How Excited Are We Allowed To Be Over The Wild

The Minnesota Wild are preparing for a semifinal matchup with the Chicago Blackhawks beginning on Friday night. It’s a rematch of last year’s semifinal matchup in which the Hawks clinched in overtime of game six. Before Nino Niederreiter netted the series winner against Colorado in round one last season, the last men’s franchise from Minnesota to make it out of their respective first round of playoff action was the 2009 Vikings. We all remember how that ended.

Heartbreak City part two is what I like to call the way the 2009 Vikings’ season ended when they lost in overtime of the NFC Championship game to New Orleans.

Parise is the Wild's leader on and off the ice

 Heartbreak City part one of course is the 1998 Vikings and their overtime loss to Atlanta in the NFC Championship game.

As Minnesota fans endear heartbreak after heartbreak with our favorite teams, I can’t help but ask the question, how excited are we allowed to get over this Wild squad? I’m only 28 and have had my high hopes and expectations crushed enough times to create skepticism, I can only imagine how older lifelong fans feel.

The Wild was 20-20-6 at the All-Star break and seven points out of a playoff spot, sitting ahead of only Edmonton and Arizona. Facing criticism, doubt within their own locker room and a possible coaching change, the team showed resiliency and finished 46-28-8 (Thank you Devan Dubnyk).

So how excited can we get for this resilient team? Well let’s see that by looking at the best Minnesota teams in recent history and see where the 2014-15 Wild stack up.

1998 Vikings: This is the number one reason not to get too excited about the Wild. Team had it all, most prolific offense in NFL history, a defense that ranked sixth in the league, 15-1 and demolishing everyone in their path. Then heartbreak city part one.

2002 Twins: The only reason I mention them is because they made it to the ALCS, but in all honesty, we were ecstatic about this team defeating Oakland in the ALDS. We won game one to give us dreams of playing in the World Series, but when the Angels took the next four, although sad, can you honestly say you were heartbroken?

2003 Wild: Finished the season with 95 points and the six seed. First time the franchise had made the playoffs, so really how high were hopes outside of the excitement of being in the postseason. This team gave Minnesotans a magical run of two series wins over Colorado and Vancouver after trailing both three game to one. They met their match and then some with the white hot J.S. Giguere and the Anaheim Ducks, who swept the Wild. Heartbroken? No, happy for what the magical run.

2004 Timberwolves: Led by league MVP Kevin Garnett, this was by far the best Timberwolves team in franchise history winning 58 games en route to the number one seed in the Western Conference. Had the Wolves lost in the first or second round to Denver and Sacramento, it would’ve been a disappointing season, they didn’t. They did however lose to the Lakers in the Western Conference Finals. Hard to consider that heartbreaking considering the Lakers NBA champions in three of the previous four seasons during the Shaq and Kobe era.

2006 Twins: Of the Twins six division championship teams, this was the best. They won 96 games and their roster included the league MVP (Justin Morneau), Cy Young winner (Johan Santana), Batting Champ (Joe Mauer), Gold Glove winner (Torii Hunter), and before his injury a possible Rookie of the Year (Francisco Liriano). The expectations were high with this club, and they were swept out of the ALDS by Oakland. Tough to call it heartbreaking when you get swept. Disappointment is a more accurate word to sum up this playoff run.

2009 Vikings: We possessed the game’s best running back in Adrian Peterson, and brought Brett Favre out of retirement to lead this team to a 12-4 record and number two seed in the playoffs. They crushed Dallas in the Divisional round, then after outgaining the top seeded Saints in yards 475 to 257. The Vikings played like the better for 60 minutes. Due to five turnovers though, the game went into overtime where the Saints kicked a field goal to win it, and break the heart of every Minnesota sports fan. Heartbreak City part two.

2014 Wild: As heartbreaking as it was to watch Patrick Kane score in overtime of game six, the Wild making it to that point was very rewarding. We wanted that team to take the next step, and they did. Chicago was the better team and we pushed them to the brink of playing a winner take all game seven.

So how excited can we be about this year’s Wild? Very I’d say. This team went from the league basement to being a legit pick to make the Western Conference Finals. If we get swept or lose in five games it won’t be heartbreaking. This team though has shown a resiliency that is reminiscent of the Twins teams that won it all in ’87 and ’91.

The Wild has also have had that classic gradual climb that you see out of so many championship caliber teams. Knocked out in five games of the first round by the Hawks two years ago, last year bringing that same team to overtime of game six in the second round. 

A team just happy to make the postseason one  year, to a team that exceeded expectations the next, to a team that expected to be playing at this point in the season this year. This year the gap has closed even more between the Wild and Blackhawks, perhaps the third time is the charm. I say be excited Minnesota fans, and keep your expectations high.