Wild look to close out Stars at home in Game 6

ST. PAUL, Minn. -- The Minnesota Wild are one win away from erasing more than a decade of frustration in the Stanley Cup Playoffs.

The first chance to do so will come in Game 6 of the Western Conference First Round against the Dallas Stars at Grand Casino Arena on Thursday (7:30 p.m. ET; TNT, truTV, HBO MAX, SNE, SN360, TVA Sports). The Wild lead the best-of-7 series 3-2.

"We're excited to get back in front of our fans," said forward Matt Boldy, who leads the Wild with four goals this postseason. "They've been awesome to us. We know they'll show up. And it's another job we've got to get done for sure."

The Wild haven’t won a playoff series since 2014-15. Since then, they have made the postseason nine times in 11 seasons, but lost in the first round seven times and in the qualifying round in 2020. 

In 2015, they won in six games against the St. Louis Blues. They were swept by the eventual Stanley Cup Champion Chicago Blackhawks in in the second round. 

Since they entered the NHL in the 2000-01 season, they won just four playoff series, two of them coming in 2002-03 when they reached the Western Conference Final.

But thanks to a 4-2 win in Dallas on Tuesday in Game 5, they can move on with either a home win Thursday or in Game 7 at Dallas on Saturday. 

"I don't think I ever played in (a game of) that type of magnitude, which is exciting," Wild goalie Jesper Wallstedt said. "I'm looking forward to it so much. I'm super-excited. Obviously, these two last home games were electric, and hopefully they can bring that again, and we can play up to that level."

Forward Marcus Foligno said playing at home could amp up the Wild, and that the veteran leaders on the team will help them keep an even keel.

"We've got to just look to control our emotions in Game 6 and in front of our home crowd, a place where we had a good feeling leaving last time," Foligno said. "I think it's a little bit different. I think we have a lot of leadership and guys that are experienced. ... It's a close group but a really hard-working group and a confident one right now."

After finishing third in the Central Division with 104 points, the Wild entered the playoffs intent on changing the narrative, and doing so would also mean getting the better of their familiar nemesis. This is the third playoff series between Minnesota and Dallas, the Stars winning in six games in 2016 and 2023.

"The difference in the playoffs is that the intensity level of the games are higher than the regular season and I think the crowds and all the buildings are intensified than what they are in the regular season," Minnesota coach John Hynes said. "Ultimately, it's still the game and that's what you have to focus on.

"Each game has been highly competitive, highly contested, and (Thursday) is not going to be any different. It's not about controlling what we can't control; we want to make sure that we're focused on what we can control. We know that we got to be a better team going into Game 6 than we were in Game 5."

With home ice, history at stake, and a Dallas team still searching for its even-strength identity (outscored 12-3 at even strength), Minnesota stands 60 minutes (or more) from a long-awaited step forward.

"Both teams are really laying it on the line," Hynes said. "(Being physical) isn't a huge focal point for us. It's just making sure we're a hard team to play against, whether that's physicality, whether it's structure, penalty discipline, whatever those things are. I think there's a lot of things that encompass being a hard group to play against and we're trying to focus on not just one aspect of it but just making sure we're buttoned up in a lot of different areas."

Forward Mats Zuccarello is one of the more experienced veterans on the Wild, having played 16 NHL seasons and 104 playoff games.

"I think it’s important just to stay calm. You know, don't overthink it," he said. "Don't read whatever you guys (media) say about we haven't gotten out of the first round in a couple of years. Just calm and collected."