Greg Wyshynski: Considering that Bruce Boudreau has spent just one season out of the postseason -- 2011-12, when he was fired in Washington and then hired in Anaheim Ducks -- it was safe to assume that the Minnesota Wild would make the Western Conference playoffs. Instead, the Wild have been humbled by injuries to players like Zach Parise, Nino Niederreiter and Charlie Coyle and have stumbled to a 5-7-2 record.
They're giving up 3.07 goals per game, up from 2.51 for the 2016-17 season. They're the second-worst possession team in the league, at a 45.