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Hockey Wilderness

A Minnesota Wild Blog that WON'T make you sick and kill you!

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Wild's Special Teams Performance Can Mean Another First-Round Exit

That's Wild The major story coming out of Game 3 against the Dallas Stars was the Minnesota Wild's special teams failing them when they needed to get the save. Both the power play could've scored more goals and the penalty kill could've prevented some. [Pioneer Press] Even more coverag...

The Minnesota Wild Still Have Fight Left

The Minnesota Wild walked out of last night’s game with a loss, but not with their season hanging by a thread. A series can shift quickly in the playoffs, and this one still has plenty of hockey left to play. The Wild have already shown they can make the Dallas Stars uncomfortable, and if they clean...

Game 3 Highlighted Some Of the Wild’s Roster Flaws

There’s a flaw in the rulebook if Matt Boldy can take a shot to the head outside of the play, and the officials don’t penalize Jamie Benn for it. On the TNT broadcast, Paul Bissonnette insisted that Benn didn’t intend to injure Boldy. You can see how he came to that conclusion. Benn appears to...

Wild's Game 3 Loss Should Not Erase Insane Matt Boldy Play

Look, it's hard to find any joy when the Minnesota Wild just suffered an overtime loss in Game 3 to hand the Dallas Stars a 2-1 series lead and now we're thinking really bad thoughts about another first-round exit. But, the play that Matt Boldy made to tie the game 2-2 in the second period on Wednes...

The Wild Have Only Themselves To Blame For Game 3's Loss

The Minnesota Wild entered the postseason with a team billed as ready to withstand the rigors of playoff hockey. Adding Quinn Hughes raised the team's ceiling higher than at any time in franchise history. Bringing in Michael McCarron and Nick Foligno gave them large, battle-tested veterans tailor-ma...

The Wild's Fourth Line Is Creating Room For Skill Players

The Minnesota Wild’s first-round playoff matchup has quickly become a series defined by pace, pressure, and pain, and the fourth line has been at the center of that identity shift. While the Wild’s stars have carried the scoring load, their bottom unit has done something just as important: It has ma...

Is This the Same Old Undisciplined Wild Again?

The Minnesota Wild and Dallas Stars are officially having a playoff series. After the Wild blasted the Stars 6-1 in the playoff opener, the Stars evened the series with a 4-2 win in Game 2. With that, the two teams will head to St. Paul tied at a game apiece. The Wild and Stars will look to gain the...

The Wild Must Throw the Kitchen Sink At Jason Robertson

The Minnesota Wild entered this playoff series with a true shutdown duo. As talented as Matt Boldy and Joel Eriksson Ek are on the offensive side of the puck, they play a solid two-way game. They're big, strong, skilled, and win puck battles on the regular. Forget the Wild's hulking fourth line...

Brock Faber Is Completing His Glow-Up In the Playoffs

When the Minnesota Wild parted ways with longtime right-shot defenseman Matt Dumba, it was clear that Brock Faber was the heir apparent. The thought of Faber filling Dumba's skates was more of a changing of the guard than believing Faber would one-for-one replace Dumba. At his peak, Dumba was a goal...

Can The Wild Afford To Lose In The Playoffs?

That's Wild Over at The Athletic, Sean McIndoe took a look at all 16 playoff teams and ranked them based on how much they can afford to lose. From the first-timer Anaheim Ducks all the way to the Edmonton Oilers, who can't waste another season of having Connor McDavid on their team. The Wild...

The Wild Saw Dallas Respond Like A Contender In Game 2

The Dallas Stars responded exactly the way a contender was supposed to after getting embarrassed in Game 1, grinding out a 4-2 win over the Minnesota Wild to even the series at 1-1. Wyatt Johnston scored twice, Matt Duchene added a goal and an assist, and Jake Oettinger settled things down in net as...

NHL

The Old Wild Won the Battle Against the New Wild In Game 2

Monday night's 4-2 loss against the Dallas Stars showed that the Minnesota Wild aren't just squaring off against one of the NHL's top teams. They're also facing off against their own history. We undoubtedly saw what the new-look Wild were capable of in Game 1. They ran the Stars off their own i...

How Did Joel Eriksson Ek Score Two Power Play Goals In Game 1?

Saturday afternoon was a major victory for fans of old-time hockey. The playoffs kicked off, and bodies started hitting the boards. Pucks were in deep, if not at the net. And leading the Wild in power play goals was none other than hard-nosed, no-nonsense, two-way forward Joel Eriksson Ek....

Matt Boldy Is Solidifying His Reputation As A Game-Breaker In the Playoffs

The Minnesota Wild’s 2025-26 campaign has been memorable. Whether it’s the blockbuster trade for Quinn Hughes or being a significant contributor to a United States Gold Medal win, the Wild are as relevant as they’ve ever been. However, Matt Boldy’s emergence as a true star player has been one of the...

It’s Okay To Have Hope

After the Minnesota Wild's statement win over the Dallas Stars on Saturday, fans still found something to complain about. As a lifelong Minnesota fan, I understand being leery. I understand being cautious. Tonight’s Game 2 will give us a little more information about how we should be feeling and whe...

The Wild Still Need Offense From Their Blue Line

The Minnesota Wild have enough high-end talent to score in bunches. Still, to stay dangerous over the long haul, their defense has to contribute more on the scoreboard. That starts with Brock Faber and Quinn Hughes, two defensemen who already play huge minutes and shape the game at both ends....

John Hynes Wants Even More After Wild's Dominant Game 1 Win

John Hynes is not satisfied. Despite the Minnesota Wild having the most dominant performance out of any Game 1 matchup (so far) in the playoffs after wiping the floor with the Dallas Stars to the tune of 6-1, the head coach demands more. “We prepped for a few days to play Game 1 and we played G...

Rieger Lorenz and Ben Dexheimer Are Off To A Fast Start In Iowa

The end of a hockey season can be a whirlwind for organizations. Teams are signing rookies out of juniors or college and figuring out how to work them into the lineup. They’re setting playoff rosters and setting up fan appreciation weekends. Players are battling for their spots as the new guys get i...

NHL

The Wild Pushed The Pace To Dictate Play

The Minnesota Wild set the tone early and never let the Dallas Stars settle in, riding a strong start and a confident performance from backup goalie Jesper Wallstedt in a 6-1 Game 1 win. Their best players also delivered, with Matt Boldy, Kirill Kaprizov, and Joel Eriksson Ek driving the offense and...

The Wild Bullied A True Cup Contender In Game 1

Nine days ago, the Minnesota Wild went to American Airlines Arena with one goal: To prove they could go into the Dallas Stars' building and take it to them. And the message was almost received. The Wild out-attempted Dallas 60-41 while playing a physical, but disciplined game. They made the Stars pa...

Who Are the Wild's Black Aces? And What Are They Doing In Minnesota?

On the surface, it appears that for most NHL teams, their starting lineups are set in stone for the playoffs. There isn't much room for players to step in and out of the lineup, and for the most part, if you’re a regular and you're somewhat healthy, you’re in. But come playoff time, located deep in...

Minnesota Wild vs. Dallas Stars Playoff Preview Podcast

An epic first-round matchup deserves an epic first-round preview. Join the Wilderness Talk Crew alongside guest Jayden Homuth as they get you ready for perhaps the most anticipated playoff series in Wild history. Why Jesper Wallstedt should be the game 1 starter to unhearlded x-factors in the series...

The Wild Will Immediately Tell Us If They Can Beat Dallas

Here we are, a decade removed from the 2014-15 season, when the Minnesota Wild last advanced to the second round of the playoffs. It’s been seven years since August 2019, when the Wild hired Bill Guerin to get them over the hump, to borrow a phrase. Analytically, they have a 50/50 chance of advancin...

Will the Wild's Regular-Season Success Translate To the Playoffs This Time?

The Minnesota Wild had another successful regular season, and now the focus shifts to whether that strong regular-season play can finally translate into a first-round playoff breakthrough. Minnesota enters the playoffs with a 45-23-12 record and a third-place finish in the Central Division, and they...

It's Time to Let That First Round Albatross Go

In the last two decades, the first round of the playoffs has caused some discomfort for fans in Minnesota. That locus can be pretty specific to the team you’re following most closely, but generally speaking, the gods of competition have not been kind to local teams heading out to face their first-ro...