Wild’s Brock Faber gets brutally honest ahead of do-or-die Game 5 vs. Avalanche

The Minnesota Wild entered their first-round series against the Dallas Stars as underdogs, but put together an impressive six-game stretch to knock out their Central Division rivals.

They’ve faced a much stiffer challenge against the Colorado Avalanche in Round 2, and for the first time in the 2026 Stanley Cup Playoffs, they’ll face elimination in Game 5 at Ball Arena on Wednesday night.

John Hynes’ club looked inspired in Game 3, feeding off the home crowd en route to a convincing 5-1 victory. But it was a different story in Game 4; Minnesota was outshot 34-21 in an eventual crushing 5-2 defeat.

“It was just sloppy,” Wild defenseman Brock Faber said of the loss, per NHL.com’s Dan Rosen. “It’s not that any of us didn’t want to win the game or wanted it any less, I just think we, unfortunately, didn’t have our best and you need your best in games like that.

“That’s what is so frustrating. That is what it is. We showed that when we’re at our best, we can play with this team, we can beat this team, and now we’re going to need that absolute best for next game.”

There is no more room for error, and it’s going to take a herculean effort just to send the series back to the State of Hockey for a Game 6. The Avalanche haven’t lost at home in these playoffs, going a perfect 4-0.

“It’s hard to win and you have to be willing to do the things that winning requires, right?” Hynes said. “It’s 10 days into a series, right? We’ve seen what works. We’ve seen what it’s going to be. And that’s ultimately how you win. It’s not playing the game that you want to play. It’s playing the game that is required to win. And that’s why winning in the playoffs is so hard.”

Jesper Wallstedt has given his team a chance to win in both games in Minnesota, allowing just one goal on 36 shots in Game 3 and three on 32 shots in Game 4.

But the Wild need to find a way to get more pucks past Mackenzie Blackwood, and they’re going to have to do it in a deafening Ball Arena on Wednesday. It’ll be interesting to see if, after a terrific campaign, they can extend the season for at least 48 more hours.

The post Wild’s Brock Faber gets brutally honest ahead of do-or-die Game 5 vs. Avalanche appeared first on ClutchPoints.