Wild battle Nashville to 0-0 tie

ST. PAUL (AP) -- Goalie Jamie McLennan must be wondering what he has to do to get a win for the Minnesota Wild.

McLennan was perfect on Wednesday night, stopping all 27 shots by Nashville, but Predators goalie Mike Dunham matched him, making 23 saves, as the teams skated to a 0-0 tie.

It was the second time this season the expansion Wild played a scoreless game, and the 0-0 tie was the first in franchise history for Nashville.

"My record isn't pretty, but if you sit down and look at the numbers, maybe I'm a better player than it shows," said McLennan, who is 4-21-7 this season.

Minnesota controlled play for much of the first period, outshooting the Predators 12-3. The Wild held Nashville without a shot on goal for the first nine minutes. Dunham did his most difficult work early in the game, then it was his Minnesota counterpart's turn.

"A win would have been nice, but McLennan made the saves they needed in the second and third," said Dunham, who picked up his third shutout of the season. "We certainly can't fault our effort, because we had good chances. We just didn't get the goals."

Nashville took control in the second, keeping the puck in Minnesota's end for much of the period. The Predators' best chance to break the deadlock came nearly eight minutes in.

On the power play, Patric Kjellberg hit the goal post with a shot from the faceoff circle. Seconds later, Predators defenseman Kimmo Timonen picked up a loose puck in front of the net and hit the same post before McLennan covered up.

"Jamie made a couple of great saves in the second and third," Minnesota coach Jacques Lemaire said. "It's too bad, but it seems like when he's on top of his game, we don't score."

The Predators had another scoring opportunity in the third, when Marian Cisar, coming out of the box, picked up a loose puck and went in on McLennan on a breakaway. As Cisar slid the puck to his backhand and looked ready to shoot, McLennan made a diving stab and knocked the puck off Cisar's stick.

"We had enough chances to win, but we didn't win," Nashville coach Barry Trotz said. "We got a point, and getting a point on the road is always good. But we were a little upset with our start."

Notes: Minnesota forward Brian Bonin and D Chris Armstrong were in uniform after being called up from Cleveland of the IHL. ... Predators D Pavel Skrbek was scratched from his second consecutive game after sustaining a mild concussion on March 17. ... The Wild are on pace to finish with 73 points, which would tie them for second best for an expansion franchise. The 1993-94 Florida Panthers finished with a record 83 points.

Nashville 0 0 0 0 -- 0

Minnesota 0 0 0 0 -- 0

First Period--None. Penalties--Hulse, Nas (cross-checking), 4:48; Dowd, Min (goalie interference), 4:48; Gaborik, Min (tripping), 5:45; Hulse, Nas (holding), 9:36; Houlder, Nas (delay of game), 11:28; Stevenson, Nas, major (fighting), 14:51; Johnson, Min, major (fighting), 14:51;

Second Period--None. Penalties--Blouin, Min (roughing), 6:38; Sekeras, Min (tripping), 10:30.

Third Period--None. Penalties--Hendrickson, Min (goalie interference), 1:40; Johnson, Min, minor-major (boarding, fighting), 5:32; Stevenson, Nas, minor-major-misconduct (high-sticking, instigator, fighting), 5:32; Laaksonen, Min (slashing), 9:12; Johnson, Nas (high-sticking), 11:13; Blouin, Min (goalie interference), 12:38; Sekeras, Min (high-sticking), 18:14.

Overtime--None. Penalties--None.

Shots on goal--Nashville 3-11-11-2--27. Minnesota 12-4-5-2--23.

Power-play Opportunities--Nashville 0 of 7; Minnesota 0 of 4.

Goalies--Nashville, Dunham 19-19-4 (23 shots-23 saves). Minnesota, McLennan 4-21-7 (27-27).

A--18,064 (18,064).

Referees-- Kevin Maguire, Kelly Sutherland. Linesmen--Gord Broseker, Vaughan Rody.