playoff primer
• The Wild (26-19-3) will be the eighth seed in the West and open on the road against top-seeded Chicago (36-7-5) in a best-of-seven series beginning Tuesday or Wednesday. The Wild and Blackhawks have never met in the playoffs. Chicago won the season series 2-1.
• This will be the Wild's fourth playoff appearance in its 13 years of existence and its first since the 2007-08 season.
• Five current Wild players were on that 2008 playoff team: Mikko Koivu, Pierre-Marc Bouchard, Stephane Veilleux, Niklas Backstrom, Josh Harding.
• Its overall playoff record is 11-18. The only time it advanced past the first round was in 2003, when it reached the Western Conference finals.
