Every Wednesday, FOX Sports North takes a look at which athletes' stock is trending up and whose is trending down.
With that in mind, let's take stock of the current Minnesota sports scene.
Andrew Wiggins, Wolves forward
Head coach Tom Thibodeau has lamented his young stars' tendency towards hero ball when the Wolves fall behind in the second half (they always seem to fall behind in the second half), but Wiggins has been heroic in the literal sense over their last several games. He followed up his worst stat-line of the week -- a 22-point effort in a loss to the L.A. Clippers -- with a monstrous 47-point outing in a win over the L.A. Lakers. It was a career high for the third-year forward.
Cordarrelle Patterson, Vikings receiver
Patterson -- like all Vikings receivers not named Stefon -- had an unremarkable game Sunday, posting just three catches on four targets for 17 yards. However, the versatile receiver passed a major milestone, registering 44 kickoff return yards. Patterson now has 3,659 career kickoff return yards, a new franchise record.
Stefon Diggs, Vikings receiver
Positivity has been hard to come by during the Vikings' 0-4 slide, but Diggs is a genuine cause for excitement in Minnesota. He racked up 13 catches for the second straight game Sunday, becoming the first player in NFL history to have at least 13 catches in consecutive games. He has 244 receiving yards over that span.
Matt Dumba, Wild defenseman
Dumba hasn't chipped in much offensively this season, but he came to the rescue in a 2-1 win over the Ottawa Senators on Sunday. During the 3-on-3 overtime session Dumba drifted down into the slot as the Senators converged on a hard-charging Mikael Granlund, one-timing a pass past goaltender Craig Anderson for the win after Granlund dished the puck out front from behind the net.
Blair Walsh, former Vikings kicker
Walsh was given "the boot" this week (smile through the pain, people) after missing his fourth extra point of the season, this time in a 26-20 loss to the Washington Redskins. The Vikings signed Kai Forbath as his replacement -- one of the six kickers who worked out in Minnesota last week -- bringing the sad, slightly bewildering saga of Blair "Wide Left" Walsh to an early end. It's easy to forget that Walsh was once a virtuoso, setting an NFL record as a rookie after going 10-for-10 on kicks of at least 50 yards, but his infamous miss in the playoffs last season seemed to mess with the arcane psychology unique to his profession.
Jake Long, Vikings guard
The Vikings signed a rookie tackle off the Jacksonville Jaguars' practice squad Tuesday after Long suffered a season-ending (and probably career-ending) Achilles injury in their loss to Washington. That's where they're at this season. Rashod Hill -- an undrafted free agent who has spent all of a week on an NFL roster to this point -- is the next man up on their beleaguered offensive line.
Joel Eriksson Ek, Wild forward
Eriksson Ek was a healthy scratch for the second straight game Tuesday and has been held without a point in his last five games. Fellow forward Zach Parise's return from a foot injury, coupled with his streak of scratches, could indicate the Wild plan to send their top prospect back to Sweden for a bit more seasoning. The 19-year-old has impressed in limited action (he's averaging just over 10 minutes of ice time per game) but another game would put Eriksson Ek over the nine-game maximum that allows teams to give rookies a trial run in the NHL without burning a year of that coveted entry-level contract. The cap space-strapped Wild appear content to let him work on his game overseas for another year.
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