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Kirill Kaprizov has reportedly turned down an eight-year, $128 million contract extension offer from the Wild
The Minnesota Wild are on a 7-7-2 run since the Olympic break. However, they’re still incredibly close to locking up a playoff spot very soon.
The next time the Wild win a game, they will be locked in. This rang true on Saturday as well. If Minnesota didn’t get crushed by the Bruins and instead won, they would be locked in right now.
The twist is, the Wild may not even have to play again before they get locked in. Minnesota can actually lock up a playoff spot on Monday night.
Minnesota Wild Playoff-Clinching Scenarios for Monday, March 30th
GettyST PAUL, MINNESOTA – JANUARY 10: Matt Boldy #12 of the Minnesota Wild celebrates his power-play goal against the New York Islanders with teammates in the first period at Grand Casino Arena on January 10, 2026 in St Paul, Minnesota. (Photo by David Berding/Getty Images)
NHL.com recently shared the playoff-clinching scenarios across the league for Monday, March 30th. The Wild are coincidentally the only team that actually can clinch tonight. Take a look at how Minnesota can lock themselves in as early as tonight,
“The Minnesota Wild (idle) will clinch a playoff berth if the Vancouver Canucks defeat the Vegas Golden Knights (10 p.m. ET; SCRIPPS, SNP) in any fashion AND the St. Louis Blues defeat the San Jose Sharks (10 p.m. ET; FDSNMW, NBCSCA+) in regulation.”
The Wild don’t play again until Thursday night when they host the Vancouver Canucks. It’s hard to say that if the team does clinch the playoffs on Monday that they will have any more reason to finish the season strong.
The team should have all of the motivation in the world right now, as they know they need to go into the first round with some momentum. With the Dallas Stars likely waiting for them in that first round, the Wild know they can’t go in flat-footed.
Minnesota Likely to Get Dallas Round 1, As Expected
GettyST PAUL, MINNESOTA – DECEMBER 11: The Minnesota Wild react after scoring in the third period against the Dallas Stars at Grand Casino Arena on December 11, 2025 in St Paul, Minnesota. (Photo by Ellen Schmidt/Getty Images)
Julian McKenzie of The Athletic shared some insight on the Wild and Stars clash in Round 1, something we’ve all seen coming for months.
“Thanks to the current playoff format, two of the NHL’s top five teams are on a collision course to face each other in the opening round. As entertaining a series as Dallas-Minnesota would be, wouldn’t it be more fun to see them play each other in the second or third round? Commissioner Gary Bettman doesn’t think so!”
After detailing the daunting task that beating Dallas will be, McKenzie shared some insight on the Wild.
“Last September, the Wild signed Kirill Kaprizov to a lengthy extension. Months later, they swung for the fences and acquired superstar defenseman Quinn Hughes from Vancouver. They made ancillary tweaks at the deadline, landing pieces such as Nick Foligno, Michael McCarron, Bobby Brink and Jeff Petry.
Should they have landed a center such as Vincent Trocheck? Maybe. But this is a strong Wild team armed with a strong goaltending tandem of Filip Gustavsson and Jesper Wallstedt.”
Brevan Bane Brevan Bane is a sports scribe covering the NFL for Heavy.com, with a focus on the Minnesota Vikings and Cincinnati Bengals. Brevan began his writing career by making a platform on Twitter and leveraging his presence into writing and content creation opportunities for outlets like PurplePTSD, Vikings Territory, The Noise, Hockey Wilderness, and the VikesNow YouTube channel. You can follow him on X @brevmanbane. More about Brevan Bane
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