The Islanders battle the Wild on Saturday, the second leg of their back-to-back.
Going to Minnesota is always a special trip for the New York Islanders.
The acquisition of Scott Perunovich gave the Islanders four Minnesotans on their roster, a fifth if you count Mike Reilly growing up there.
Anders Lee is from Edina, Brock Nelson is from Warroard, Perunovich is from Hibbing, and Hudson Fasching is from Apple Valley.
Here's how they've faired against the Wild in their careers:
Lee: 12 points (6 goals, 6 assists) in 18 games
Nelson: 9 points (6 goals, 3 assists) in 19 games
Perunovich: 2 points (1 goal, 1 assist) in 6 games
Fasching: No points in 7 games
Following Thursday's practice, The Hockey News asked Lee how special it is to return home.
"Yeah, it is," Lee said. "Look, it's where we all grew up. It's a special state, and hockey is a big part of the culture there. And we were all fortunate enough to grow up in that environment. To grow up in different towns and different areas of the state and then to end up on the same professional team, that's pretty, pretty wild.
"So, it's always special to go home. We all have friends and family there that have helped get us to this point. And to go play in front of them once a year is pretty special, for sure."
Is there one spot in particular that Lee and the other Minnesotans make sure to stop at before heading home?
"Took the boys and got some great burgers over at Parlour in Minneapolis. It's a back-to-back this year, so we're not going to be able to do it. So we're putting some pressure on our guys here to take those on the plane or something."
This trip to Minnesota is crucial. It's the Islanders' final game before the two-week NHL 4 Nations Face-Off break. The team has played tremendous hockey lately to regain its wild-card status.
After losing 4-3 to the Winnipeg Jets, the top team in the NHL, this second of a back-to-back is beyond critical to enter the break on a positive note.
There are a lot of games in action Saturday night around the NHL, but if the Islanders take care of business and get some puck luck, they could -- could -- wake up on Sunday morning just two points out of a wild-card spot.
The Wild have lost two of their last three games and are without Kirill Kaprizov.
Last season, when the Islanders were in Minnesota, they lost 5-0, which can be seen as the defeat that got Lane Lambert fired.
The effort seemed to be lacking, with Cal Clutterbuck sharing postgame that, "We were f–king bad" (H/t New York Post).
It was the lowest of lows for the Islanders, who now, a year later, have the opportunity to make their trip to Minnesota a memorable one with a "W" in the win column.
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