The next chapter of the Wild-Blues rivalry is almost here.
After playing outdoors and in two competitive, overtime games in St. Louis earlier this season, the Wild and Blues will reunite in the playoffs for Game 1 in a first round, best-of-seven series that begins Monday night at Xcel Energy Center.
Puck drop is 8:30 p.m. The game will be carried by ESPN and Bally Sports North.
"We're a confident hockey club," Wild coach Dean Evason said.
Marc-Andre Fleury was the first Wild goalie off the ice at morning skate, which usually indicates who the starter is. Fleury, a three-time Stanley Cup champion the Wild acquired on March 21 in a trade with the Blackhawks, has yet to face the Blues this season with the Wild.
"It's not a tough decision, right?" Evason said. "It's an easy decision because we feel both are more than capable of starting for us here. We're excited about the opportunity to have both guys available if we need it, and we probably will."
Nothing has changed for injured forwards Marcus Foligno and Mats Zuccarello; if they give the green light that they can play, they'll be in the lineup.
This is the third time the Wild and Blues have squared off in the playoffs, with the Wild prevailing in 2015 and then St. Louis in 2017. That meeting five years ago was also the last time the Wild had home-ice advantage in the first round.
