They say the best things in life are worth waiting for, something Minnesota Wild fans are no strangers to. As one of five NHL teams to have yet made a trip the Stanley Cup, the State of Hockey doesn’t need to be reminded of what waiting is like, but the team sure did their best to stress everyone out before finally clinching a playoff berth.
It’s seemed like a foregone conclusion that the Wild would be punching a playoff ticket but they took their merry old time actually doing it. Minnesota has been on the cusp of clinching for a week, but failed to get the job done or get any sort of help until Thursday night’s win over the Canucks.
With that the Wild are officially playoff bound, but the work is hardly finished.
For the last month the Wild have been on a collision course with the Dallas Stars in the first round. A lot has been made about how diabolically stupid the playoff format is if the Top 3 teams in the Western Conference are set up to play each other in the first two rounds, but there’s little more that can be done about that than complain.
Wild clinching a playoff berth was just the first step in catching Dallas for the No. 2 seed
Minnesota’s real goal isn’t making the playoffs it’s securing that No. 2 seed and overtaking Dallas for home-ice advantage in that first round showdown.
Just like clinching a playoff spot, the Wild haven’t made it easy to hold out hope that catching the Stars will happen. Heading into Thursday night Dallas’ magic number was 11 with seven games left for the Stars to play.
Dallas beat Winnipeg to gain two more points and move that much closer to clinching home ice. It’s a slim chance but there is still a chance Minnesota can flip the standings.
To do that the Wild will need to catch up on the six points they trail the Stars and then not stumble in any of their last remaining games (of which there are seven). This weekend is potentially massive for that as Minnesota has two critical games left that could get them in a position to steal that No. 2 seed.
Minnesota heads to Ottawa for a game against the Senators while the Stars host the Avalanche. If things go the way they should — Colorado winning a tune-up game and the Wild playing like they actually mean it — Minnesota would pick up two points and be just four behind.
If that happens, next Thursday’s game against the Stars could be for all the marbles.
Dallas has one game between it’s matchup with Colorado on Saturday and Minnesota on Thursday. If Calgary can play spoiler and the Wild pick up at least one point each against Detroit and Seattle, then the game against the Stars would see both teams sitting at 102 points.
At that point it’s anyone’s race and the game is a de facto part of the upcoming playoff series.