The Minnesota Wild has raised the team’s profile dramatically this season as general manager Bill Guerin brought Quinn Hughes in during an early-season trade with the Vancouver Canucks. This transformed the team’s profile into legitimate Stanley Cup contender. Hughes is considered one of the sport’s best skaters, puck movers and dynamic offensive threats, and he has turned out to be just what the Wild needed.
Nevertheless, their trip through the playoffs is not going to be a simple one. They play within the Central Division of the Western Conference with the Colorado Avalanche and the Dallas Stars — the 2 best teams within the NHL. The Wild (41-20-12, 94 points) have been attempting to rise within the standings since they’re third within the division, but with nine games to go within the regular season, they seem nearly locked into that position.
In consequence, the Wild are going to should open the playoffs against the Stars, a team that recently went through a 14-0-1 streak and showed their dominance and talent nearly every night. If the Wild is at it is best, that is prone to be a seven-game series and probably the most highly anticipated matchup in the primary round of the NHL playoffs.
There is no such thing as a getting around how tough this series will likely be for the Wild, and head coach John Hynes may have to be certain that the team is playing at it is best against this powerful opponent.
Wild has the firepower to play with the league’s best teams
The Wild is actually a dynamic team with high-scoring Kirill Kaprizov leading the way in which. He has scored 38 goals and 42 assists and linemate Matt Boldy is correct behind with 38 goals and 38 assists.
As productive as those two are, Hughes will likely be the important thing to this matchup. He can suddenly provide the Wild with a burst of speed, a slick pass or a few key dekes as he skates in on the opposing goalie. Hughes, the brother of U.S. Olympic hero Jack Hughes, is one of the crucial explosive players within the league.
The Wild also has loads of depth besides their stars, including Brock Faber, Marcus Johansson, Mats Zuccarello and Vladimir Tarasenko.
Minnesota may have to be at it’s sharpest to get past the Stars and their key offensive leaders Jason Robertson, Wyatt Johnston and Mikko Rantanen. Unfortunately, it shouldn’t be prone to get any easier within the second round. Unless there may be a prolific upset in the primary round, the Wild will play the Avalanche within the second round.
It gets rougher in second round for Wild
Colorado is on the right track to complete because the NHL’s Presidents Trophy winners. The Avs got off to a sensational start this season, losing just two games in regulation time throughout the first three months of the season. They’ve since had a number of hiccups, but Nathan MacKinnon, Cale Makar and Martin Necas are formidable.
The Avs will play the No. 2 Wild Card team within the Western Conference in the primary round, and that may be the surprising Nashville Predators at this point. The Preds may very well be overtaken by the Los Angeles Kings, so the Avs will likely play either considered one of those two teams.
The Wild would like to see the Avs get upset in the primary round, and while it’s a possibility, it’s unlikely. Playing the Stars and the Avalanche in the primary two rounds is as difficult because it gets for any of the NHL’s 16 playoff teams. It might take an upset victory by the eighth seed for the Wild to avoid that fate.
Conference Finals may very well be easiest round
If the Wild gets past the Stars and the Avs in the primary two rounds, they are going to play for the Western Conference crown and the proper to play within the Stanley Cup Finals. The upstart Anaheim Geese are in first place within the Pacific Division, ahead of the Edmonton Oilers and Vegas Golden Knights.
The Wild would like to see the seedings hold in order that they could play the Geese within the conference finals. Head coach Joel Quenneville has built a much-improved Anaheim team that features Cutter Gauthier, Leo Carlsson, Beckett Sennecke and Chris Kreider, however the Wild can be huge favorites in that series.
If Anaheim got beaten by the Oilers or Golden Knights within the second round, the Wild would have a way more difficult task. The Oilers have been to the Stanley Cup Finals the last two seasons and have Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl (should return from lower-body injury for start of playoffs), they usually are clearly a dangerous opponent.
The Golden Knights should not as strong as they’ve been previously, but Jack Eichel & Co. know easy methods to win within the postseason.
After playing the Stars and Avalanche in the primary two rounds, the Wild would like to see the Geese and have what looks like a simple path to the Stanley Cup Finals.
The Minnesota Wild has raised the team’s profile dramatically this season as general manager Bill Guerin brought Quinn Hughes in during an early-season trade with the Vancouver Canucks. This transformed the team’s profile into legitimate Stanley Cup contender.