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DUNLAP ISLAND… All of the Minnesota Wild faithful already know what a rollercoaster of a season this has been thus far, and for a variety of reasons. You had a goalie with a life challenging health situation appearing ready to come back in and take us to the heights of the early 2013-14 season until he melted down right before camp, fought a cement wall, and the wall won a 2 out of 3 no disqualification bout. (there may be a cage match in the works, and I’m betting on the wall again) Two of the most prominent heart and soul guys on the club lost their fathers, the team has had injuries and the battle against the NHL mumps mini-epidemic and it has been a circus.

On the ice, the team looked promising early and then things began to turn south. Scoring by the team was challenging, the defense that had been a hallmark of the club was giving up a lot of chances and goals, and in turn the goaltending duo of Darcy Kuemper and Niklas Backstrom were under siege. What looked like a team ready to move upward in the Western Conference was soon no longer in the playoff picture. To make matters worse, the team the Wild had whupped twice to begin the season was suddenly looking at  them in their rearview playoff mirror. The Wild started the season by shutting out the Colorado Avalanche twice and some fans were getting their white Stanley Cup gloves ready to help polish up the silver beauty for handoff to the NorthStar state. 

Not so fast Baba Louie. A lot of hockey media said that the problems of the club rested with the quality of the play between the pipes. I am a guy that usually believes that it takes 6 guys at a time to prevent goals. And I still see the game that way. I am reluctant to single out goalies for the fortunes of a team or lack thereof. As this situation went forth though I grimaced as I watched Kuemps and Backy play game after game. As the losses mounted and the playoffs appeared out the window, team GM Chuck Fletcher took a chance and made a deal with the Arizona Coyotes for Devan Dubnyk. Duby was/is a goaltending journeyman of sorts. 

He has plied his trade for a few seasons in unremarkable situations on poor teams, receiving more scorn then kudos for his efforts. He has come on to the Wild and made quite an impression so far. The team is still on the outside looking in as far as the playoffs go, but there are some factors in their favor, and if the Wild utilize those to their advantage they just might squeak in. Before you jump for joy though bear in mind that the teams performance through December and January did a lot of damage to their chances. So much so that as well as they have played lately they still may not get in. 

What are those factors I speak of? Here is a quick glimpse; Winnipeg is 8 points ahead of the Wild but have played four more games. The Wild would have to win all four of those just to pull even. They are 5 points behind Calgary with 2 games in hand but the Flame is 7-3 in their L10. They are tied at 56 points with the NorthStars and Kings. They hold 2 games in hand on the N-Stars and 1 on the King. Again, have to win them to make them mean anything. They are up 1 point on the Av’s with 3 games in hand. In the end I think the team is going to have to ride Duby for as long as they can, Kuemps just came back from a fairly poor conditioning stint at Iowa and injury and surgery appear to have caught up with Backy, if Duby is up for it the Wild just might have a sporting chance….

WITH THE LAST THIRD OF the season upon us post All Star break here is how I currently see the MFAN NHL top 16, irrespective of any current playoff positioning; 

1. NASHVILLE PREDATORS, overall game as big as G Pekka Rinne right now…

2. DETROIT RED WINGS, what the? That’s right, a very quiet 9-1 in their L10...

3. CHICAGO BLACKHAWKS, beat red hot Blues on their own sheet this aft…

4. ANAHEIM DUCK, beat Preds in their barn last week, in a 3 period KO….

5. TAMPA BAY LIGHTNING, back in East lead after roasting Duck at home today…

6. ST. LOUIS BLUES, 12-2 prior to Hawk defeat today…

7. MONTREAL CANADIENS, completed 4-0 season sweep of Bruin this eve…

8. NEW YORK ISLANDER, the Izzles have won 34 games so far, no typo here….

9. CALGARY FLAMES, 7-3 L10, and no, you don’t want them in a playoff series…

10. PITTSBURGH PENGUIN, remarkable record in spite of injury and illness, playoffs?

11. NEW YORK RANGERS, King is out injured for 3 weeks, should make tourney…

12. SAN JOSE SHARK, good stretches, bad stretches, should anything be expected?

13. WASHINGTON CAPITALS, Ovenchicken actually playing defense for new coach… 

14. MINNESOTA WILD, hot goalie, renewed purpose, dark cloud past, 7-2-1 L10.…..

15. WINNIPEG JETS, moron young star on IR, club moving forward, improved play…

16. BOSTON BRUIN, lost to Habs tonight, 6-3-1 L10, still in playoff pic….

THERE WAS A FEATURE STORY ON former UMD and Minnesota NorthStars defenseman and current Edina High School Head Coach Curt Giles in a recent edition of the Minneapolis Star Tribune. If you didn’t catch it, you could probably pull it up easy on their search tab. As is the case with most high school programs of any merit, Giles has his supporters and detractors, but he has mostly had success, earning him mentions in the same breath as legendary coach Willard Ikola. Congrats to the Penguin, King of the hip check! PEACE

Marc Elliott is a sports opinion writer who splits his time between his hometown in Illinois and Minnesota