Minnesota Wild Gameday Playoff Preview: Game 1 vs. the Avalanche – The Hockey Writers – Minnesota Wild

The Minnesota Wild secured their spot in the second round with a strong 5-2 win in Game 6 over the Dallas Stars to win their first-round series 4-2. They had an up-and-down series with the Stars, but they kept to their game, and they prevailed. Now they’ll face the Colorado Avalanche, who swept the Los Angeles Kings 4-0 and have been off for almost a full week. 

The Wild will have their hands even fuller this time around, as every step closer they get to getting the Stanley Cup, the harder it gets. Just like the Stars series, this round is expected to be just as exciting and full of talent. In this article, we’ll look at a quick preview of Game 1 against the Avalanche that will be played on Sunday night, May 3. 

Wild Face More Injuries 

Against the Stars, the Wild had to play without Mats Zuccarello for three games and Yakov Trenin for two, who each had a pivotal role that was missed. They did return in the final two games of the series, and they were key in getting the wins they needed to head to Round 2. They’ll need Zuccarello’s speed and Trenin’s physicality against the Avalanche, but now they have to deal with other injury issues. 

The first being Jonas Brodin, who was injured in Game 5 against the Stars after blocking a shot and didn’t play in Game 6. He did not travel with the team to Denver and will miss Game 1 against the Avalanche for sure. The Wild were able to get by without him for one game, but they noticed his absence. It’s going to be even more difficult now when they take on the Avalanche, who have a lot of firepower that Brodin is good at stopping. 

While that injury is for sure, they also have a question mark in their lineup with Joel Eriksson Ek. He took a rough fall in Game 6, and although he finished the game, he is considered questionable for Game 1 against the Avalanche. If the Wild have to play without both Brodin and Eriksson Ek, it’ll be quite the hurdle. They can do it, but of course, they’ll need others to step up and help. 

Wild Ride Momentum 

The Wild got the big win in Game 1 of their series against the Stars. Can they do so against the Avalanche is the question. They should have momentum on their side after getting out of the first round for the first time in 11 years. The fanbase is the most excited it’s been in years, and while the team was excited as well, they know they have more work to do. 

However, they need to find a way to harness all of that excitement and put it into their gameplay against the Avalanche. They’re heading into another road arena that will try to throw them off their game, but the Wild have found a way to do the opposite and have done quite well on the road so far. It’ll be interesting to see if they can get that same start. 

“I don’t think it’s that hard. We didn’t have the goal to win the first round. You dream big. You see high expectations for yourself and each other. It’s been like that the whole series I think too. It’s kind of that on to the next mentality. You can’t change the past. I think that’s something we handled very well, going 2-1, too. Just kind of getting out of your own head, honestly. Yeah, it’s nice to win. At the same time, we’re all pretty excited to get to Colorado and get the game going. You enjoy it and learn as much as you can, and stuff like that. But it’s kind of on to the next mentality,” Matt Boldy said to the media in his postgame press conference following Game 6 about balancing happiness and staying motivated. 

Wild’s Special Teams Issues 

Everyone knew going into the Stars series that the Wild would have to be strong with both their power play and penalty kill. They struggled in both but still found a way to come out on top in the series, but they can’t expect that to happen again. They have to get either their power play back to what it was or their penalty kill. 

It’ll be hard to get them both back on the same page right away, but if they can get at least one going, the other will hopefully follow suit. The good news for the Wild is that the Avalanche’s power play has also been having issues, so they’re in a similar boat, but the Wild’s was a bit better. They’re also both in the same area when it comes to the penalty kill, so the special teams could be interesting. 

If one team is able to make their special teams head in the right direction, that could be just enough to be the difference maker and lead a team to victory in the series. Hopefully, the Wild can show what they are truly capable of and move ahead to the third round.