The race for the final two spots out west is not anywhere near as packed as it is out east. However, that’s not to say it won’t be as exciting.
Minnesota has all but locked in their Wild Card spot, one win down the stretch and the Wild will be in the postseason. They head to Winnipeg tonight, before returning home to the Xcel Energy Center for their final three home games. In those three games Boston, St. Louis, and Nashville will come through Minnesota.
The real race here is for the final spot. Dallas only has a one point lead over Phoenix heading into this final week.
The Stars have three home games at American Airlines Center this week. They’ll host Nashville, Columbus, and St. Louis before heading to the final game of the season in Phoenix.
Phoenix starts their final week just one point behind Dallas. The Coyotes aren’t in action until tomorrow in Columbus, before heading to Nashville. Phoenix finishes with it’s final two games at home against San Jose and Dallas.
“Anything can happen,” defenseman Zbynek Michalek said in the Arizona Republic. “So we’re going to believe until mathematically it’s not possible that we can get into the playoffs, and we’ll keep battling until the last possible minute and keep gaining points and we’ll see what happens.”
Things are shaping up to come down to the final game of the season. Hopefully this plays out into a Sunday showdown.
Wild Card Predictions: Minnesota Wild and Dallas Stars
photo credit: getty images