Minnesota native Brock Nelson braces for split loyalties as Avs carry 2-0 lead over Wild into Game 3

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DENVER (AP) — Brock Nelson realizes there are probably conflicting emotions in Warroad, Minnesota, his tiny hometown located in the northern part of the state and approximately 350 miles (563 kilometers) from the rink for Game 3.

He understands. The Colorado Avalanche center is playing for the enemy. It was presented to him, though, as a win-win situation for the town — either he or the Minnesota Wild move a step closer to the Stanley Cup title.

“But I hope to have a few more people on my side,” cracked Nelson, whose team leads the second-round series 2-0 heading into Saturday night's game in St. Paul. “But I know at the end of the day, you can’t be a fan of all the same teams, so hopefully get the bragging rights at the end.”

He has plenty of family and friends from Warroad (population around 2,000), where they take their hockey seriously and branded itself as “ Hockeytown USA."

That means “I’ll probably put a lot of friendships on pause for now,” he said.

Nelson will have a cheering section in the building this weekend. He already has warned his family and friends that he may not have much time for socializing.

This is a business trip.

Avalanche defenseman Sam Malinski also hails from Minnesota and grew up in Lakeville, a suburb of the Twin Cities. He went to his fair share of Wild games as a kid.

“It will be fun to be back in the same building,” Malinski said. “I know all my parents, brothers, extended family and a lot of my close friends are going, so it will be fun.”

Nelson already has treated his hometown, his state and his country to one memorable moment this season — an Olympic gold medal. He helped the U.S. beat Canada 2-1 in overtime at the Milan Cortina Games to capture the first Olympic title in men's hockey since the “Miracle on Ice” team in 1980.

He is the latest from his family to become an Olympic men's hockey champion, joining grandfather Bill Christian (1960), great-uncle Roger Christian (1960) and uncle Dave Christian (1980).

It was a pressure-packed experience he's taking with him into the playoffs.

“The attention to detail, the intensity, how big of an event that was. I think everyone was, not on edge, but at the top of their game,” Nelson recounted. “To have that in season was like an extra adrenaline shot. To be a part of it was something special.”

Now, he's intent on breaking some hearts by beating the Wild in their own building.

He played in that ice rink several times during high school and when he suited up for the University of North Dakota. In fact, he helped North Dakota win the Western Collegiate Hockey Association Final Five tournament in 2011 and '12 inside the building the Wild call home. His North Dakota team also lost at that site in the 2012 NCAA West Region championship game to the Minnesota Gophers.

Overall, Nelson said, “some good memories there.”

He knows it's going to be loud.

“The atmosphere is electric,” said Nelson, whose college coach, Dave Hakstol, is an assistant with the Avalanche. “You want to just get off to a good start, be simple, not trying to force anything. If you come out slow and sluggish and turn the pucks over, obviously they can feed off that, get the crowd into it."

There were swirling rumors of teams interested in Nelson at the trade deadline last season, including the Wild. Colorado acquired him from the New York Islanders on March 6, 2025. He had four assists in a first-round series loss to Dallas last season that went seven games.

“You never really know how it’s going to shake out,” said Nelson, a first-round draft pick by the Islanders in 2010. “Landed here and we've loved it here."

In June, the 34-year-old Nelson signed a three-year extension worth $22.5 million to stay in Colorado. He and his wife, Karley, have four kids.

“Getting a taste of it here, the group, the lifestyle, kind of a little bit of everything, it just seemed like a pretty good fit,” said Nelson, who had 33 goals and 32 assists during the regular season. “My family loved it.”

His teammates appreciate his even-keel demeanor. Nelson has a goal and an assist as the Avalanche have won six straight playoff games.

“Somebody everyone knows they can go and talk to if they need to," captain Gabriel Landeskog said. “Tons of experience. We’ll be leaning on him here as we go down the stretch.”

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AP NHL playoffs: https://apnews.com/hub/stanley-cup and https://apnews.com/hub/nhl