The Minnesota Wild have won their first ever Northwest Division Championship this year in a very tight race that came down to just a few points at the end of the season. But will that be enough to carry them over into the playoffs? The Colorado Avalanche are looking to spark some of that old time cup magic in bringing back Peter Forsberg to the lineup. But can he stay healthy enough to make an impact?

We will find out starting Wednesday night when the Wild take on the Avalanche at the Xcel Energy Center in downtown St. Paul for the first game of the Western Conference quarterfinals. But for now, let’s break both teams down and see who might have an edge.

Forwards

This might be the position that can make it or break it for both teams. Marian Gaborik can score at will at times. Remember the game against the Rangers in December when Gaborik scored five goals? The line of Gaborik, Todd Fedoruk and Pavol Demitra has turned into a money line for the Wild. That said, the advantage still goes to Colorado. The duo of Joe Sakic and Peter Forsberg, when healthy, are one of the best tandems in the league. As of now, they are healthy.

Advantage: Colorado

Defense

The emerging play of Brent Burns has been a pleasant surprise to coach Lemaire and Wild fans everywhere. He isn’t out of position very often and can play tough on the boards. Colorado has Adam Foote, John-Michael Liles and newly acquired Ruslan Salei to anchor down the blue line.

Advantage: Colorado

Special Teams

The Wild are ranked second best in the NHL in penalty-killing and are the seventh best power-play unit in the league. Colorado ranks 29th in power-play goals and 20th on the penalty kill. This one is easy to pick.

Advantage: Minnesota

Goaltending

Jose Theodore is the reason the Avalanche are in the playoffs. Theodore is 12-4-1 in his last 17 starts, which also includes the 34 saves against the Wild on Sunday. The Wild have Niklas Backstrom, who has been hot going down the stretch. Backstrom is 33-13 on the year with a .920 save percent and a 2.31 GAA.

Advantage: Minnesota

Coaching

Joel Quenneville has a record of 394-270-93 and a .582 winning percentage. He has coached in over 750 games and has more than 400 wins. Joel was assistant coach when the Avalanche won the cup in 1996. Jacques Lemaire went over 500 wins this season. As a player, he won eight Stanley Cup rings with the Montreal Canadians, two as assistant general manager of the Canadians and one as a head coach of the New Jersey Devils. The coach with the most rings in this case is the preferred choice; someone who has been there both as a player and a coach would seem to have the best knowledge of what it takes to win down the stretch.

Advantage: Minnesota

Colorado has more seasoned Stanley Cup veterans then the Minnesota Wild, but will the long series have a toll on some of those players?

Prediction: Minnesota in five