Could Saturday’s Golden Knights-Wild game be playoff preview?

Thursday’s matchup between the Golden Knights and Minnesota Wild was one of the most eventful games of the season.

There were scoring chances galore. Two outstanding goaltenders. Bone-crunching hits. The Knights led for 8:20 and the teams were tied the other 56:40.

In other words, the Wild’s 3-2 shootout win sure didn’t feel like the 35th game of the regular season. Saturday’s 6 p.m. rematch at T-Mobile Arena may take on the same tone because the two sides could well be preparing for a playoff series.

“I think there’s definitely a desperation creeping in every night because you can see the season finish line,” coach Pete DeBoer said. “It’s still a little ways out there, but at least it’s in sight. When that happens, obviously things get ramped up as far as intensity because everyone’s fighting for position.”

Twenty-one games remain to determine how the final standings shake out. But if the postseason started Saturday, the Knights and Wild would be playing each other.

The Knights are tied with the Colorado Avalanche atop the West Division standings, but the Avalanche own the regulation wins tiebreaker 20-18. That means the Knights would play third-place Minnesota, which is four points behind the co-leaders and eight points up on fourth-place St. Louis.

It wouldn’t be an easy series for either side. Three of their five meetings so far have been decided by one goal. The Wild won another by two goals, thanks to an empty netter with six seconds remaining. Even the lone blowout, the Knights’ 5-1 win March 3, was 2-1 most of the third period.

“They’re a big, heavy team,” defenseman Brayden McNabb said. “They play physical. It’s an intense game. I thought we did a good job of handling it. They’ve got some good, skilled players that we want to be hard on, take away time and space.”

A potential playoff series would do a number of both coaches’ hearts. The teams have both had plenty of odd-man rushes in their meetings and created plenty of scoring chances. It’s something right wing Reilly Smith said the Knights have to correct for Saturday.

Wild coach Dean Evason said the same thing about his side after Thursday’s game. The back-and-forth action that delighted fans just made him stressed.

“It was not fun,” Evason said. “It was not a fun hockey game. I joke. Obviously, it’s an exciting game. But we made some very unintelligent plays. … We made it harder on ourselves in a lot of different situations.”

There’s no doubt the teams match up well. Minnesota’s blue-line depth always has been a thorn in the Knights’ side. Their 4-8-1 all-time record against the Wild is their third-worst against any opponent. Minnesota also has more offensive oomph this year with the addition of Calder Trophy favorite Kirill Kaprizov.

That should lead to another entertaining game Saturday. If the Knights win, it’ll accomplish two things.

It’ll show they still have the edge on a team they’re 2-2-1 against this year. And it’ll keep them in first place as they try to force Colorado and Minnesota to meet in the playoffs instead.

Contact Ben Gotz at bgotz@reviewjournal.com. Follow @BenSGotz on Twitter.