In Vegas, the Wild have the third-worst odds (30/1) to win the Stanley Cup and second-worst to come out of the West (14/1).



Of the three-dozen or so The Athletic hockey writers, editors and contributors polled, 24 replied by picking the Winnipeg Jets to beat the Wild in the first round, and three others picked the Wild in an upset.



And of those latter three outliers, two are The Athletic Minnesota contributors who may or may not have Wild posters hanging on their bedroom walls.



“This is the first time in the NHL I’ve ever gone into a playoff series as an underdog,” Wild coach Bruce Boudreau said. “So maybe that’s a good thing because the last time I was in an underdog position we won the Cup.”



Sure, that was in Hershey of the American Hockey League, but you get the point.



“I like the fact people are saying, ‘This is going to be almost like the easiest series,’ that, ‘Winnipeg is...