With just over 10 games to go for the majority of teams around the NHL, it might be time to say it: the Minnesota Wild may not make the playoffs.
That’s not to say they haven’t played well. They’re 6-1-3 in their last 10, picking up crucial points as we exit winter and crawl into spring, but it’s that time of year where, well, you run out of time.
On Monday’s episode of Daily Faceoff LIVE, Frank Seravalli and Tyler Yaremchuk discuss the Wild’s shrinking playoff chances and if it’s too little, too late for the team that hails from the State of Hockey.
Tyler Yaremchuk: A few teams over the weekend may have seen their playoff hopes disappear, we’ll start out in the Western Conference with the Minnesota Wild. They suffered an overtime loss to the St. Louis Blues on Saturday, they may have picked up a point but the Vegas Golden Knights still sit six points ahead in the Wild Card standings.
Are you willing to say that losing that game was the final nail in the coffin for the Wild, or, with two head-to-head games remaining with the Golden Knights, do you still give them a sliver of hope?
Frank Seravalli: No, I think that gap will only widen. The two games head-to-head will be enormous, but even just one of those games going in favour of Vegas would crush their playoff hopes. I think you have to squint real hard to see a chance for them.
It’s been an incredible up-and-down season, they had to fire their coach, they played well for a period of time, then they dealt with injuries for a long stretch. Since then, they’ve played pretty well, but they don’t reward you playoff spots for playing a few games well.
You can watch the full segment and the rest of the episode here…
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