Mired in a five-game winless drought, the Minnesota Wild are desperate for a victory.

The Wild will get a chance to snap their skid when they take on the Vancouver Canucks on Saturday evening in Saint Paul, Minn.

A sense of desperation is increasing in Minnesota, where the Wild are coming off a one-sided, 4-1 loss on home ice against the Pittsburgh Penguins on Thursday night. The Wild have not won since Oct. 20 against the New York Rangers, and they are 1-5-3 in their last nine games.

Wild coach John Hynes is running out of patience.

"We can talk about being fragile, but why don't we get a little bit tougher?" Hynes said. "Why don't we get a little bit harder and more consistent? And if you do that, then you're going to give yourself a chance to win."

The mood is far brighter for the

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