Report: The Minnesota Wild switched their playoff goalie just before game one in Dallas, in part due to recent tension in the locker room.

Rookie Wallstedt gets the nod over Gustavsson for Game 1. Coach Hynes reveals the complex factors behind the critical starting goaltender decision.

The Minnesota Wild have entered the Stanley Cup playoffs with fully professed confidence in both of their goalies. After the Wild practiced on Thursday ahead of their trip to Dallas for the first round series, coach John Hynes declined to answer the question about who will get the net for Game 1 against the Stars on Saturday afternoon. Gustavsson has long figured to be the favorite for his experience, making 49 starts in his third season as the primary starter for the Wild.

A pivotal showdown looms as star netminders face off. Who will steal the spotlight and lead their team to victory?

The Wild’s Game 1 starter against Dallas was once a formality. Now, Filip Gustavsson’s late-season struggles and Jesper Wallstedt’s surge have turned it into a defining playoff decision for Minnesota.

ST. LOUIS — The Minnesota Wild’s two options for puck-stopping duties, veteran Filip Gustavsson and rookie Jesper Wallstedt, speak the same language. They play similar styles, and they are comparable physically. Their numbers, with two regular-season games remaining, are shockingly similar. Gustavsson’s goals-against average, after 49 appearances, is 2.64. Wallstedt’s, after his 34th ...

The Minnesota Wild lost their shot at home-ice vs the Dallas Stars Thursday, but the Stars may have lost star defenseman Miro Heiskanen.

The Minnesota Wild will enter the playoffs with a clear identity shaped over the regular season. The bigger question now is whether that identity can translate when the pace intensifies, and mistakes start to carry more weight. It Starts in Net Goaltending has proven to be a key component of success in the Stanley Cup […] The post Wild Have the Playoff Tools, Now They Must Bring Them Every Night appeared first on The Lead.

Thursday’s Wild win over Vancouver was filled with superlatives for Minnesota’s NHL club. Not only did the 5-2 victory clinch a playoff spot for the 12th time in the past 14 seasons, goals by Matt Boldy and Kirill Kaprizov made them the first duo to each record 40 in a single season in franchise history. In addition, a second-period assist by Quinn Hughes gave him the franchise’s single-season ...