from Pierre LeBrun of ESPN,

Was Thursday the night the Western Conference wild-card race shifted for good?

The Minnesota Wild won their fourth in a row, crushing the Calgary Flames 6-2, while the Colorado Avalanche dropped a 4-2 home decision to the Philadelphia Flyers that must have felt like a gut shot to the Avs, who now trail the Wild by three points in the race for the final playoff spot in the West.

Plenty of hockey left, of course -- Colorado has eight games remaining to Minnesota's seven, but the Avs have little room for error now. The beauty for Colorado?

The Wild visit them Saturday afternoon in a perfect opportunity to reclaim momentum in the race. It's a must-win, really, for the Avs, because after that they face the St. Louis Blues at home followed, by road games in Nashville and Dallas and a regular-season finale at home against Anaheim. All tough games.

What say you on this Good Friday, gang?

more on the race in the West from the ESPN hockey writers...