The Wild Need To Turn Back the Clock To Fuel A Playoff Run

Minnesota Wild fans had a case of déjà vu over the weekend. Stuck in the middle of a stretch where they lost three out of four games coming out of the 4 Nations Tournament, general manager Bill Guerin got on the phone and acquired Gustav Nyquist from the Nashville Predators for a 2026 second-round pick.

The move calls back to a 2023 trade when Guerin acquired Nyquist from the Columbus Blue Jackets to give the Wild a boost at the deadline. But while the fit for this year’s team is debatable, Guerin might be on the right track as the Wild need to turn back the clock to make a run to the playoffs.

It begins with a callback to the 2022-23 Wild. Minnesota was in a precarious position, sitting in the final wild-card spot in the Western Conference with a four-point lead over the Predators on Feb. 9, 2023. 

The Wild weren’t the offensive powerhouse they were on their way to the playoffs the previous year and had just lost Kirill Kaprizov to a lower-body injury. Trying to play high-scoring games with their opponents seemed like a way to book tee times in early April, so then-head coach Dean Evason pivoted and installed a gritty brand of hockey.

Filip Gustavsson became a lynchpin in the change and responded with a blazing hot stretch. He posted a 6-0-4 record, allowing 1.6 goals per game and a .946 save percentage that took the load off the offense. Marc-André Fleury also did his part, going on a seven-game winning streak and posting a .934 save percentage over his next nine starts.

While the goaltending did its job, the offense did just enough to spark a 17-game point streak. The Wild scored 2.70 goals per game during the streak. However, 21 goals over the final four games inflated that number. Until the hot stretch at the end, the Wild averaged 1.92 goals per game in the first 13 games and leaned on Gustavsson and Fleury to lead the way.

The Wild didn’t have the extreme results they had during the 17-game point streak that helped them separate in the playoff chase and earn an automatic spot by jumping into third place in the Western Conference. Still, they continued to play the same brand of hockey with 2.87 goals and 2.35 goals against over the final 31 games. 

Minnesota even landed the first punch in their playoff series with the Dallas Stars, winning a 3-2 double-overtime thriller in Game 1 and scoring a 5-1 win at home in Game 3. However, Dallas’s offense overwhelmed the Wild, outscoring them 11-3 in the final three games to win the series in six.

It was a time that Wild fans gravitated and clung to as they watched their team this season. That run still has some sentimental value, and it may be the best way for Minnesota to proceed over the next few months.

Kaprizov is out with a lower-body injury again, while Joel Eriksson Ek has joined him on the shelf. Guerin told reporters he has no idea when either player will return, putting a gaping hole in the Wild’s offensive production. Minnesota could use the Mark Stone loophole by putting either player on long-term injured reserve to create salary cap space for a second trade deadline deal. However, Guerin is also optimistic that both players will return by the end of the regular season, forcing Minnesota to use what they have, barring a dollar-for-dollar trade.

That strategy manifested in Sunday’s 1-0 win over the Boston Bruins, which was decided by Frederick Gaudreau’s goal off his breezers and a 28-save shutout by Gustavsson. However, the Wild also have to wonder if that brand of hockey is sustainable with this group as it was with the team that made a late-season surge two years ago.

If you look at the season stats, you can see similarities. The 2022-23 Wild finished 23rd in goals per game (2.91) but ranked 10th in goals allowed (2.67). This year’s team also ranks 23rd in goals per game (2.80) and 10th in goals allowed (2.85). Still, much of that production has been with Kaprizov and Eriksson Ek, and the Wild’s defense hasn’t been the strength it was two years ago.

Minnesota’s blue line took a hit when Jonas Brodin was ruled week-to-week with a lower-body injury on Sunday and is littered with questions elsewhere. Brock Faber hasn’t missed a game but has looked sluggish coming out of the 4 Nations Tournament, and Jacob Middleton’s hot start has become a distant memory. Middleton has logged five points and a minus-9 rating in his last 21 games after a finger injury.

These are all negative developments, but not as big as what’s happening in the net. Gustavsson started the season on a mission to avenge last year and posted an 18-6-3 record with a 2.18 goals against average and .926 save percentage in his first 27 starts. However, he hasn't continued that success. In his past 13 games, Gustavsson has posted a 3.30 GAA and .892 save percentage with a 5-7-0 record.

The Wild cannot count on Fleury, 40, to be a workhorse goalie. Therefore, Gustavsson must be the best version of himself to finish the season. That included the 2023 stretch, where he and the Wild defense carried them to a playoff berth.

With over a month to go, they’ll have to replicate that so they're still in the playoff mix when Kaprizov and Eriksson Ek return.