The Minnesota Wild claimed their first-ever Northwest Division title in 2007-08, and they opened the season 11-4-1 to secure first place in what has always been a highly competitive division.

Since Wild goalie Niklas Backstrom held the Penguins to a single goal on Nov. 18, and blanked them in a shootout for a 2-1 victory, Minnesota has endured a 6-12-1 slump. More recently, the scoring has dried up. In a 2-8-1 skid since Dec. 5, the Wild have scored more than two goals just twice. They have been held to a single goal in five games, as well as blanked once by Nashville, 1-0, on Dec. 6.

The Wild have tallied just 18 goals in the last 11 games, an average of just 1.6 a game. Only the Predators (1.5) have averaged fewer goals per game than Minnesota during the Wild’s 2-8-1 slide, though Nashville has gone 4-6-1.

Minnesota Wild, 2008-09
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Through 12/4. . . . . . . Since 12/5
Goals/Game. . . . . . . . . . . . . .2.5. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.6
Goals Allowed/Game. . . . . . . .2.3. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.6

The Wild remain among the league’s stingiest teams in goals allowed, but it’s nearly impossible for a team to win more often than it loses when it fails to average two goals a game.

With a 17-16-2 record, Minnesota has fallen into last place in the Northwest Division. The club is in the midst of one of the toughest stretches of its schedule, which included a 2-1 loss to the first-place Flames in Calgary Monday night. The Wild, who have been playing without top scorer Marian Gaborik for nearly the entire season, managed just 24 shots against Flames goalie Miikka Kiprusoff. With the loss, they fell 10 points behind Calgary in the Northwest.

The Wild have slipped into 11th place in the Western Conference standings. With games against San Jose (Wednesday), Detroit, division rival Colorado, Boston and Philadelphia in the next 10 days, the Wild could fall out of the playoff race quickly if they don’t rediscover a scoring touch soon.

The injury-prone Gaborik has a big say in the future of the franchise, both in the short-term and the long-term. The right wing, who will be a free agent at the end of the season, has averaged 35 goals for every 82 NHL games played over his eight-year career, but he has appeared in more than 65 games only once in the last four seasons.

Contract negotiations on a new deal have stalled and Gaborik has been on the trade market, but it will be hard to find a big spender for the 26-year-old wing. Gaborik missed two months with a groin injury before returning to action in mid-December. He isn’t fully recovered, though, and sat out losses to Chicago and Calgary this week. If the Wild are going to make a run at a playoff berth, they will need Gaborik on the ice.

In light of Gaborik’s pending departure at season’s end, the Wild will face a big decision as the March 4 trade deadline approaches. The front office may push harder to move him if the team falls out of the playoff chase.

The young franchise has sold out every one of its 352 home games, including playoffs, but something was different Sunday afternoon, when the Wild lost to the Blackhawks, 4-1, at the Xcel Energy Center. When the home team came off the ice after being outshot 15-4 in the first period, the locals booed -- an extremely rare occurrence in the history of the franchise. The booing was even louder at the close of the second period, after which the Wild had collected a total of just 10 shots and trailed 3-0.

In a 4-1 defeat, the punchless Wild were soundly outplayed by the young and inspired Blackhawks, who set a franchise record with their ninth consecutive win. After years of struggle, the Hawks are selling out their building regularly for the first time in more than a decade. After the response by Wild fans Sunday, you have to wonder if Minnesota’s sellout streak might come to end if the team falls out of the playoff picture early.

Gaborik's future in Minnesota, as well as the fate of the Wild's 2008-09 season and the franchise's sellout streak, may be decided in the next 10 days.