New York. Joel Eriksson Ek scored twice in Montreal last night.
As a form of thanks, he was accidentally hit on the nose by the referee!
– It was a bit unexpected, but that’s what happens in chaos, says Varmlander with a laugh to Sportbladet after Minnesota’s 5-2 win uniquely enough by two goals at the same early numerical disadvantage.
During one of the many on-ice clashes at the Bell Center, Joel Eriksson Ek became the victim of what might be called “friendly fire.”
One of the linemen tried to move between them – and happened to brandish ‘JEE’ on his chin.
And then the Wild first baseman looked very puzzled.
– Yes, it was a bit unexpected. He laughs when we reach him after the final whistle.
– But that’s what happens in chaos, there are a lot of arms and gloves in the air in those situations.
It’s also probably easier to shrug it off with a little chin slap when you win and the Wild did just that by a score of 5-2. Joel himself contributed two powerful goals from close range.
– It was nice to come back after the loss in Toronto that day. We were not happy with that match, but tonight I think we played well. We got off to a successful start and then built on that.
– Of course, it’s good to score two goals on the power play. We know how important it is with Special Teams and this time it worked well. We were strong even when we eliminated separations.
You can safely say that. In fact, the Wild scored the first two goals by the same numerical margin in the first period
– You don’t see that often, no. “We did well in this situation,” Joel points out.
Veteran EB Marc-Andre Fleury stood in the box in place of Filip Gustavsson and received a standing ovation from athletic Canadiens fans during what may be his last “at home” appearance at the buzzer.