The Mighty Ducks finally made it to the Stanley Cup Playoffs, but it was a miracle that kept them in the mix.
The Ducks have been eliminated from the playoffs for the fourth straight season and are currently tied for last place in the Central Division.
That means the Ducks are likely to be without their top two scorers, center Nick Bonino and winger Kyle Palmieri.
Bonino will miss the final three games of the season with a lower-body injury, and Palmieri will miss at least one game with an ankle injury.
That leaves center Ryan Getzlaf as the Ducks’ only consistent goal scorer.
Getzlak had three goals and five assists in 15 games, and he scored four goals in six games before being sidelined.
Getzlaf’s injury is expected to keep him out of the lineup for at least six weeks.
The Wild, who were eliminated in the first round of the playoffs, are coming off a 2-1 loss in Game 6 of their first-round series against the Blues.
The Predators were swept in the second round of their own first-rounder series.
Nashville had a chance to win the series and advance to the Western Conference Final against the Ducks, but the Predators lost 3-1 in overtime.
The Blackhawks, on the other hand, will face the Ducks in the Western Semi-Finals.
Both teams are coming into the playoffs as favorites, and it is the second straight year that both teams will play the second game of a best-of-seven series.
Chicago has won five of six overall, including a 2.5-game series sweep over Nashville.
The Hawks will face their third series sweep in franchise history, and the first time in franchise playoff history that the Hawks will sweep their opening two series.
They will face Anaheim in the opening game of the series on Wednesday, and will host the Ducks the next two games.
This series will be played on the East Coast, meaning that the Ducks will host Chicago on Thursday, followed by Anaheim on Friday and Chicago the following night.
The game will be broadcast by ESPN and TSN.
The second game will also be streamed live on TSN’s Sportsnet app, and both games will be available to stream on the Hawks’ website.