The Minnesota Wild found that the positive vibes after winning in the first round are long gone, as they find themselves in an 0-2 deficit against the Colorado Avalanche. The Wild are dealing with two major injuries to Joel Eriksson Ek and Jonas Brodin, and are simply outmatched agaisnt the Avalanche. To make matters that much worse, the Wild have a goaltending problem.
Jesper Wallstedt was the starter for the entire first round and helped the Wild advance past the Stars. But after giving up eight goals on 42 shots faced in Game 1, head coach John Hynes benched him in favor Filip Gustavsson in Game 2. That decision didn't pan out either, as Gustavsson gave up four goals on 22 shots in a 5-2 loss.
Hynes is now in a position where he needs to get the starting goaltending position correctly. As of Thursday, two days before Game 3, Hynes still hasn't made a decision yet.
No decision on goalie for Game 3 for #mnwild
— Joe Smith (@JoeSmithNHL) May 7, 2026
John Hynes still hasn't committed to a starting goaltender for Wild in Game 3
Until Hynes does make a decision, he will be under the proverbial microscope. Will he allow Gustavsson to have back-to-back starts? Or will he go back to Wallstedt, who you can argue should have had another chance in Game 2, especially after shining in the first round.
The decision backfired for Hynes on Tuesday night, as Gustavsson looked shakey in his first start in over three weeks. The first two shots he faced, both went past him for goals, giving Colorado an early 2-0 lead. It was not a great start for Gustavsson, who declared his outing as "just fine."
Wallstedt had the brutal outing in the first game of the series. Yet, he had a 2.30 goals allowed average and a .924 save percentage in a tough series against the Stars. It can be argued that he should have gotten the chance to redeem himself in Game 2. But for Hynes, thinking his goaltending duo was interchangeable on a game-by-game basis, Gustavsson would give them a boost. Yet, it didn't pan out.
The Wild need a lot to go their way to give the Avalanche a fight. Let's face it, the first two games showed just how much better Colorado is. Special teams is a main reason for Minnesota's struggles. But creating a goaltending controversy just wasn't wise.
We'll see who gets the start for Game 3, whether it will be announced on Friday or in the hours leading up to the contest on Saturday.
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