Earlier this month, THW's Mike Coll…
Pittsburgh PenguinsPerhaps the Minnesota Wild’s first round exit at the hands of the President’s Trophy winning Chicago Blackhawks last week in five games was simply inevitable. It was definitely a ‘positive step’ for a franchise building for the future and one that was playing its first playoff hockey since 2008. However, losing the series quickly with ...
It has been, dare I say, a wild beginning to the Minnesota/Chicago first round playoff series. Niklas Backstrom’s freak lower-body injury during warm ups prior to Game 1 seemed to spell doom for Minnesota, but Josh Harding has performed admirably after being pressed into duty. Throughout the season, a Wild offense that has starved for ...
The Minnesota Wild fell into a 2-0 hole with a 5-2 loss to the Chicago Blackhawks in Game 2 on Friday night. After playing a tough and tight opening game, the Wild looked out-paced and out-matched by a deep and high-powered Blackhawks’ line-up. The series switches to St. Paul and the Xcel Energy Center today ...
The 2013 NHL playoffs are set to kick off on Tuesday night with the President’s Trophy winning, and top seed in the Western conference, Chicago Blackhawks taking on the eighth seeded Minnesota Wild. The Wild only secured their postseason place thanks a 3-1 road victory over the Colorado Avalanche on the final day of the ...
When the 2013 NHL season began, both the Blackhawks and Wild were considered to be two of the more compelling squads in the Western Conference. With so much transition taking place in Detroit, the Hawks appeared to be ready to make a transition of their own, hoping to step up as the undisputed class of the Central ...
Pre-season projection: Playoff team Final team record: 26-19-3 (8th in Western Conference) Flip a coin. The Minnesota Wild made the playoffs for the first time in five years; they almost played themselves out with a 5-6-1 finish, blowing their shot at the division. They scratched out critical season-ending tilts with the Los Angeles Kings and ...
NHL Playoff Predictions: Western Conference There are 16 teams remaining entering the Stanley Cup Playoffs. The journey to the Stanley Cup Finals will begin on Tuesday. Every year there are Cinderella stories in each conference. We’ll analyze what teams will be upset and what teams will move on to the Promised Land. If your team has a weakness, ...
Few pundits are giving the Minnesota Wild even a passing glance in their first round matchup with the Chicago Blackhawks. After all, the Hawks stole the NHL spotlight by going 21-0-3 in their first 24 games, setting the NHL record for consecutive games with a point to start a season. Chicago rode that momentum to ...
The Chicago Blackhawks wrapped up their regular season April 27 against the St. Louis Blues, with first place locked up the Hawks rested many of their regulars. It is now official that Chicago will play the 8th seeded Minnesota Wild in the first round of the 2013 playoffs. With big name stars on both rosters this should lead to a series that promises end to end excitement.
When you think of the Minnesota Wild, the names Zach Parise, Ryan Suter, Mikko Koivu, and Niklas Backstrom come to mind, as they should. Suter and Parise were acquired to vault the latter two Finns into playoff contention for the first time since 2008.
While the dual free agent signees’ impact has been noticeable, a relatively small Wild lineup (save for a healthy Mike Rupp) has been actively seeking bottom-six forwards capable of a shutdown, bump and grind style.
