Weekly NHL Power Rankings Overview: Wild Average 9th
By Nick Fritz
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I was surprised to see a few websites still have the Wild as low as 11 or 12. Minnesota has the #1 record since the all-star break, which seems like a long time ago at this point.
It seems like they are cautiously optimistic about the Wild, especially with a daunting final stretch of games.
However, ESPN, who had Minnesota at #3 last week, was the only ranking where the Wild dropped.
Overall, no real surprises and a lot of praise for the Wild and Devan Dubnyk.
This week: #5 — Last Week: #3
“Coming off a loss to the Ducks, the Wild were outshot 42-19 by the Blues but escaped with a 3-1 win in St. Louis thanks to feel-good story Devan Dubnyk.”
This week: #6 — Last Week: #5
“Still not a believer? Check out what this team has done on the road. Their 3–1 win Saturday in St. Louis was their seventh straight away from home, tying the franchise record, and it moved them to a league-best 11-1-2 in enemy barns since Jan. 14 when, coincidentally, they acquired Devan Dubnyk in a trade with Arizona.”
BleacherReport.com Power Rankings:
This week: #10 — Last Week: #10
“Minnesota is in a tough position to climb into a top-three spot in the Central, but since bringing in Devan Dubnyk, the team has been one of the very best in the league. The Wild aren’t entirely out of the woods yet (Los Angeles is only four points back), but they have a real chance of making some noise in the postseason. ”
This week: #10 — Last Week: #12
“A franchise-record 14 players found the score sheet in the Wild’s 6-2 win over New Jersey. Minnesota’s 17-3-1 run since the All-Star break has it challenging Chicago for third place in the Central Division.”
This week: #12 — Last Week: #12
“The Wild have become one of the most difficult teams to score against since Devan Dubnyk arrived. Minnesota has allowed two goals or fewer in 21 games since Jan. 15. That’s bad news for whoever gets them in the first round of the playoffs.”
More from Minnesota Wild
- Minnesota Wild: a pleasant early season surprise
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- Wild lose Parise, game four, quite possibly the series
- Down 0-2, Wild aren’t worried yet
This week: #11 — Last Week: #11
“I have the Minnesota Wild just outside the upper-tier but you can make the case that they are a Stanley Cup contender with the way this team has played since acquiring Devan Dubnyk from Arizona in mid-January. They’ve gone 20-5-2 with Dubnyk in net and for the third year in a row could be an awfully tough out in the postseason. The schedule is rather daunting to finish the season, so it’ll be interesting to see how they fare against some of the elite teams in the league because if they have confidence heading into the postseason, look out for this team in the playoffs.”
Are the Wild getting enough credit? Leave your thoughts below!
Next: Top-4 Wild Goalie Performances: Is Duby the Best?
Mar 14, 2015; St. Louis, MO, USA; Minnesota Wild right wing Nino Niederreiter (22) celebrates with Minnesota Wild center Mikko Koivu (9) after scoring a goal against the St. Louis Blues during the third period at Scottrade Center. The Minnesota Wild defeat the St. Louis Blues 3-1. Mandatory Credit: Jasen Vinlove-USA TODAY Sports