Brodin, Dumba look to fill void on Wild's blue line

ANAHEIM, Calif. -- While the news of Ryan Suter's season-ending injury certainly isn't good news, the considerable hole his absence will leave in the lineup could be an opportunity for others to elevate their own game.
The Wild has had to go without defenseman Jared Spurgeon a couple of different times this season, but Suter has rarely missed a game since signing with Minnesota in July of 2012. Since coming to the Wild, Monday's game against the Edmonton Oilers was just the sixth Suter has missed in nearly six full seasons, and the first because of a true injury.
Other than his rookie season, when he was paired with Suter for much of the season, that record of consistency has relegated Jonas Brodin often to playing second-pair minutes.

That won't be the case any longer.
"Any athlete that's worth anything embraces this situation," said Wild coach Bruce Boudreau. "The coach, the team, the organization, they're counting on me and if they want to be the best, this is the time they get up for it."
In search of an example, look no further than Brodin's frequent defensive partner, Matt Dumba, who elevated his play in December when Spurgeon missed nine games with a groin injury, forcing him to play added minutes.
His play during that stretch gave Boudreau the confidence to deploy him as a top pairing guy on other occasions, either as a change of pace, or more recently, when Spurgeon has missed time with a hamstring injury.
The only difference now is, the two good friends will have an opportunity to stick together as critical cogs on the Wild's blue line.
"It's fun. Our chemistry is definitely there," Dumba said. "It's just playing the more minutes with each other and [getting] more comfortable with that. But being solid, it's nothing too tricked up, it's a simple game and if our d-core sticks to that mentality, I think we'll be fine."
Minnesota did just that Monday in a 3-0 win over Edmonton in St. Paul on Monday. With Brodin and Dumba leading the charge on the back end, and rookies Nick Seeler and Carson Soucy, who was making his NHL debut, in the mix, the Wild made the simple plays look simple.
The result was just 22 shots on goaltender Devan Dubnyk and his fifth shutout of the season.
A loss by the Colorado Avalanche to the Los Angeles Kings later in the evening clinched a spot in the playoffs for the Wild, who will play in the postseason for the sixth consecutive season beginning next week.
But that doesn't mean the three-game road trip to California is meaningless. On the contrary, it's vital for the defensive core as it continues to build chemistry and its game in an effort to enter the playoffs in top form.
While chemistry won't be a problem for Brodin and Dumba, getting used to a heavier minute load will be one of the main goals of this trip.
"It's tough to see Suter go down like that, he's a huge part of our team," Brodin said. "But [with him] hurt, we need to step up, especially me and [Dumba]. It's playoff time now, so everyone needs to step up."

Spurgeon back for playoffs?

Boudreau hinted on Monday that Spurgeon could be back in time for Game 1 of the playoffs, which will begin either April 11 or 12.
Spurgeon has been on the ice a handful of times over the past week with skating coach Andy Ness. Boudreau said Spurgeon is "feeling better," but with the postseason clinched, there's no real need to rush him back before the end of the regular season.
"Every day [Spurgeon gets] better," Boudreau said.

Looking like Winnipeg

It's not set in stone, and certainly things can change, but it looks like the Wild will play the Winnipeg Jets in Round 1.
The Wild entered the day Tuesday with 98 points, six ahead of the St. Louis Blues (who have three games remaining) and five points clear of the Colorado Avalanche (who have two games left).
The only way the Wild would not finish third in the Central is if it loses all three of its remaining games in regulation AND the Blues win all three of their remaining games, including two against the Chicago Blackhawks and one against the Avs.
Winnipeg could still win the Central Division title, but trails the Nashville Predators by five points with three games remaining.
If the Wild finishes third, it would get a first-time playoff opponent regardless of who wins the division; Minnesota has never played Winnipeg or Nashville in the postseason, the only two divisional clubs it hasn't faced in a series.
Related:
- Wild clinches sixth consecutive playoff berth - Wild draws it up perfectly in win over Edmonton