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A pair of teams trying to keep pace in West face off Tuesday, as the Minnesota Wild head to Denver to take on the Colorado Avalanche.
The Wild have gone winless in four straight and have slipped to 13th in the Western Conference. Those certainly don't seem like the credentials for a playoff contender, but even with the skid Minnesota is a mere seven points behind the eighth-place San Jose Sharks.
Colorado's playoff fate is a little less precarious, but it's certainly no sure thing. The Avs are currently in 10th place in the West, one point behind No. 8 San Jose and three points behind No. 7 Phoenix.
Minnesota leads the season series 3-2, but Colorado won the last outing, a 2-0 shutout on Sunday. Shutouts have become something of a trend for the Wild: They have been blanked in three of the last four.
Injuries certainly haven't helped the cause. The Wild are without captain Mikko Koivu, who is out with a shoulder injury, as well as forwards Pierre-Marc Bouchard and Guillaume Latendresse, both sidelined with concussions. Goalie Niklas Backstrom, who is nursing a strained groin, is also on the shelf
Tuesday's game starts at 9 ET and will be on NBC Sports Network.
For more on the Minnesota Wild, check out Hockey Wilderness. You can check out more hockey news from around the league at SB Nation's NHL page.