Top 10 Minnesota sports moments of 2014

The Minnesota sports scene in 2014 had its moments. For instance, the Gophers men's basketball team won an NIT title, while the men's and women's hockey teams finished as NCAA runners-up. None of those events, though, were good enough to crack our annual top 10 list of the top 10 local sports stories of the year. This list is more about what captured our imagination and attention than pure accomplishment. In a year that often felt like it was more about building momentum than achieving greatness, here is what stood out:

10) Eden Prairie wins its fourth consecutive state high school football title: Sometimes it's hard to quantify what constitutes a sports dynasty, but with the case of the Eden Prairie football team, there is no such problem. The Eagles have won 10 state titles in the past two decades, including four in a row. The latest came in November, when Eden Prairie rallied from a 21-7 deficit and then defended a late two-point conversion try to knock of Totino-Grace 28-27 to win the Class 6A title.

9) Maya Moore named WNBA MVP: Minnesota has had its share of Most Valuable Players in the past dozen years — Kevin Garnett, Justin Morneau, Joe Mauer and Adrian Peterson. But the Lynx, for as good as they have been recently, had never claimed the top individual honor until Maya Moore earned WNBA MVP honors in 2014. Moore averaged 23.9 points and 8.1 rebounds during the regular season.

8) Youth is served: There were two major collective stories locally in 2014. The first we'll get to is the new faces of a lot of franchises thanks to the influx of young talent. Vikings QB Teddy Bridgewater and linebacker Anthony Barr had encouraging rookie seasons. No. 1 overall pick Andrew Wiggins leads a young core that gives the Wolves optimism even in the midst of a rebuild. New players for the Wild and Twins figure to play integral parts in how far those franchises ultimately go in the next few years.

7) The Chris Kluwe saga: Former Vikings punter Chris Kluwe on Jan. 2 lit a fuse that would burn for months when Deadspin.com published a piece he wrote suggesting he was cut by the team because of his political activism and beliefs. It led to an independent investigation by the Vikings and a suspension for special teams coordinator Mike Priefer — in addition to tons of national coverage.

6) Minnesota Wild playoff run: Can one series victory be considered a "run?" Well, in a market starved for playoff victories — at least among the Wild, Wolves, Vikings and Twins — it does. Xcel Energy Center was as energized as we've seen for a long time, and the quality of hockey on display when the Wild knocked off the Avalanche in seven games before succumbing to Chicago in a hard-fought six-game series were reminders of just how much fun winning can be.

5) Gophers make a Jan. 1 bowl game: The Gophers football program pushes the notion of "brick by brick" when it comes to the building of a winning foundation, and Minnesota added another brick this season. The Gophers won five Big Ten games and faced Wisconsin in the final regular-season game with a berth in the Big Ten Championship Game on the line. They lost, but their reward for a strong season was a trip to the Citrus Bowl — their best bowl game since the 1962 Rose Bowl.

4) MLB All-Star Game: Minneapolis became the center of the baseball universe in July when the top players in the majors descended upon Target Field for the All-Star Game. In a memorable game, the retiring Derek Jeter went 2-for-2 while Twins reliever and Minnesota native Glen Perkins closed out a 5-3 AL victory. We can only hope two other major events Minnesota landed in 2014 will be as exciting: the 2018 Super Bowl and the 2019 men's basketball Final Four.

3) Year of the new coach: Here's the other major "collective" story, as 2014 saw major coaching upheaval. The Vikings fired Leslie Frazier late in 2013, then hired Mike Zimmer in January. The Gophers women's basketball program said goodbye to Pam Borton and hello to Marlene Stollings. Flip Saunders slid back into the coaching seat, replacing Rick Adelman. And Ron Gardenhire, in charge of the Twins since 2002, was replaced by Paul Molitor.

2) Kevin Love trade: Few things stir up debate and passion in a fan base like trade speculation, and only one thing dominated local headlines more this year than Kevin Love trade talk (and ultimately the trade itself). Countless scenarios and suitors were somewhere between rumors and half-truths until the deal that sent Love to Cleveland and netted the Wolves Andrew Wiggins, Anthony Bennett and Thad Young became reality.

1) Adrian Peterson saga: In terms of stories, though, nothing could top the Vikings' star running back and 2012 MVP being indicted on charges stemming from whipping his son and missing all but one game of the 2014 season. It was stunning locally because of Peterson's stature and it became part of a larger NFL story both about the culture within the game and the struggle between the players' union and owners. The Peterson saga still lingers into 2015, with no clear resolution in sight.

MICHAEL RAND