Save us, Minnesota Wild

The Wild have a chance to gratify an increasingly desperate and despondent Minnesota sports fan base.

State of hockey: The Wild squandered a chance to take a series lead on Tuesday night. They'll have to win Game 6 in St. Louis tonight to keep the series alive and force a deciding Game 7 in St. Paul.

Why it matters: How much more of this playoff losing can we handle?

• The Wild, Timberwolves, Vikings and Twins, combined, have advanced in the playoffs just twice in the past five years and just four times in the past 12 years.
• The Lynx, a team we could always count on, has started 0-3, with coach Cheryl Reeve benching two starters.

What they're saying: The Wild's left wing Kirill Kaprizov has scored a team record seven goals in the series, but several other top players have made only minimal contributions.

• "The goal isn't for a player to play well," Kaprizov said through a translator, per The Athletic. "The goal is for the team to play well, and we didn’t win."

The intrigue: Goalie Marc-André Fleury gave up four goals on Tuesday and some fans are clamoring for Cam Talbot, who was hot at the end of the season, to take his place in net.

How to watch: The puck is supposed to drop at 8:30pm Thursday, but games haven't typically begun until 8:45pm. Bally Sports North will broadcast the matchup.