Avalanche and Wild square off to start the second round

The Colorado Avalanche host the Minnesota Wild to start the Western Conference second roundByThe Associated PressMay 2, 2026, 4:10 AMMinnesota Wild (46-24-12, in the Central Division) vs. Colorado Avalanche (55-16-11, in the Central Division)Denver; Sunday, 9 p.m. EDTLINE: Avalanche -187, Wild +154; over/under is 5.5NHL PLAYOFFS SECOND ROUND: Avalanche host series openerBOTTOM LINE: The Colorado Avalanche host the Minnesota Wild to open the Western Conference second round. The teams meet Sunday for the fifth time this season. The teams tied the regular season series 2-2. In their last regular season meeting on March 8, the Avalanche won 3-2 in a shootout. Nathan MacKinnon led the Avalanche with two goals.Colorado is 55-16-11 overall with a 16-5-5 record against the Central Division. The Avalanche have scored 298 total goals (3.6 per game) to rank first in the league.Minnesota is 46-24-12 overall and 17-11-4 against the Central Division. The Wild are 10th in league play with 268 total goals (averaging 3.3 per game).TOP PERFORMERS: MacKinnon has 53 goals and 74 assists for the Avalanche. Gabriel Landeskog has four goals and two assists over the past 10 games.Kirill Kaprizov has 45 goals and 44 assists for the Wild. Matthew Boldy has six goals and