For a 19-year-old rookie who has never before played in am NHL game, new Wild defenseman Zeev Buium looked plenty comfortable during practice Thursday at TRIA Rink, showing some of the skill that made him one of college hockey’s top players last season.

In fact, the blue liner spent time practicing with Minnesota’s top power-play unit.

Wild coach John Hynes would not say for sure whether Buium’s NHL debut will come on Sunday in Game 1 against the Golden Knights but likes what the University of Denver product showed in his first full practice Thursday.

“I just think he’s a really good player, but let’s try to do the right things to give him the best chance,” said Hynes, who did not play Buium in the regular-season finale against Anaheim. “Today I thought he did a good job, and talking to him after practice, he obviously felt more comfortable. But (he) said it was a little bit different too — the passes, the speed of the practice. The details guys play with are good, so good day for him.”

After practice Buium also talked about the little things, like switching from the full facemask required in college hockey to the half shield that NHLers wear.

“Obviously, really nice to get out there with all of them and get a real practice under me. Felt better as the practice went on, and it was just good to be out there,” he said, noting that if he plays Sunday, it will be easy for his family to travel from San Diego. “I’m just excited. I mean, every day coming to the rink it’s fun to be here. This is the highest level, this is where you want to be. If my name gets called upon, I’ll be ready.”

In 2023, former Minnesota Gophers star Brock Faber stepped right into the Wild lineup for their first round series versus Dallas.

“I’m excited for him. … He’s such a good kid. I’ve gotten to know him for the past three days and I’m just excited. We all want this guy in the lineup,” Wild forward Marcus Foligno said. “I think just the way Zeev holds himself, carries himself, he’s gonna be just fine going into Game 1 against Vegas. He’s got the support of us, his new teammates now, and we want him to flourish.

“If he could be the offensive guy that we saw in college. and can help us get some other looks and plays, we just need to make sure that we’re giving him a confidence boost to make those plays and back him up.”

In the past month, Hynes had often employed five forwards on the Wild’s power play could seemingly swap in an offensive-minded defenseman like Buium when Vegas has a player in the penalty box. Hynes is not showing his cards just yet.

“I don’t wanna get too far ahead with it, particularly now that we have two days off,” the coach said. “Now, you ask me that question Saturday, I’ll have the answer for you for sure. But today was like, ‘OK, let’s see some things.’ … We’re healthy and it was a good day put him in some situations that we think he can help us in.”

The Wild fly to Nevada on Friday afternoon and will skate at the Golden Knights’ practice facility on Saturday.

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HOUSTON (AP) — A Southwest Airlines flight had to be evacuated on Thursday after an engine fire forced it to return to a Houston airport.

The flight was leaving Hobby Airport on its way to Cabo San Lucas, Mexico, when it was forced to return around 11:15 a.m. due to the fire, according to the Houston Fire Department.

When the plane landed, firefighters extinguished the blaze as well as a small grass fire near the runway, the fire department said in a statement.

No injuries were reported. The flight crew helped the 134 passengers evacuate the plane, Southwest Airlines said in a statement.

In this image from video, passengers walk across the tarmac after evacuating from a Southwest Airlines plane at Hobby Airport in Houston on Thursday, April 17, 2025. (KTRK via AP)

Passengers exited the aircraft on a taxiway at the airport, the Federal Aviation Administration said in an email.

The cause of the fire was being investigated, the FAA said.

The airline was working to get all passengers to their final destination in Mexico.

“We appreciate the professionalism of our flight crew in responding to this situation. Nothing is more important to Southwest than the safety of our customers and employees,” Southwest Airlines said.

The engine fire comes as air travel is under heightened scrutiny following a series of crashes and mishaps. Federal officials have tried to reassure travelers that flying is the safest mode of transportation, and statistics support that.

The official schedule released around lunchtime on Thursday shows the Minnesota Wild opening the 2025 NHL playoffs at 9 p.m. CT on Easter Sunday, in Las Vegas versus the Golden Knights.

But with the 20 guys in red and green spending the past few weeks fighting tooth and nail for every available standings point, and needing 81 games, 59 minutes and 48 seconds to secure their place among the 16 teams still playing, it feels like the playoffs began sometime in late March.

“I think that’s gonna help us, big time, just being in that mindset,” Wild forward Marcus Foligno said, following their last full practice in St. Paul on Thursday morning. “I think the last two playoffs, we’ve gone into it a little bit loose. Not saying that’s wrong, but when you rest guys, you get away from that mentality of the pressure games. I feel like what we’ve been doing for the past month is gonna help us and pay dividends.”

If not for Joel Eriksson Ek’s tying goal with less than 30 seconds left in the regular season finale on Tuesday, the Wild would have spent Thursday night glued to the TV, hoping for a Kings win versus Calgary to get Minnesota into the playoffs. Instead, they took care of it on their own.

The Wild faced the Golden Knights three times in the regular season at lost each time, 3-2 in St. Paul in December, 4-1 in Vegas in January, and 5-1 at Xcel Energy Center in March in a close game that slipped away late. One Wild defenseman noted that all three if those games were on the second of back-to-backs.

So, the Wild hope having extra rest and time to focus on one opponent will make a difference in April.

John Hynes made the playoffs once with the Devils in his four full seasons in New Jersey. His Predators teams played in the postseason in three out of his four seasons in Nashville. Now he has the Wild in the playoffs in his first full season in Minnesota. While Hynes has yet to get a team past Round 1, he said that the character of a playoff series changes notably from game to game. And, he said, those are situations his team has been feeling for weeks now.

“Game 1, people are going to be nervous. You’ve got to go in and play. And then all of sudden everything changes,” he said. “Dynamics change, and eventually there’s going to be a differentiating game in the series, where you can get to that third game and then there’s a close-out game. And there’s a mentality you deal with the night before a game, playing through it.

“We’ve had multiple opportunities to test ourselves, and some of them we’ve come through and some of them we haven’t. So, I think at least for us going into this series, we’ve had to fight to get there and it’s going to be no different in the series.”

PLAYOFF SCHEDULE

The NHL announced the dates for all of the Wild’s first-round, best-of-seven series against Vegas, and times and TV for the first four. All times CDT.

GAME 1: Sunday at Vegas, 9 p.m.,

GAME 2: Tuesday at Vegas, 10 p.m.

GAME 3: Thursday at Xcel Energy Center, 8 p.m,

GAME 4: Saturday at Xcel Energy Center, 3 p.m.

GAME 5: Tuesday at Vegas, TBD (if necessary)

GAME 6: Thursday at Xcel Energy Center, TBD (if necessary)

GAME 7: Tuesday at Vegas, TBD (if necessary)

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Pranks, practice on Zeev Buium’s first day with Wild. Will he play Tuesday?

Wild officially add collegiate star Zeev Buium to the mix

The official schedule released around lunchtime on Thursday shows the Minnesota Wild opening the 2025 NHL playoffs at 9 p.m. CT on Easter Sunday, in Las Vegas versus the Golden Knights.

But with the 20 guys in red and green spending the past few weeks fighting tooth and nail for every available standings point, and needing 81 games, 59 minutes and 48 seconds to secure their place among the 16 teams still playing, it feels like the playoffs began sometime in late March.

“I think that’s gonna help us, big time, just being in that mindset,” Wild forward Marcus Foligno said, following their last full practice in St. Paul on Thursday morning. “I think the last two playoffs, we’ve gone into it a little bit loose. Not saying that’s wrong, but when you rest guys, you get away from that mentality of the pressure games. I feel like what we’ve been doing for the past month is gonna help us and pay dividends.”

If not for Joel Eriksson Ek’s tying goal with less than 30 seconds left in the regular season finale on Tuesday, the Wild would have spent Thursday night glued to the TV, hoping for a Kings win versus Calgary to get Minnesota into the playoffs. Instead, they took care of it on their own.

The Wild faced the Golden Knights three times in the regular season at lost each time, 3-2 in St. Paul in December, 4-1 in Vegas in January, and 5-1 at Xcel Energy Center in March in a close game that slipped away late. One Wild defenseman noted that all three if those games were on the second of back-to-backs.

So, the Wild hope having extra rest and time to focus on one opponent will make a difference in April.

John Hynes made the playoffs once with the Devils in his four full seasons in New Jersey. His Predators teams played in the postseason in three out of his four seasons in Nashville. Now he has the Wild in the playoffs in his first full season in Minnesota. While Hynes has yet to get a team past Round 1, he said that the character of a playoff series changes notably from game to game. And, he said, those are situations his team has been feeling for weeks now.

“Game 1, people are going to be nervous. You’ve got to go in and play. And then all of sudden everything changes,” he said. “Dynamics change, and eventually there’s going to be a differentiating game in the series, where you can get to that third game and then there’s a close-out game. And there’s a mentality you deal with the night before a game, playing through it.

“We’ve had multiple opportunities to test ourselves, and some of them we’ve come through and some of them we haven’t. So, I think at least for us going into this series, we’ve had to fight to get there and it’s going to be no different in the series.”

PLAYOFF SCHEDULE

The NHL announced the dates for all of the Wild’s first-round, best-of-seven series against Vegas, and times and TV for the first four. All times CDT.

GAME 1: Sunday at Vegas, 9 p.m.,

GAME 2: Tuesday at Vegas, 10 p.m.

GAME 3: Thursday at Xcel Energy Center, 8 p.m,

GAME 4: Saturday at Xcel Energy Center, 3 p.m.

GAME 5: Tuesday at Vegas, TBD (if necessary)

GAME 6: Thursday at Xcel Energy Center, TBD (if necessary)

GAME 7: Tuesday at Vegas, TBD (if necessary)

Related Articles

Wild: Fleury’s dramatic final win surprised even him and his coach

High drama at the X as Eriksson Ek’s late goal puts Wild in playoffs

Wild coach John Hynes: Now is not the time for Zeev Buium’s NHL debut

Pranks, practice on Zeev Buium’s first day with Wild. Will he play Tuesday?

Wild officially add collegiate star Zeev Buium to the mix