Wild's young defensemen pushing each other for spot

Some friendly competition is bringing out the best in three young defenseman bidding to make the Minnesota Wild roster.

Matt Dumba, Christian Folin and Gustav Olofsson may be vying for one spot on the blue line -- the Wild have five returnees expected to hold down spots -- but they're using that as motivation to not only push themselves but each other to get better.

"We have a really good competitive situation," Folin said. "We're all good friends and are trying to push each other. It's a win-win situation because we’re pushing each other to get better every day."

Dumba has the most NHL experience of the trio, playing in 13 games for the Wild last season with a goal and an assist before going back to juniors. Folin made his NHL debut with one game at the end of the 2013-14 season, while Olofsson is fresh out of Colorado College.

"Obviously at camp, we’re trying to separate yourself individually, but even [at the recent Traverse City Prospect Tournament] we were feeding off of each other and making each other better by playing alongside one another," Olofsson said. "It's a friendly competition. We feed off of each other in practice and keep each other to high standards."

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