Playoff Destiny is Slipping out of Wild's Control

This franchise has been starved for goals. Wild fans are constantly yelling "shoot" towards the ice at home games. You could see that in the power plays that the Wild were unable to do much of anything because of standing still, passing around the perimeter, and NOT SHOOTING. The Wild are 27th in the league in shots on goal per game. 27th...in the league...in shots on goal. Behind teams like Montreal, Toronto, Edmonton, and just ahead of Calgary, New Jersey, and Buffalo. It's not surprising to see teams like Boston, Chicago and San Jose all in the top five in the same category. The Wild had four shots in their first man advantage, but only managed three shots in the other five power play opportunities - one of which was a four minute double-minor. So when the Wild, who have to work doubly hard to score goals, aren't taking lots of shots, it's super troubling for fans to watch.

The Wild are still very much in control of their own destiny and are still six points ahead of Dallas in the standings, but they can not afford to let this skid continue on. I still think they will make the playoffs, BUT (and that's a big 'but') they need to have a coming to the Hockey Gods kind of moment and change into a team that is nowhere near the team Wild fans witnessed Wednesday and Thursday. To have a team personality change this late into the season is almost unheard of and would require a miracle, but for the team, their post-season aspirations will be short-lived, and maybe unrealized if this skid lingers.