ST. PAUL, Minn. — At the end of the first period Tuesday night, Blackhawks fourth-line center Marcus Kruger pummeled Wild forward Jason Pominville.
It was the kind of hit the Wild could have considered cheap if they wanted, a testy exchange that a reeling hockey team might have used as an excuse to rally together. But other than defenseman Ryan Suter, who took a cursory step in Kruger's direction, the Wild left well enough alone and skated off the ice for intermission.
No sequence better summed up the Wild's weak response to adversity against a team it officially can call its nemesis after Hawks goalie Corey Crawford made 30 saves in an impressive 1-0 victory in Game 3 at the Xcel Energy Center.