Wild vs. Kings: Where does Minnesota go from here?
Meh.
That might be the way to describe the Minnesota Wild right now.
Sure, the Wild beat Nashville on Sunday, a game that the Wild blew a two-goal lead twice. With that, Minnesota remained in the playoff mix — in the second wild card spot in the Western Conference, two points ahead of Calgary. And Minnesota plays the Flames in a home-and-and home series on March 4 and 7.
But, does it feel like Minnesota has the ability to make a postseason run? Or even win a first-round series., something that what appeared to be a loaded Wild team could not accomplish last season. Or a number of strong previous Minnesota squads could not do over the last decade or so.
And where do the Wild go from here. They are good enough to be a playoff team. If they don’t make the postseason, they also are not bad enough to be one of the franchises with the best odds to get a high draft pick.
Are they buyers or sellers at the trade deadline. Or do they just stand pat? Who knows which way they go next?
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The Wild will be reminded on Tuesday of one direction they took this in the offseason however.
The Los Angeles Kings come to St. Paul to close out the Wild’s seven-game home stand, a stretch in which the team has posted a 3-2-1 mark through Sunday. The Kings entered Monday in second place in the Pacific Division, just a point behind Vegas.
And Kevin Fiala, of course, is having a monster year for the Kings with 21 goals and 61 points. While the Wild’s salary-cap situation made the team trading the forward a move with few other options.
Still. while Fiala seemingly had a disappearing act in the Wild’s loss to St. Louis in six games last year in the NHL, he has the ability to light it up offensively. That’s something that few Wild players have done this winter with the exception of Kirill Kaprizov.
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Fans have loudly said the Wild need a No. 1 center for at least the past two years. Minnesota had one briefly last week as they were the third team in a transaction that led to Ryan O’Reilly going from St. Louis to Toronto.
And the Wild ended up with a fourth-round draft pick.
Will Minnesota not do anything else. Maybe. But nothing too crazy.
Joe Smith and Michael Russo, the Wild beat reporters for The Athletic, had a note in a story that published Monday that Minnesota might be interested in the Red Wings Tyler Bertuzzi.
That might not be the move Wild fans want, however. Or the only one.
The Wild head out to Columbus and Toronto for consecutive road games on Thursday and Friday,
But where the team goes overall after the Kings game remains unclear.