By Tom Schreier -
They say nothing good happens after midnight, especially in Vegas. Yet, here we are, staring down a 10:00 pm Central puck drop in Sin City.
The NHL wants its playoff games on national television. ESPN knows fewer fans leaguewide will watch the Minnesota Wild-Vegas Golden Knights game than the Florida Panthers and Tampa Bay Lightning, which they put in primetime. So, the officials will drop the puck after you put your kids to bed, and you’ll be a little bleary-eyed at work tomorrow.
It doesn’t have to be this way. The Wild could play this game at 8:30 pm Central Time and the home games at 7:30 pm. It might be a little later than we’d all prefer, but Vegas is on Pacific Time. 5:30 and 6:30 pm games feel like the proper compromise.
Game 2 is huge for the Wild. They can flip the home-ice advantage by stealing one in Vegas. However, that matters little to Bill in Brookline and Scott in Southfield. They may be die-hard hockey fans, growing up with the game outside of Boston and Detroit, respectively. However, they probably think this series is over.
Vegas has the Wild beat.
The sportsbooks have the Golden Knights as a -250 favorite to win Game 2. Moneypuck gives the Wild a 20% chance of advancing. That’s the NHL’s worst odds, down from 32.6% when the series started. Minnesota and Vegas might be somewhat even five-on-five. However, the refs will eventually call penalties, and the Knights will run up the score by capitalizing on the man advantage.
Still, you may dismiss that the series is over. You may be a true believer. Kirill Kaprizov and Joel Eriksson Ek are healthy! Zeev Buium has arrived from Denver! Matt Boldy potted two goals last night!
That’s all fine and dandy. Believe in miracles, to borrow a phrase.
Analytically, if the Wild play this series five times, they win it once. Still, that’s better than once every nine times! You’re gonna tune into Tuesday’s game, sleep be damned. So will people in Vegas, who never sleep. They’re also fretting about this series. What if the Knights blow this? All fans are fatalistic.
Still, the Wild and Golden Knights fans are more invested in this series than anyone else. ESPN has tacitly stated that puckheads from Revere or Royal Oak are more interested in a game between two Florida teams. I will whisper this softly, but they’re probably right.
ESPN can’t play two games on its flagship at once. The Toronto Maple Leafs and Ottawa Senators are running on the deuce. So many teams are playing right now because half the league makes the playoffs. Minnesota’s nine playoff appearances in 11 years, but failure to advance only highlights its mediocrity.
Medford Mike doesn’t want to watch the Wild, but you want to support the local team. Still, you deserve better – we all do.
Play Minnesota’s games on local television. Drop the puck at a time that respects people’s work schedules. Allow kids to watch and become fans. Nobody cares about this game outside of Woodbury and Henderson. Bloomington and Summerlin. Lakeville and Spring Valley.
Focus on the fans who believe in this team. They’ve found reasons to hope, even when the Wild repeatedly lose in the first round. Don’t make them stay up for this one. Nothing good ever happens after midnight. No hockey game should ever start at 10:00 pm.
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