2026 Feels Like the Year for Minnesota Sports

On Saturday, April 25, some Minnesota sports fans jumped for joy while others were left in despair. All major professional sports teams were on broadcast television. The Vikings were on day three of the draft, the Wild won in OT, and the Lynx won their preseason game. However, the Twins and Loons lost. To add insult to the injury, Ant-Man left the Wolves game and is hoping to return soon.

Meanwhile, the Minnesota Golden Gophers football team held its spring practice, and the Saint Paul Saints were also in action. In the past few months, there have been numerous blockbuster moves and historic moments across the MN sports world. Let’s start with the purple and gold.

They made a splash in the offseason by signing Kyler Murray to a one-year deal in mid-March. He will be competing with JJ McCarthy for the starting job next year, and many fans expect Murray to be the one to take the first snap of the 2026-27 season. The schedule will be released in the next two weeks, meaning fans will be eager to see when Murray will make his debut as a Viking at US Bank Stadium. Their draft selections didn’t impress their fanbase.

These were their selections in order: DT Caleb Banks, LB Jake Golday, DT Dominique Orange, OL Caleb Tiernan, S Jakobe Thomas, FB Max Breneson (who played TE in college), CB Charles Demmings, RB Demond Claiborne, and C Gavin Gerhardt.

Although they improved their defensive line, many point to their first-round draft pick as an interesting choice. Banks is dealing with a foot injury, so analysts have called it a setback. Also, the Vikings didn’t draft any WR despite their WR3 Jalen Nailor going to the Raiders. There’s a lot of pressure on Kevin O’Connell to continue his “QB Whisperer” guru and steer the team to a playoff win. KOC has coached one playoff game since he took over in 2022. The last time the Vikes won a playoff game, their QB was Kirk Cousins (who is the third-richest QB in NFL history). It’s worth noting that Sam Darnold just won a Super Bowl with the Seattle Seahawks after departing from MN. Could Murray be the X Factor? Time will tell. While the Vikings pursue more playoff success, another team is making waves.

For the first time in 11 years, the Minnesota Wild are advancing to the second round of the Stanley Cup playoffs. They are led by Karill Kaprisov, who is the highest-paid player in NHL history (8 years, 136 million), and Matt Boldy. The Wild defeated the Dallas Stars at home, and Quinn Hughes is the first defenseman to score a series-clinching goal in Wild history. Now they face their toughest challenge yet: the 2022 Stanley Cup Champions, Colorado Avalanche. In their first playoff meeting in twelve years, the Wild lost 9-6 in a game where fourteen players recorded a goal. A trip to the Western Conference Finals is on the line.

On the same day the Wild advanced, the Minnesota Timberwolves defeated three-time MVP Nikola Jokić and the Denver Nuggets. It's the first time both MN teams reached the second round in the same year, and also on the same day. They were without Anthony Edwards, Ayo Dosunmu, Donte DiVincenzo, and Kyle Anderson. Instead, Jaden McDaniels and Terrance Shannon Jr. led the Wolfpack with 32 and 24 points.

Next up is the San Antonio Spurs, and the last time these two faced in the playoffs was 2001. The Spurs won 4-1 behind Tim Duncan, while the Wolves had Wally Szcerbiak and Chauncey Billups. 25 years later, Victor Wembanyama will collide with Rudy Gobert in a battle of French centers. Wolves’ fans are hoping Ant Man returns soon to give the team that star power they need. With both the Wolves and Wild having playoff success, one sports team is looking for a three-peat.

In August of 2023, the Professional Women’s Hockey League (PWHL) launched, and the Minnesota Frost were the league’s first two champions. This season, they were led by forward Kelly Pannek, who led the league in goals (16) and points (33). Ken Klee is their head coach, and the Frost won game 1 on the road against Montreal in an epic 5-4 OT win. Jincy Roese scored the game-winner, which was also her first-ever goal as a Frost player. It is worth noting that Montreal’s Laura Stacey is the first player to record a hat trick in PWHL playoff history.

The Frost are looking to become the first professional sports team to three-peat since the Los Angeles Lakers at the beginning of the millennium. From hockey to soccer, the MN United are looking to bounce back after a few disappointing seasons.

The Minnesota Loons are on their third coach in ten years, led by HC Cameron Knowles. Defender Michael Boxell has been with the team since the beginning, and he is now surrounded by new faces. One of those is striker James Rodriguez from Colombia. MN United signed Rodriguez in February, but the 34-year-old midfielder is off to a slow start. He hasn’t scored a goal yet, and the Loons sit in fifth place with 20 points. Their latest victory was in Columbus, where they won 3-2 after being down 2-0. The Loons' last playoff victory was more than three years ago, but this next MN team hasn’t had much luck when it comes to the postseason either.

Until 2023, the Minnesota Twins had the longest drought in North American major sports history with 18 consecutive playoff losses. They beat the Toronto Blue Jays 3-1, but weren’t able to close out the series. At the trade deadline last year, the Twins traded away what felt like all their stars. SP Joe Ryan exited the game this past weekend after throwing nine pitches.

The team hired Derek Shelton as their new general manager, and their record so far this season is 15-20. They sit at the bottom of the AL Central. This franchise seems to be in turmoil, and the days of winning a World Series are far-fetched.

Lastly, the Minnesota Lynx kicked off the postseason with two wins. Head Coach Cheryl Reeves is joined by assistants Lindsay Whalen and Rebekkah Brunson. With the second pick in this year's draft, the Lynx selected guard Olivia Miles from TCU. She is a solid playmaker and has demonstrated the wicked ability to throw dimes on the court. They’ve made it to the playoffs the last three years, and are looking to lift the trophy that has eluded them since 2017.

The bar has been raised high in 2026. A Super Bowl likely isn’t in the cards this year, but fans would be happy with a deep playoff win. With the playoffs underway in the NHL, NBA, and PWHL, the excitement around the Twin Cities won’t be going anywhere.