Lack of 5-on-5 offense is a key driving factor in the Wild's recent rut

The Wild didn't practice on Friday, taking a timeout before they finish off three games in four nights, but completely unplugging from hockey might have been impossible for the players.

"They're going to think about it," coach Dean Evason said. "We're all going to think about it, right? It's going to hang for a little bit."

After going into the bye week and All-Star break with a pair of feel-good (and much-needed) wins, the Wild have botched their return to plummet into a rut that keeps snowballing: They were upset by Arizona, schooled by Dallas and crushed by Vegas to drop six of their last eight games overall.

To stop this spiral on Saturday at Xcel Energy Center would mean defeating one of the best teams in the NHL in New Jersey, but it's crystal clear what the Wild need to change to become a tougher matchup.

"It has nothing to do with our compete," Evason said. "It has nothing to do with our battle. Our care is there. We've just got to clean some stuff up."

Since a 3-2 letdown to the Coyotes on Monday, the Wild's results have become more lopsided.

Before capitalizing into an empty net to polish off a 4-1 win, the Stars took over on Wednesday with three goals in the second period. Then on Thursday, the Golden Knights followed a similar blueprint to achieve their 5-1 rout by responding to the Wild's lone tally with three goals in 2 minutes, 26 seconds also during the second.

These chances are the byproduct of poor reads and turnovers by the Wild, self-inflicted mistakes indicative of them trying to generate a look the other way. Why the urgency to make that play?

Because their 5-on-5 offense is hibernating.

"When you go through stretches where you don't score, that can creep into your game," defenseman Alex Goligoski said. "That's what's happening, trying to be too aggressive, trying to create things when they're not there. That's kind of been the story."

Of the 16 goals the Wild have managed over the past eight games, only five have come at 5-on-5 and none in the last two games.

If it wasn't for their power play, which converted against Dallas and Vegas, the Wild's production would be even worse.

"We feel like we've got to do something a little bit extra, and we don't," Evason said. "We have to stay structurally strong."

When the team reconvenes Saturday, Evason planned to remind the group about that posture.

As jarring as this drop-off is considering the circumstances — the Wild are coming off a lengthy layoff and they're in the thick of a playoff race — Evason pointed out that the Wild's other swoons this season have occurred when they've strayed from their style of play.

Still, executing a U-turn isn't always easy, even if the Wild might have made it look that way in the past.

"It's a different feel from last year," Evason said. "It's not the same team. It's not the same feel when we get down.

"We gotta keep grinding. We gotta keep the thought process, the belief, that we're going to catch some breaks."

With the Wild playing on an every-other-day basis most of the month, there's ample opportunity to snap out of this funk or let it fester.

Both outcomes could decide the significance of the rest of their season.

"We can't be pouting," captain Jared Spurgeon said. "There's a lot of hockey left."