What pressure? Wild fans' stubborn loyalty unlikely to be shaken by draft startribune.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from startribune.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
The Wild will choose their 25th first-rounder on Wednesday when the NHL draft is held in Nashville. Barring maneuvers, the choice will come 21st, reflecting both another season of competent play followed by playoff disappointment for our St. Paul heroes. The highest-ever Wild selection was the franchise's first, with Marian Gaborik being taken at No. 3 in 2000, and becoming an explosive player .
How long must a team suffer? How long has a team suffered? This is the fourth of several posts looking into the playoff droughts of 30 of the 32 active NHL franchises to figure out what went wrong and how it ended. This post covers Minnesota, Montreal, Nashville, the New York Islanders, and the New York Rangers.