The Minnesota Wild have a four-point lead on the final wild-card spot in the Western Conference with four games left to play.
Making the playoffs would prove to be a triumph in itself considering the slew of injury woes the club has endured throughout the 2024-25 campaign.
Franchise star Kirill Kaprizov was in Hart Trophy consideration early in the season until suffering an injury. The Russian goal scorer then missed a month to a lower-body injury before returning to action for three games and subsequently needing to undergo surgery in late January.
Kaprizov has missed 28 games and 41 overall this season.
Joel Eriksson Ek, another invaluable piece of the roster, has made appearances back in the lineup on five separate occasions, but he has missed the last 21 games after hardly being able to walk because of a lower-body injury.
