FOX Sports North Midweek Stock Report for Jan. 6
Every Wednesday, FOX Sports North takes a look at whose stock is trending up and whose is trending down across the state of Minnesota
In other words, who's on the rise -- like Minnesota Wild winger Zach Parise -- and who is trending way down, like Minnesota Vikings quarterback Teddy Bridgewater.
With that in mind, let's "take stock" of the current sports scene in Minnesota.
The Vikings' defense
Everson Griffen forced a fumble, Captain Munnerlyn added a touchdown and Xavier Rhodes picked off Green Bay quarterback Aaron Rodgers in the fourth quarter to lead the Vikings to a 20-13 win over the Packers and their first NFC North title since 2009. Minnesota kept Rodgers off-kilter throughout the game, sacking the Packers signal-caller five times on the night.
Karl-Anthony Towns, Timberwolves center
The explosive rookie earned Western Conference Player of the Month honors for the second consecutive month on Monday, after averaging 18.6 points, 9.5 rebounds and 1.6 blocks per game on 55 percent shooting in December.
Zach Parise, Wild left wing
After being held scoreless over his last six games and missing time with a knee injury, Parise returned to the scoresheet with authority in a 4-2 win in Columbus, roasting Bluejackets goaltender Anton Forsberg for two goals and adding an empty-netter to pick up his second hat trick of the season.
Will Borgen, St. Cloud State defenseman
A freshman defenseman from Moorhead, Borgen won a bronze medal on Monday at the IIHF World Junior Championship as a member of Team USA. Borgen picked up an assist in the bronze medal game while playing alongside Minnesota Wild prospect Louie Belpedio, as the U.S. routed Sweden 8-3 in Finland.
Thomas Vanek, Wild left wing
After leading Minnesota on offense when Parise went down with an injury back in November, Vanek has gone cold in recent weeks. The high-scoring Austrian ranks second on the Wild in scoring with 12 goals, but has gone cold in recent weeks, logging just one goal in his last 10 games.
Teddy Bridgewater, Vikings quarterback
The second-year quarterback looked shell-shocked against the Packers, lobbing an explicable, left-handed dump-off intended for Mike Wallace that was picked off by Green Bay defensive back Micah Hyde in the third quarter. Bridgewater threw for just 99 yards on the night, while registering season lows in completion percentage (52.63) and passer rating (45.7).
Zach LaVine, Timberwolves guard
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