ST. PAUL — The Minnesota Wild know what's at stake when they host the Vegas Golden Knights on Saturday afternoon.
The Wild — who currently sit eight points outside of the playoff picture — simply can't afford to lose as their quest for the second wild-card spot in the West continues with 10 games left.
“It’s probably the biggest game of the year again,” Filip Gustavsson said Thursday, “so we need to win that.”
“Every game is important, but for sure that one,” Jonas Brodin said.
“We need to win against those guys because they’re in front of us. … It’s going to be a playoff game. They’re a good team, and it’s going to be good.”
Saturday's contest has serious implications on their playoff odds. The Wild currently have a 5.2% chance of making the postseason for a fifth straight season and 11th time in the past 12 years, according to MoneyPuck.com. If they lose to Vegas Saturday, their chances are realistically all but over.
The Wild sit eight points behind the eighth-place L.A. Kings. But the Kings are only one point behind the Golden Knights — who have held the second wild-card spot for a while until they leapfrogged the Kings with a win on Thursday — with a game in hand.
That's why Saturday's game is so important. Simply put, the Wild must win the two games they have left against Vegas this season. And to make matters more difficult, the Wild have to worry about the St. Louis Blues, too, who have a three-point lead over the Wild. So, making the playoffs is no guarantee for the Wild even if the Kings or Golden Knights get in a rut.
“We’ve gotta get these points to push to try to get in that spot, but you can’t stress about them,” Matt Boldy said. “I think that doesn’t end up helping if you sit there and you’re just constantly stressing and worrying. It comes down to the guys in our locker room playing the right way and finding a way to win.”
Time is running out on the Wild, but they enjoy these important games like Saturday's at this time of the season.
“It’s fun to play those games that matter,” Joel Eriksson Ek said. “That’s what everyone wants to do.
“For us, (we) just take one game at a time and see where we come out.”
And they're comfortable with the pressure because of their experience.
“We have a lot of veteran guys in here that have been doing this a lot of times,” Brodin said, “so I think we feel comfortable with these games and yeah I think we’ve been showing that lately here. Just gotta keep winning.”
Make sure you bookmark The Hockey News' Minnesota Wild page for the latest news, exclusive interviews, breakdowns and so much more