If the NHL Stanley Cup playoffs started today, the Wild would be matched up with Dallas in the first round.
The Stars are the top team in the Western Conference with 97 points and 44 wins. Four of those victories were against the Wild.
The Wild's only win against Dallas was the final game before a 1-13 stretch that led to former coach Mike Yeo's firing. However, three of the four losses ended in overtime, arguing the Wild's 1-4 record against the Stars isn't as bad as it looks.
Dallas has eight games remaining, six against quality teams (more points than games played), to try and hold onto the top spot in the conference. St. Louis is only two points behind, Los Angeles is four points back, and Chicago six points. With eight games left in each of these team's regular-season schedule, the top spot could belong to anyone in a few weeks.
The Wild is 2-3 with an overtime loss against St. Louis. The Wild improved 2-1 against Los Angeles Tuesday night.The Wild is 4-0 against Chicago this season, including a win in the NHL Stadium Series outdoor game.
The Wild also has eight more games, five against quality opponents, to hold onto the final wild-card spot. Arguably the most important of the bunch is Saturday at Colorado. The Avalanche is one point behind the Wild in the chase for the postseason. Colorado has nine games remaining, all against quality opponents.
How the seedings/matchups are determined:
-- The division leader in each conference with the most points plays the wild card team with the fewest points.
-- The division leader with the second highest amount of points plays the wild card team with the most points.
-- The second and third seeds in each division face one another in the first round.
Race for top seed
(Record, points, last 10 games)
Dallas: 44-21-9, 97 points, 6-2-2
St. Louis: 43-22-0, 95 points, 8-2-0
Los Angeles: 44-24-5, 93 points, 6-3-1
Chicago: 42-25-7, 91 points, 3-5-2
