All Even

Keith Carney has scored two goals this year. Both have come against the Avalanche and both have come in the past week. Fortunately for the Wild, his latest tally was the team's biggest goal of the year. In a game and series so evenly contested, it is going to come down to who gets a fortuitous bounce at the right time. Friday night was the Wild's time to catch a break as Carney's shot from the high slot deflected off the skate of an Avalanche defenseman and past Avs goalie Jose Theodore. The puck-luck came at the perfect time for the Wild who were in a near must-win situation as to avoid going to Colorado down 2-0 in the series. Instead, the teams will board the plane to Denver in a 1-1 deadlock, a fitting end to the first two games in St. Paul. Lost in the emotional win is another player lost to injury. Branko Radivojevic went down early in the game with a leg injury. He returned, but with the Wild already down Nick Shultz, Kurtis Foster, and Mark Parrish, they cannot afford to have anyone else head to the infirmary.