Making it into the playoffs in any sport is, by definition, granting a team the opportunity to win a championship. But in some sports, seeding matters more than others. In the NHL, it matters less than in any other major team sport, the NFL's recent history of producing Super Bowl champs from low seeds notwithstanding.

As such, the Wild's deadline moves — including nabbing three-time 30-goal scorer Matt Moulson from Buffalo on Wednesday in what likely amounts to a late-season rental — are evidence that this year is about more than just a token appearance even if Minnesota is probably locked into a low seed.

that was fast At 4:01 p.m. I got an e-mail confirming the Wild's trade. At 4:05 p.m., @mnwild posted a picture of the new players' jerseys on Twitter.

savvy Dumping Luol Deng in a trade in January not only saved the Bulls money, but it also spurred a turnaround, per yahoo.com.