On the surface, it appears that for most NHL teams, their starting lineups are set in stone for the playoffs. There isn't much room for players to step in and out of the lineup, and for the most part,

From talent to depth to the penalty kill and more, Minnesota is better prepared to beat Dallas than in the teams' previous playoff meeting.

The Wild’s playoff path isn’t unfair — it’s exactly what contenders are supposed to conquer. It takes 16 victories over four ravenous teams across two months of shared sacrifice for one bearded brigade to survive the physical and emotional furnace of the NHL playoffs and sip from Lord Stanley’s silver chalice.

The Minnesota Wild set the tone early and never let the Dallas Stars settle in, riding a strong start and a confident performance from backup goalie Jesper Wallstedt in a 6-1 Game 1 win. Their best players also delivered,

The Athletic spoke to players and coaches around the league for their insight on why Hughes can be a series-swinger for the Wild.

Wallstedt enters his first NHL playoff game having gone 18-9-6 as a starter, with a 2.61 goals-against average and a .916 save percentage.

Nine days ago, the Minnesota Wild went to American Airlines Arena with one goal: To prove they could go into the Dallas Stars' building and take it to them. And the message was almost received. The Wild out-attempted Dallas 60-41 while playing a physical,