Usually, when things are going badly in Minnesota sports, there's something that passes for a silver lining. The Lynx have filled that role frequently since they started winning championships in 2011, and other teams have stepped up their games at times to give us a break.

In fact, at this time last year, we were in the midst of quite a run with the Lynx winning the WNBA title and the Twins making an unexpected appearance as a wild-card team. The Vikings, Wolves and Wild also made the playoffs. Minnesota United didn't have much success, but expectations were modest because of its expansion status in Major League Soccer. If you learned most of the words to the team's chants, it was a successful debut year,

Right now, though, what is there to feel good about? That feeling may be all the more acute because of the thrills and surprises that were part of 2017-18.

HOWARD SINKER