If Joel Eriksson Ek has proven anything throughout his NHL career, it’s that he’s the ultimate agitator. That said, the 25-year-old Swede also has a skill set that’s much more polished than his grit-and-grind style of play might suggest.
Just ask veteran goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury, who has seen both sides of the spectrum, first as an opponent and now as a teammate with the Wild.
Almost exactly 12 months ago, Fleury was between the pipes for the Vegas Golden Knights when Eriksson Ek scored in overtime of Game 1 to lift Wild to a 1-0 victory. As much as the end result got under Fleury’s skin at the time, and for good reason, he noted that Eriksson Ek’s antics throughout the game were even more annoying than the actual game-winner.
“I like him a lot more on my team,” Fleury said with a laugh, joking that Eriksson Ek lives for a goalmouth scrum. “Everybody gets mad at him and then he just acts like he doesn’t know why, like, ‘What did I do?’ ”
All of that was on display Wednesday night at the Xcel Energy Center as Eriksson Ek ignited the Wild en route to a 6-2 win over the St. Louis Blues in Game 2 of their first-round playoff series.
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After the Wild were shut out by Blues goaltender Ville Husso in Game 1 two nights earlier, Eriksson Ek finally broke the ice with a goal roughly 10 minutes into Game 2. He followed it with another goal later in the game, all the while parking his 6-foot-3, 210-pound body in Husso’s crease every time he hopped over the boards.
“I try to play the same way every night,” Eriksson Ek said. “Just being in front of the net and trying to score goals around there.”
That wears on an opposing team. Especially in a playoff series.
“He’d sure piss me off, that’s for sure,” Wild coach Dean Evason said.
Asked about Eriksson Ek, linemate Marcus Foligno compared him to Boston Bruins center Patrice Bergeron and some of the other standout 200-foot players across the league.
“But I think the physical side of it is another step above a lot of those guys,” Foligno said. “He’s so big and strong. He likes to compete. He likes to hit. And in a playoff series, that pays dividends.”
The tenacity with which Eriksson Ek plays the game has translated into success over the past couple of seasons. After finishing last season with 19 goals and 11 assists in 56 games — the best numbers of his NHL career to that point — Eriksson Ek topped that this season with new career highs of 26 goals and 23 assists in 77 games. He figured out his role and plays it to perfection each game.
“It’s a learning curve,” he said. “Just getting the chance to play a lot of minutes, and play important minutes, is helping me build confidence and become the player I want to be.”
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When a reporter suggested that Eriksson Ek’s growth has been impressive, coach Dean Evason had a different viewpoint. It’s not impressive. It’s expected.
“It’s literally routine for him,” Evason said. “He does the exact same thing every single night. We talk about predictability and being predictable with our work ethic. You play against Eriksson Ek and better be ready to play because his work ethic is always, always on point.”
His toughness is also unmatched. There have been a few times late in the season that Wild coaches thought they might have to take Eriksson Ek out of the lineup. They’d see him limp off the plane only to show up at morning skate 24 hours later ready to go. Very rarely would Eriksson Ek even approach head trainer John Worley about how he was feeling.
“He just doesn’t do that,” Evason said. “Every hockey player plays through some bumps and bruises. The way that he plays the game he’s busted up a lot. You just wouldn’t know it.”
There’s a good chance Eriksson Ek is playing through some pain right now. He likely will have to battle through more bumps and bruises if the Wild want to get past the Blues.
There’s no doubt he’s up to the task.
“I think he showed how good he is,” Fleury said. “It felt good to get the first goal (in Game 2) and get the fans on their feet. The building was loud and from that point on we didn’t look back. I thought we played very good and we kept pushing.”
All with Eriksson Ek leading the charge.
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