With four games left in the regular season, the stars are aligning but for the Minnesota Wild rather than their rivals in Dallas.
Minnesota has nearly erased what seemed to be a comfortable lead in the Central Division, trailing Dallas by just two points with just four games left. One of those is a head-to-head with the Stars, but the Wild might have already scored a major victory even if they haven't wrestled home-ice away just yet.
That can't happen on Thursday -- Dallas still owns a tiebreaker over Minnesota -- but if the Wild can tie the Stars in the standings it'll send a stone cold message about who controls the momentum in the playoffs.
Wild have the Stars right where they want them at the exact right time
It’s very possible that the Wild don’t end up passing the Stars but that’s almost beside the point. Home-ice advantage speaks for itself as a perk in the playoffs but Minnesota has done the next best thing in storming back on Dallas and letting them know they’re not backing down.
Even if Minnesota doesn’t pass Dallas they’ve sent them a message about the looming first round series. This isn’t the same Wild team the Stars have seen before nor is it the same squad fans have watched march toward toward doom. It’s shame the playoff format has forced the Wild to play a top three team right out of the gate but it doesn’t seem nearly as daunting as it should.
Kirill Kaprizov is finding his groove at the exact right time, and having him head into the playoffs on a white hot streak is a version of him we’ve never seen before. Joel Eriksson Ek was a non-factor last season thanks to injury but he’s going to be fully healthy for the series against Dallas; Brock Faber and Matt Boldy are a year older and wiser and continue to ride a high from playing on the gold medal Olympic team together.
Even veterans are locking in like we’ve not seen before. Vladimir Taresenko is on a roll with three points and two goals over the course of Minnesota’s recent winning streak. He’s also a four-time All-Star and two-time Stanley Cup chamion — and not only is he tapping into a vintage version of himself at the right moment but he has the deep veteran playoff experience needed for a team like the Wild to go on a run this year.
And then there's the goaltending situation. Minnesota opted not to trade star rookie Jesper Wallstedt at the deadline and it's a move that has aged tremendously. What the Wild didn't add in firepower at Center, they retained what is one of the best goaltending duos in the league. Between Wallstedt and Filip Gustavsson, Minnesota has two hot hands it can play at any given time, an advantage teams would kill to have this time of year.
Lest we forget Quinn Hughes, who is perhaps the biggest X-factor in this equation. The Wild have never had a player like him, let alone recently during their postseason woes. The entire trajectory of the franchise flipped when he was acquired and this moment is why Minnesota made the trade to get him.
Dallas isn’t an easy out, but for the first time in a while neither is Minnesota. The Wild won’t enter their series against the Stars as favorites, but with four games left they have a chance to do it with home-ice advantage and have proven that they won’t go as quietly as we’ve seen in the past.