Of the teams that made a coaching change during the 2019-20 season, the Minnesota Wild are clearly one of the clubs that had something great going with the replacement. And prior to the season restart, the team removed the interim tag from Dean Evason's job title.
The Wild ran into a razor-hot Vancouver Canucks club in the qualification round, so their bubble journey ended quickly. What will the 2020-21 season bring? Here's everything you need to know prior to opening night:
Big question: Is this a playoff team?
The Wild were roped into the postseason through the 24-team tournament expansion last summer; otherwise, their .558 points percentage wasn't enough to make the cut. But this Minnesota team, coached by last year's interim boss Dean Evason, should be better than that edition. The Wild added offense to a group that has a rising star in Kevin Fiala; and, in Cam Talbot, have improved their goaltending in back of a defense whose analytics were some of the best in the league last season.
The West Division has at least one playoff spot that's up for grabs, and the Wild could be the ones to own it.
