Wild's goalie flip was an unnecessary risk in a series with no margin for error

DENVER — The bad news for the Minnesota Wild is that they’re in a 2-0 series hole against a terrific Colorado Avalanche team that has looked every bit like a Stanley Cup favorite in winning its first six games of the playoffs.The Wild’s special teams are struggling at the absolute worst time. Their second defense pair has been god-awful, with Jake Middleton on for nine goals and Jared Spurgeon for eight in this series, and Jonas Brodin isn’t close to coming in to save them. Matt Boldy is goalless in the first two games of the series — clearly affected by the loss of his center, Joel Eriksson Ek — and the Avalanche are playing him more physically than we’ve ever seen.Advertisement