Thursday's Talker: Minnesota fans can sympathize with those in D.C.

Maybe it's only because we pay particular attention to these things when they actually happen, but it does seem like Minnesota teams have a habit of losing in bunches and creating nights (or long weekends) when it seems like nothing goes right.

So here in Minnesota, we can relate to what happened to fans of Washington, D.C., teams on Wednesday.

Well, at least we can sort of relate.

The Capitals lost Game 7 of their NHL playoff series to the rival Penguins 2-0. It was a home game, and it continued a trend of underachieving in the playoffs after remarkable regular seasons, making matters much worse.

The Wizards, meanwhile, were blown out 123-101 in Game 5 of their NBA playoff series against Boston. The series isn't over yet — the Celtics are now up 3-2 — but it means Washington has to win the next two, which would include Game 7 back in Boston.

If the night began with relentless optimism that two teams had the potential to reach the conference finals in their respective sports, it ended in colossal disappointment.

How did fans respond? They were unhappy enough that the Washington Post captured several of them on video venting after the Capitals game. "This was supposed to be the greatest night in D.C. sports history, and we blew it!" one bellowed. "I'm a D.C. sports fan. I know nothing but loss," lamented another.

That said, we can't entirely relate to the whole NBA/NHL playoff dynamic here in Minnesota. After all, there has only been one season during which both the Wild and Timberwolves made the playoffs — 2002-03.

There was one glorious night of April 22, 2003, when the Wolves defeated the Lakers in Game 2 of their series at Target Center while the Wild won Game 7 in Colorado. (I was helping cover the Wolves game that night and watched Andrew Brunette's goal on the Target Center media room TV.)

The Wolves went on to win Game 3 of that first-round series in Los Angeles before losing the final three games. The Wild made it all the way to the conference finals before scoring just one goal in a four-game sweep at the hands of Anaheim.

The Wolves made the playoffs the following season and haven't been back since. The Wild have had more success than the Wolves, but that remains the franchise's only trip to the conference finals.

But hey, at least in Washington on Wednesday the Nationals rallied from a 6-2 deficit to defeat the Orioles 7-6. If this was Minnesota, that game would have ended with the bases loaded in a 6-5 loss.