ST. PAUL, Minn. — This is what the Wild are supposed to look like.
There was Kirill Kaprizov, the team’s engine, playing arguably his best game of the season. Quinn Hughes and Brock Faber were buzzing from the blue line on. Jesper Wallstedt was as calm and confident as a 10-year veteran. But there was also just a relentlessness, a physicality and defensive commitment that made Minnesota one of the league’s best teams this year.
“That’s the style of game that gives us a chance to win,” coach John Hynes said.
“Tonight,” Brock Faber said, “was the way we play.”
What a difference a few days make. Now, we have a series, with the Wild’s dominant, 5-1 victory over the Avalanche Saturday night pulling them to within 2-1 in the best-of-seven second round. There’s still a long way to go, but this type of performance provides a template to beat the Presidents’ Trophy winners.
“It’s massive,” Wallstedt said. “Right now, it feels like we’re right back in it. I think we proved to everyone, and ourselves, that when we play the right way, when we play the game style that we want to play, we’re just as good as anyone else, and especially these guys.”
It’s not surprising that the Wild came with more desperation. Their season was pretty much on the line here, as an 0-3 series deficit would have been a death knell. This was like a Game 7. “A do-or-die game for them,” Colorado’s Cale Makar said.
But it’s one thing to feel that pressure and another to thrive in it. And the Wild were all over Colorado from the opening faceoff. They looked mentally and physically refreshed after the three-day break following Game 2. Just think about how much emotion they were dealing with after their first series victory in a decade, and then they were in Denver less than 48 hours later. This was an important reset for them, the ability to rest and prepare fully for the best team in the league.
“We were a little soft in Game 1 and Game 2, just our pace of play was soft,” Marcus Foligno said. “I thought they looked quicker than we did. I just feel like a little bit of rest helped us get our bearings a little bit. It was a tough series against Dallas and you kind of get thrown right into it. So to come in here, we knew our backs were against the wall, and it’s great to play the way we did.
“They’re a heck of a team, but if we play that style, our game, it shows it works.”
Here was Marcus Foligno (nine hits) and brother Nick (six), setting the one with a combined 15 hits and putting together a consistent forecheck and offensive zone pressure. Here was Kaprizov, blazing through the middle of the zone and accepting a pass from Faber before an elite finish on a bad-angled shot.
THAT ANGLE!? disgusting 🤢 pic.twitter.com/Qe4cv9gW0N
— x – Minnesota Wild (@mnwild) May 10, 2026
“I thought it was his best game all year,” Foligno said. “Definitely the driving force behind the win.”
The Avalanche had trailed for about four minutes combined in their first six playoff games, and now the Wild finally had a lead which they extended to a 3-0 edge by the five minute mark of the second period, chasing goalie Scott Wedgewood. A big reason why was improved special teams. The power play, mired in a 2-for-26 funk, scored twice. And the much-maligned penalty kill came through with two key kills early on, going 2 for 3 overall.
“I thought our details were good, and when we had opportunities to block shots we blocked them and when we needed a save we got it,” Hynes said. “I think that was the difference.”
The Wild started the right goalie, too. The curious switch from Wallstedt to Filip Gustavsson for Game 2 didn’t work out, as Gustavsson looked like a goalie who hadn’t played in three weeks. But Wallstedt admitted the break did help him focus on some adjustments he needed to make after giving up eight goals in Game 1.
“He’s a competitor. He’s got confidence. He’s been very solid, and I just thought he got right back to his game tonight,” Hynes said. “He’s proven throughout the playoffs that the moments don’t get too big for him. He’s very consistent. He’s solid and it was good to see him perform the way he did tonight.”
“’Wally,’” Marcus Foligno said, “is in the zone.”
Wild goalie Jesper Wallstedt looked more like himself after a rough Game 1 and time to refocus. (David Berding / Getty Images)
The Avalanche’s top guys were better in the first two games, especially Nathan MacKinnon, who scored their only goal on Saturday. But they were smothered this time by the physical Wild. Wallstedt said the Wild’s defensive zone habits were terrific, from their box outs to their stick positioning, taking away any time and space. Avalanche coach Jared Bednar said if MacKinnon’s line wasn’t on the ice, nothing was really going on for them.
“It looked to me like they had more determination,” Bednar said of the Wild. “They were more tenacious, more physical. And we tried to respond, but we didn’t get a lot out of our lines tonight. … Now it’s up to us to respond.”
The Wild didn’t give Colorado any life on Saturday, squeezing their last breaths out of them during six-on-five play. There were the Wild’s top players, from Kaprizov to Matt Boldy to Faber and captain Jared Spurgeon laying out to block shots in a four-goal game. Hynes didn’t think the same commitment was there for Games 1 and 2, but they got the message for Saturday, blocking 15 (to Colorado’s eight).
They weren’t going to be denied. And their stars led the way.
“The thing with those guys is that it’s nice when you have high-end players like that that have played in high-stakes environments and they play their best when the stakes are the highest,” Hynes said. “When the moments get hot, all those guys prove time and time again that they can bring their best.”
The Avalanche will have a response on Monday night in what feels like another must-win game for Minnesota. But the Wild passed their first test. They weren’t thinking about the daunting big picture, having to win four of five against Colorado. They didn’t panic or over-analyze during the three-day break. They found themselves again, or at least the style that got them back in the series. And they sound pretty loose, even though they’re still staring at a deficit.
“They’re the ones with pressure,” Wallstedt said of the Avalanche. “We know what we can do in our home rink. We know we have played great hockey here. I think they know if they give up one (game), we’re coming for the next one. And I think we showed that (Saturday).”
The Wild made all the right moves in this one, even switching up the defense pairs, with Daemon Hunt moving up to play with Spurgeon and playing well. They showed their special teams can actually be a strength, not an anchor. And now it’s the Avalanche with the goalie dilemma, having pulled Wedgewood for Mackenzie Blackwood.
What strikes veteran Zach Bogosian, part of a Stanley Cup team with the Tampa Bay Lightning, about this Wild group is their resilience and maturity.
“Just the belief we have,” Bogosian said. “I think we’ve dealt with adversity all year long and that’s something that’s not new to us. Just digging in your heels and being in an uncomfortable spot is something we have more experience this year with this group. That’s what we’ll fall back on. All we have to worry about is what happens within our walls.
“I like where we’re at. It can be easy to get down and over-analyze everything. But at the end, we just have to come out and win one game at the moment, and that’s the task at hand.”