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Wild go 0-4 on road trip with loss to Jets

Evander Kane

Winnipeg Jets’ Evander Kane (9) scores on Minnesota Wild’s goaltender Niklas Backstrom (32) during first-period NHL hockey game action in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Friday, Dec. 27, 2013. (AP Photo/The Canadian Press, John Woods)

AP

The Minnesota Wild need to find a way to airlift the Xcel Energy Center with them when they leave Minnesota, because lately it seems like nothing short of that will end their road woes.

The Wild ended their four-game road trip with a 6-4 loss against the Winnipeg Jets. It was the closest they came to a victory during their latest excursion.

Of course, they didn’t have goaltender Josh Harding for their stint away from home. He has been the Wild’s best player so far this season, but he had to take some time off while he changed his treatment protocol for Multiple Sclerosis. He’s off the injured reserve list now, so he should be available in the near future.

That being said, the Wild’s struggles can’t be summed up by the absence of Harding. They are 6-12-3 on the road this season, compared to 14-3-2 in Minnesota.

The good news is that they’re heading back home, so they don’t have to worry about breaking out of that slump in the short-term, but their failures have put more pressure on them to continue their torrid pace at home.

Or as defenseman Ryan Suter plainly put it to the Minneapolis Star Tribune’s Michael Russo, “We can’t win on the road, so we better play hard at home.”

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