3-2 shootout win against Winnipeg as a surprise starter for the Minnesota Wild. Josh Harding was supposed to get the nod, but he wasn't able to play after getting hurt during the pregame warmup. Backstrom, who was playing in his first game since returning from a concussion, turned aside 37 shots and three of four in the shootout to raise his record to 2-1-2 on the year. His .892 save percentage and 3.03 GAA are troubling, but more efforts like this will improve those numbers if Harding is out for a while.