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Wild hit the road after lousy homestand

Nov 29, 2008 - 11:29 AM Minnesota (13-7-1) at Nashville (11-9-2) 8:00 p.m. EST

NASHVILLE, Tennessee (Ticker) -- After a sub-par homestand, the Minnesota Wild are hoping they can find their stride on the road.

The Wild play away from home for the first time since November 18 on Saturday when they visit the Nashville Predators.

Regularly one of the best home teams in the NHL, Minnesota has played seven of its last eight games at the Xcel Energy Center, including its last five.

Minnesota struggled to end its homestand with a 2-3-0 record as Mikko Koivu's sliding goal six minutes into the third period gave the Wild a come-from-behind 4-2 victory against the Tampa Bay Lightning on Friday in a rare afternoon contest.

Koivu's highlight goal - his sixth of the season - capped a furious rally after the Wild entered the third period trailing, 2-1.

The Finn slid across the slot and was tripped by a pair of Tampa Bay defenders. As he was falling to the ice, Koivu was able to slip the puck under the left pad of 6-4 goaltender Mike Smith, who had dropped to block the shot.

Minnesota aims for consecutive wins against the Predators, who are coming off a 4-3 overtime victory against the Atlanta Thrashers on Friday.

Ryan Suter scored 1:43 into overtime and Scot Nichol also tallied for Nashville, which beat the Thrashers on the road for the first time since 1999 - Atlanta's first season in the NHL.