Wild-Canucks Stanley Cup Qualifier series debated by NHL.com

The Vancouver Canucks and Minnesota Wild will play each other in a best-of-5 Stanley Cup Qualifier series when the NHL season resumes. Though there is no date for the games to start, two NHL.com writers have already started the debate over which team has the edge in the series.

Tracey Myers, staff writer

Can you rekindle momentum after a three-month hiatus? Probably not, but I'm still taking the Wild in this series. They won seven of 10 before the season was paused March 12 due to concerns surrounding the coronavirus. But more than wins and losses, I believe the Wild were buying into things under the regime of first-year general manager Bill Guerin and coach Dean Evason, who replaced the fired Bruce Boudreau on Feb 14. The Wild made it clear that nobody got to be a passenger anymore and it appeared to be a message received by the players. The Canucks have a good team, but I worry about their consistency, or lack thereof, this season, so give me the Wild.

Jon Lane, staff writer

Winning streaks and momentum are out the window after three months. This is when talent begins to take over, and the Canucks have plenty of talent. They're loaded at forward with four 20-goal scorers (Elias Pettersson, J.T. Miller, Bo Horvat and Tanner Pearson) and a fifth (Tyler Toffoli) who provided a spark after he was traded to Vancouver by the Los Angeles Kings on Feb. 17. Don't forget the immense skill of rookie defenseman Quinn Hughes and goalie Jacob Markstrom, who was having a Vezina Trophy-caliber season before he sustained a lower-body injury Feb. 22. Markstrom can steal a best-of-5 series. I'll take the Canucks.

Myers

There is certainly talent on the Canucks, but the Wild aren't hurting in that department, either. Forward Kevin Fiala had an NHL-high 54 points this season, and his 23 goals were second on the team to Zach Parise's 25. Ryan Suter continues to be an ironman on defense, and goalie Alex Stalock had a good season, going 20-11-4 with a 2.67 goals-against average, .910 save percentage and four shutouts. I'm also going to be biased about the Central Division, which has been as tough as we all expected it to be. As much as I hate this phrase, it really is like a playoff game every night against division opponents. I'm also guessing Parise, Suter and Eric Staal, each 35 years old, are going to be driving forces. There are only so many more opportunities left.

Lane

One question about the Wild is whether their elder statesmen will have enough stamina to keep up with the Canucks, even with a long layoff. Vancouver should have the advantage of younger legs helping it get out of the gate. The Canucks' top eight scorers are all 27 or younger, and Pettersson, Horvat, Hughes and Brock Boeser are eager to prove they're ready for the biggest challenge of their NHL career. Three twentysomething forwards, Miller, Toffoli and Pearson, have been to the Stanley Cup Final, the latter two winning the Cup for the Kings in 2014. They provide the Canucks with big-game experience needed for the qualifiers.