Wild Make Big Jump in this Week’s Power Rankings
By Nick Fritz
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After going 3-0-0 over the last seven days, the Wild are getting a lot more respect in this week’s power rankings. They jumped to the top spot in two different rankings.
More importantly, they’re within reach of the 3rd seed in the division. The Wild sit just three points behind the Blackhawks with a match-up on the horizon.
Average Ranking: 4th
High: 1
Low: 8
This week: #1 — Last Week: #5
“The Wild are 26-6-2 since their turnaround in mid-January, including five straight wins of late. Balanced scoring, air-tight defense and, of course, the steady netminding of Doobie, Doobie, Do!”
This week: #8 — Last Week: #11
“Devan Dubnyk for MVP? It’s not as crazy as it sounds, even if the Hart is Carey Price’s to lose. The Wild have rattled off five consecutive wins to put pressure on the Central teams ahead of them in the standings. If this run can continue into the postseason, look out.”
BleacherReport.com Power Rankings:
This week: #1 — Last Week: #7
“Recent Trend: Minnesota’s been one of the hottest teams in the NHL for several months now, and that shows no signs of changing. The Wild went 4-0 this week and currently hold a five-game winning streak.
Big Picture: Minnesota briefly moved past Chicago for control of third in the Central Division, but a Blackhawks win on Sunday bumped them back down. The Wild have been the best team in the NHL since bringing aboard Devan Dubnyk in mid-January; the team’s plus-47 goal differential is 19 better than the next-closest club since then.”
This week: #8 — Last Week: #8
“The Minnesota Wild were 18-19-5 when they acquired Devan Dubnyk from Arizona and are 26-6-2 with him in net. He has taken the Wild from a team that was underachieving to a team that could represent the Western Conference in the Stanley Cup Final and is a lock to be a finalist for the Vezina Trophy. He has allowed more than three goals only once in his time with Minnesota and with one of the league’s best defenses in front of him, this is a team that no one will want to see in the playoffs.”
This week: #6 — Last Week: #6
“Minnesota has no choice but to re-sign goalie and catalyst Devan Dubnyk this offseason when he becomes an unrestricted free agent. But what should that contract look like for a guy who has only proven he can be a star for three-fourths of one season?”
This week: #2 — Last Week: #7
(Takes average of 3 rankings)
“MUIR (1): I can’t imagine what more my esteemed colleagues need to see before they finally elevate the Wild to the top spot on their ballots. Minnesota has won five straight and is now 24-5-1 since the All-Star break. It’s time to drop the preconceptions and recognize that there has not been a better team in hockey during the second half. With six games left in the season, including a beauty on Thursday night against the Rangers, the Wild could wind up with home ice for the playoffs. You betta recognize.
KWAK (4): The Wild show no signs of cooling their torrid second-half pace. Winning five straight, this team could shoot up and out of wild card position and maybe even win home-ice advantage. With five points in his last three games, Mikko Koivu has also helped boost Nino Niederreiter, who scored twice against L.A. on Saturday.
PAGE (2): This says it all for me.