Considering they're now only a point behind Chicago I would say they've conversely gained quite a bit of ground.
- MnGump

They gained quite a bit of ground in late February & early March, hottest team in the league then, but the last 10 or so they've just been getting points at an average rate for a playoff team in this division.

Actually when I posted, yes, they had. If you don't like that, I suggest you tell math to piss off, that's what you have a problem with.
- Antilles

You just love to troll here about the dumbest things, which would be great jolly fun but for the humongous stick shoved up your snooty arse. Even your own people argue with you. Your just bloody annoying. And wrong.

Piss off.

They gained quite a bit of ground in late February & early March, hottest team in the league then, but the last 10 or so they've just been getting points at an average rate for a playoff team in this division.
- Antilles

Yes, they cooled off for a bit there.
Still with the best record since the all-star break.
And 3 points WAS the closest we had been to Chicago. Now one point.

Piss off.

Considering they're now only a point behind Chicago I would say they've conversely gained quite a bit of ground.
- MnGump

Why couldn't they let it be a 3 point game?

They gained quite a bit of ground in late February & early March, hottest team in the league then, but the last 10 or so they've just been getting points at an average rate for a playoff team in this division.
- Antilles

Double D is like 26-5-2 or something close to that.....That is one heck of a run.

They gained quite a bit of ground in late February & early March, hottest team in the league then, but the last 10 or so they've just been getting points at an average rate for a playoff team in this division.
- Antilles

Guess I don't get your point. Wild record in last 10 is 7 - 3 - 0. How is that in any way considered average even for a playoff team? Not to mention, they've beaten St. Louis twice in that time span. I wouldn't necessarily consider that average especially if you want to contend that the Blues are the best team in the division not to mention the West.

I wouldn't necessarily consider that average especially if you want to contend that the Blues are the best team in the division not to mention the West.
- MnGump

I don't see how you could pick a best team in the division or west at this point. Maybe a group or cluster of teams. The division and overall west is so close right now.

As far as tonight, I'll lead the chant....

Let's go Wild. Let's go.

Carter returns tonight! Bergenheim a scratch thank god! He's been a decent depth player but has been a subpar replacement since his acquisition. Easy to see why he was not being played in Florida.

I don't see how you could pick a best team in the division or west at this point. Maybe a group or cluster of teams. The division and overall west is so close right now.

As far as tonight, I'll lead the chant....

Let's go Wild. Let's go.

- stljam

I think it's safe to say the Blues should probably be considered the top team in the West at this point. It's probably a toss up between them and the Ducks IMO. Preds are up there, but they lack the depth IMO and personally I think they are over rated and playing above their heads this season.

I can see why T doesn't bother with new blogs... No (frank)ing Wild fans to read them.

Guess I don't get your point. Wild record in last 10 is 7 - 3 - 0. How is that in any way considered average even for a playoff team? Not to mention, they've beaten St. Louis twice in that time span. I wouldn't necessarily consider that average especially if you want to contend that the Blues are the best team in the division not to mention the West.
- MnGump

I view it as average since every playoff team in the division has 13 or 14 points in the last 10. Everyone is playing around the same clip as the Wild. I know dates can be picked where the Wild have the best record, but last ten does seem to be the standard.

I don't think Blues can claim to be best in the west until they beat LA and/or Chicago in a 7 game series... but in my opinion they have a legitimate claim to being one of the teams capable of winning the Cup.

I view it as average since every playoff team in the division has 13 or 14 points in the last 10. Everyone is playing around the same clip as the Wild. I know dates can be picked where the Wild have the best record, but last ten does seem to be the standard.

I don't think Blues can claim to be best in the west until they beat LA and/or Chicago in a 7 game series... but in my opinion they have a legitimate claim to being one of the teams capable of winning the Cup.
- Antilles

Well yeah, it's all subjective until you start entering dates and time frames. All things considered, I think referencing Dubnyks arrival, the Wild have been arguably the best (hottest) team in the NHL. Is it smoke and mirrors? I don't believe so, but I also don't think the Wild are as good as their recent success. They're getting some luck no doubt, but I do believe they have and are evolving into a contender in the West.

Relatively speaking (stats aside) I personally believe the Blues are the best team in the Central and arguably in the West. But that's just my personal opinion.

Dubnyk wins another one! (Well him and Brodin)
Overall sloppy game by the Wild but played just well enough to beat a tough LA team.

BTW... Welcome to 3rd place in the Central and 4th overall in the West Wild fans! however short lived it may be...

Dubnyk wins another one! (Well him and Brodin)
Overall sloppy game by the Wild but played just well enough to beat a tough LA team.

BTW... Welcome to 3rd place in the Central and 4th overall in the West Wild fans! however short lived it may be...
- MnGump

Quite a run for the Wild. I still question how they will hold up in a long series against one of these heavier teams like Anaheim, St. Louis, LA, or Winnipeg. I'm kind of hoping for a first round matchup with St. Louis. I think it would be their toughest matchup, but I like the idea of being forced into that right away and having to overcome it. To win a series like that would give them quite a bit of confidence and a good mindset in what is sure to be a brutal run out of the West.

Quite a run for the Wild. I still question how they will hold up in a long series against one of these heavier teams like Anaheim, St. Louis, LA, or Winnipeg. I'm kind of hoping for a first round matchup with St. Louis. I think it would be their toughest matchup, but I like the idea of being forced into that right away and having to overcome it. To win a series like that would give them quite a bit of confidence and a good mindset in what is sure to be a brutal run out of the West.
- Chinaski

I can't disagree. The west is going to be a battle of attrition. Healthiest team will most likely come out on top.

Wild will need to keep playing as they are now and will still require a lot of luck along with it if they want a chance against pretty much anyone they're going to get matched up against. Any complacency whatsoever and they will be done.

I definitely believe they're overachieving a bit so they have no room to relax and admire this amazing run.

I definitely believe they're overachieving a bit so they have no room to relax and admire this amazing run.
- MnGump

When you look at their record during the run, it does seem to be an overachievement. But when you break things down to a lower level, I'm not sure they really are overachieving.

I was looking at the scoring statistics yesterday and they are pretty underwhelming - no one is lighting it up.

I haven't researched it, but from watching these games, I don't think they are dominating possession like they were in the beginning of the year.

PK has been very good and there's room there for a drop-off, but I wouldn't say they are killing at an unsustainable rate. An argument could be made that they just have more depth players that are able to play an effective PK role and that could lend itself to sustainability. It's not unheard of for the top PK team in the league to be around 90%.

Dubnyk's play is the one area where you could logically say there is room for significant regression and it should be expected. But the goal differential they have posted since getting him is so lopsided, I wonder how much regression it would take for them to be simply average.

He has played very well and I don't want to seem like I'm minimizing his contribution. But they aren't winning solely on Dubnyk's play. There have been games where he just doesn't need to do much outside of making routine saves.

His ability to keep them in the game when they aren't playing very well or on the tail end of the back-to-back games is probably the one reason their record is so good during this run. If that changes, it will be interesting to see how the team reacts. Because what all of this should be teaching the players is that when they play the system, it really does give them the best chance to win and win a lot.

But they aren't winning solely on Dubnyk's play. There have been games where he just doesn't need to do much outside of making routine saves.


- Chinaski

No, but there have been several wins that were due mostly to Dubnyks play. IMO the last two wins against NY and LA were both a result of Dubnyk stealing games.

Personally I didn't think the Wild played all that well in either game but clearly played well enough to win in combination with Dubers keeping the puck out.

No, but there have been several wins that were due mostly to Dubnyks play. IMO the last two wins against NY and LA were both a result of Dubnyk stealing games.

Personally I didn't think the Wild played all that well in either game but clearly played well enough to win in combination with Dubers keeping the puck out.
- MnGump

Yeah, I can't disagree with that. But the one interesting thing I heard Russo say on the radio a couple of times was that he heard from several scouts that in the Islander game, even though Dubnyk was very good in the early going, their defensive coverage was also very good which limited the grade A chances. If I remember correctly, that was the first game where I noticed Dubnyk was giving up many more rebounds than he normally does.

It's definitely a case of one thing feeding the other in terms of success. Dubnyk is making the saves he should and the defense is doing it's job keeping most of the chances to the outside and/or clearing rebounds. Defensively they seem to be able to keep it pretty simple and are limiting the other teams' chances which helps Dubnyk put up good numbers.

As long as they don't pick up bad habits they should be a tough team in the playoffs. I do wonder how the toll of a very difficult physical series could affect their ability to execute offensively/defensively though. That could be where their depth really helps as many times, it's those 3rd/4th line matchups that can win you games.

I took a look at some of the analytic numbers on war-on-ice.com, which admittedly I don't have a great grasp of. If you use all the default inputs on that page and just change to use a date range of 01/17/2015 - 03/30/2015, the Wild are the top team in PDO (103.8), which is made up of their shooting percentage (9.7% - tied for 1st) and team save percentage (94.1 - third). They are 21st in Corsi For and that number improves a bit (17th) for score adjusted. So, the basic analytics would suggest their play over this stretch does not necessarily translate into sustainable long-term success.

I guess not too much about that surprises me except the shooting percentage. I would not have expected them to be that high. As for Corsi, I'm not sure there is a stat the shows how many times they passed their way out of a Corsi event. If there is one big gripe I have with their game it's their propensity to over pass and turn an offensive opportunity into nothing.

I took a look at some of the analytic numbers on war-on-ice.com, which admittedly I don't have a great grasp of. If you use all the default inputs on that page and just change to use a date range of 01/17/2015 - 03/30/2015, the Wild are the top team in PDO (103.8), which is made up of their shooting percentage (9.7% - tied for 1st) and team save percentage (94.1 - third). They are 21st in Corsi For and that number improves a bit (17th) for score adjusted. So, the basic analytics would suggest their play over this stretch does not necessarily translate into sustainable long-term success.

I guess not too much about that surprises me except the shooting percentage. I would not have expected them to be that high. As for Corsi, I'm not sure there is a stat the shows how many times they passed their way out of a Corsi event. If there is one big gripe I have with their game it's their propensity to over pass and turn an offensive opportunity into nothing.
- Chinaski

I'm all for creativity and dynamic tic tac toe plays that result in goals or at least scoring chances... but I agree that sometimes these guys just need to let loose a snap or wrist shot. Far too many chances foregone this season in attempts to make cutsie pass plays that really weren't warranted based on each situation or scenario they arose from.

Glad to see Vanek is finally taking the "shoot first" mentality. I'd wager to say he'd probably be much closer to the 30 goal mark this season had he taken a half dozen more of those shooting chances instead of passing.

Koivu has been a little itchier on the trigger as of late to, but still not enough for my liking.

Haula is probably the worst IMO, on making unnecessary passes in the heat of a possible scoring chance. Although his play has improved over the last month.

Haula is probably the worst IMO, on making unnecessary passes in the Although his play has improved over the last month.
- MnGump

Fontaine guilty of that quite a bit as well.

I'm not really liking this long break in between games at this time of the season. 4 days off is pretty rare this time of year. Sure it helps guys heal up a little if they've been playing hurt and it helps guys like Zucker get closer to returning, but this team has seemingly been thriving on the tough and constant schedule over the past 2 months.

On the other hand I'm sure it's nice to have a back to back practice days for the first time since most likely pre-season.

I just hope it doesn't have an adverse affect on the momentum these guys have built up.

I'm not really liking this long break in between games at this time of the season. 4 days off is pretty rare this time of year. Sure it helps guys heal up a little if they've been playing hurt and it helps guys like Zucker get closer to returning, but this team has seemingly been thriving on the tough and constant schedule over the past 2 months.

On the other hand I'm sure it's nice to have a back to back practice days for the first time since most likely pre-season.

I just hope it doesn't have an adverse affect on the momentum these guys have built up.
- MnGump

The silly thing is, we can all sit here and point out reasons why a break is good for the team or why it would be detrimental.

My gut instinct tells me it's a good thing - giving Dubnyk a little breathing room, allowing him to rest and finish out the season without relinquishing the net. On the other hand, I feel like most teams (is there a stat on this? I'd love to see it) actually perform worse after a few days off. And going against the Rangers, Wings, Jets, Hawks, Predators and Blues while being off can be quite daunting.

Is anybody else amazed we're already at game 77? I feel like this year has gone by faster than ever! But as we get to the playoffs, if Dubnyk continues to play like he has - and a huge part of that is our D-corps - into the playoffs, we're the team to beat. Our defensemen are easily the most underrated in the league. We're not built around Suter - we are able to roll 5 very solid defensemen that excel in several different categories, and our bottom 2 aren't too shabby, either.

By far, this is the deepest team we've had. Our pieces are falling into place, and assuming things aren't shaken up next year, we have to be able to come back as one of the favorites next year. We're rolling 4 lines of consistent pressure across the board - each excelling and taking advantage of the skillset of the line. Our D are even better. After Brodin's game in Detroit his rookie season I went out and purchased his jersey in the new white, thinking he'd be a pretty solid defenseman. In my opinion, he's been our best all year, and if he continues to progress at the rate he has since joining the league, he's going to be a perennial Norris contender. I cannot watch him enough without giggling to myself.

Making the playoffs was expected of this team. With the way they've been playing, making it to the Finals should be the only true measuring stick of a successful season. Unfortunately, we will be playing behind a fairly young D-corps, several young key players, and a goalie who has yet to play a playoff game. If the stress of the playoffs proves too much for Dubnyk, this could be a short post-season. If he plays even remotely similar to how he's played for us thus far - we have to be considered a favorite.

I am so nervous.

Making the playoffs was expected of this team. With the way they've been playing, making it to the Finals should be the only true measuring stick of a successful season. Unfortunately, we will be playing behind a fairly young D-corps, several young key players, and a goalie who has yet to play a playoff game. If the stress of the playoffs proves too much for Dubnyk, this could be a short post-season. If he plays even remotely similar to how he's played for us thus far - we have to be considered a favorite.

I am so nervous.
- deslni01

I think Dubynk will continue his level of play so long as the team in front of him continue theirs.

Obviously we'd love to see the finals, but looking at the competition in the West(no matter how well the WIld have played) and saying nothing short of the finals will constitute a successful season seems a bit of a lofty statement.

If the Wild stay healthy I think they can at the very least make it to the semi's, but going up against teams in the Central who are every bit as and most likely better than the Wild is going to make a trip to the finals very difficult.

I'd say winning at least two rounds would constitute a successful season. That being said, next years expectations would be no less than a final apperance. IMO

Even though for whatever the reason the HB Wild faithful seem to be few and far between for the past month or so, is there a possiblity of a new Blog in the near future Mr. Dean?!