Minnesota's side of this is simpler. The Wild beat Philadelphia 4-2 in their last game, scoring in every period, with Boldy, McCarron, Eriksson Ek and Yurov all getting goals and Jesper Wallstedt allowing 2. Wallstedt has been the starter since Filip Gustavsson went down with a hip injury, and that hip is supposed to keep Gustavsson out for at least another month. He's been sharp: early in the season he stopped 45 of 47 shots. Quinn Hughes and Kirill Kaprizov drive the top of the lineup, and that combination has Minnesota at 4-1 in its last 5 as of Wednesday.
The asterisk on the Wild is their blue line. Jared Spurgeon is on IR, and Brock Faber is still out after fracturing his skull on a puck in the last preseason game. Faber has cleared return-to-play protocol and could resume skating within days, but nobody has given a timetable. Minnesota has won without him anyway. For a Sharks team trying to build a power play around Smith at the point, though, a Wild defense missing 2 regulars is the most obvious opening on the schedule.
Minnesota also gets a rest edge. The Wild's last game was the Philadelphia win, and they've got nothing else on the calendar, so they sit at home while San Jose plays in LA and then flies to St. Paul. If Celebrini's line keeps generating chances and finally starts finishing, this gets interesting. If the Sharks' scoring looks like it has lately, Minnesota's depth scoring and a goalie on a roll should handle it.
