Article: Wild Add Size And Three Minnesota Natives In 2023 NHL Draft

[Tony Abbott]

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[B1GKappa97]

yeah but idk if we drafted enough centers 😞

[mnfaninnc]

Did we get Moore, Danielson, Ritchie or Edstrom? No. Those were the 4 on my list (Edstrom thanks to Mateo). However, I banged the "we need centers" mantra since mid May. Our 1st 3 picks were centers, and considering we get Heidt, who was projected to go somewhere between 12 & 20 at 64, I'd have to say this is a nice haul. 

I still believe our D is a little undersized, but it is apparent that the vision for our defense is a puck moving defense with guys in the 6'-6'2" range. But, they'll be thicker as most are topping 200 lbs. 

Why take Aaron Pionk? They liked him for some reason. I think this is the last season we see the Covid effect on players. It isn't that they got the disease, it's that their development was interrupted by it. Some were better players that lost all momentum. I think this is the gamble on Pionk. Several other teams were also taking overaged players. We did it, I think successfully, with Spacek last season. 

There is a .5 chance per team that anyone drafted in rounds 4-7 plays a significant part on their roster. That's what NHL Radio said today during the draft. Think about that. I don't know if goalies were included, but they have a higher percentage of making it than the skaters do. We got Kaprizov 8 years ago in that range. I doubt we get another one like that any time soon.

In conclusion, while the names aren't really household names, filling the needed positions with size seems like a win. We won't know for another 4-5 years. Also, with Stramel, I keep hearing he would have been a top 15 pick going into the year. It does seem like we will take chances on guys who had down years in their draft year, like Lambos. Stramel looks pretty ripped with room for more size. Jumbo Joe had a pretty nice career as a big hulking C. Perhaps Stramel just learns to grow a big ole nasty beard!

[MNCountryLife]

I really like what BG did in this draft.  I hope he drafts like this in the next 2 years as well.  Sure would be cool to have a perennial power house team.

[Protec]

I think it’s hard to compare draft years. This one was stacked but what does that really mean? Most of the draft classes have a handful of really good guys. A few are known for their great depth. I think the Wild are at a point now where we really should be seeing some contributions from drafted players in the latest era.

Sure the Wild don’t often pick higher than 20th which is a compliment to their good regular seasons but it really magnifies the difference between teams who also pick late in the draft getting results before the Wild. Until more recent prospects are wearing the uniform and getting on the score sheet it’s gonna be tough not to notice the glaring holes in the Wild’s draft from 2016 forward. It’s impossible not to look around and wonder how the Wild have so little to show for that time. Even if Knudi makes it, that’s a wash for Kunin.(16th overall.) Fletcher was such a bum, unreal. Nothing in 2017 when Central rival Dallas does great. 2018, I won’t dignify with comment but this is just proof how important it is to get value in every draft.
 

I know I’ve said it a lot but the way a rebuilding team drafts is easy. They usually get a top pick. How can you miss when Matt Tkachuk is there? If you’re Coming off a Cup win you can feel secure your selection is gonna have time to develop and there’s less riding on your 30th overall guy. The Wild are never in either spot. The draft is hard cause you’re between two less likely to go wrong scenarios. Watching the decades of drafts Minnesota has been okay. Traded Leddy, Tuch, and the pick TB used to draft Brayden Point. It’s not fun to look back too much for MN unless you’re talking about #97. I just hope the Wild’s overall batting average improves with Guerin & Brackett.

[mnfaninnc]

Interestingly, Reilly Heidt jumped to the top of the page on the Minnesota Wild Elite Prospects page. Bankier's year suddenly looks a little less impressive.

Looking at the list, Faber is in there, but likely makes the roster. What will we do with Addison and Firstov? Can they make their way out of the dog house? I wonder if Firstov comes back to Iowa under a new coach?

[mnfaninnc]

I just started browsing through other teams in our division's draft. I've got about half way through and here are the observations:

Dallas-size was not a factor, there guys were maybe average.

Chicago-skill early, size late

Colorado-skill early, decent size late

Arizona-3 goalies chosen, wow. Size was their theme, and this was off script since they generally don't do that.

Of these 4 teams, size was a definite theme. Originally, I was thinking that our already drafted defenders who are puck moving, shorter with decent size might be pretty good at defending Bedard, Moore. However, with the size chosen in the division, they may have some issues defending the size. We could use 2 large defenders on the 3rd pairing.

That said, I think Faber will be able to be effective at 210 if he can lift himself into that range. O'Rourke, Hunt, Lambos all need to hit that weight class. We're going to need an aggressive strength program for these kids, especially in Iowa. If Johansson wants to make it, he'll need to be at least at Brodin's weight. As Spurgeon ages, this theme is not good for him.

Sometimes, you need to see what other teams in your division are doing, especially since you need to get through your division in the playoffs. This is where I think not picking up Mann in the 5th or 6th, and taking flyers on smaller, puck moving D may come back to us with regrets. Our division has looked at Vegas' redwoods and copied that strategy. We should have done the same, specifically since our back end guys do not have the size element as a factor. 

I like the bloodlines factor in drafting Pionk, however, at 20 years old, 6'1" 172 is pretty light for the position, granted, he just switched back to defense. He will need to add 35 lbs. on a body that should already be filling out. I really think Mann would have been a better option at this slot. Mann was consistently listed in the top 100, and even his worst rankings were 30 slots below where he was taken. To me, this seems to be a lack of awareness of the surroundings, and an analytical guy should have been tracking the division's draft picks and reporting this to both Brackett (who doesn't really care about size) and Guerin (who does). We should have made an adjustment along the way, most certainly in the 6th round. Parker isn't really small either, but it seems we are unwilling to draft defenders over 6'2", likely because their skating isn't as refined as the shorter guys.

[Protec]

Quote

Interestingly, Reilly Heidt jumped to the top of the page on the Minnesota Wild Elite Prospects page. Bankier's year suddenly looks a little less impressive.

 

I thought he seemed like Jarvis. Not big but very good as a center in the WHL. This is why I say it’s hard to compare draft years. Jarvis went top 20. Heidt was a player I said might be somebody to take if we got a second 1st or early 2nd round pick. Obviously none of that really happened and Heidt dropped quite a ways from his rankings in the 20-40 range making my suggestions for him being picked earlier look poor. I’ve asked that question and kinda wonder was that good luck for MN, cause even the Wild didn’t pick him at 53rd? 
 

I’m wondering if it was between RasmuKampu and Heidt at 53rd for the Wild and they went with the bigger guy. Then when Heidt was still there, they get him and now there’s a couple flavors of center prospects that all have a good shot at making the NHL.

Edited June 30, 2023 by Protec

[Protec]

5 minutes ago, mnfaninnc said:

I just started browsing through other teams in our division's draft. I've got about half way through and here are the observations:

I thought it was interesting CBJ got two Michigan guys and Arizona got two Yaroslavl guys. Haven’t really looked at what Nashville or Winnipeg did yet but Colby Barlow is supposed to be NHL ready. Will he be able to replace Wheeler and what’s gonna happen with him if he gets bought out? 1year/1M to play in the Twin Cities? Help the power play. Could play top six role. I don’t think he’s done just too expensive and WPG has had problems, like when Maurice quit and then went to the Cup final.

[Up North Guy]

6 hours ago, mnfaninnc said:

Interestingly, Reilly Heidt jumped to the top of the page on the Minnesota Wild Elite Prospects page. Bankier's year suddenly looks a little less impressive.

Looking at the list, Faber is in there, but likely makes the roster. What will we do with Addison and Firstov? Can they make their way out of the dog house? I wonder if Firstov comes back to Iowa under a new coach?

Russo addressed Firstov in the Athletic. His status is still up in the air. It looks like he will return to the KHL for another year. After that, who knows.

[mnfaninnc]

I looked at the other 3 teams and it's not quite so bad.

Winnipeg- they got height, but not weight yet. They also had a pathetic amount of picks for a team about to blow it up.

St. Louis- average size, and again not huge weight yet. 

Smashville- Body type didn't really matter here, they were looking for skill and backfilling with size in the free agent pool. This team is changing as Trotz will mold it into his team. But, they wanted big swings in skill this draft. 

Something to note: Winnipeg, Nashville, Chicago, Arizona, and St. Louis are going through a rebuild/retool. Winnipeg and St. Louis seem to be a bit closer. So, for us, on paper it looks like another trip to the playoffs this coming season...and another 1st round exit unless we catch fire. We've got a lot of kids that don't need to pass through waivers to get to Iowa, why not mix this roster up a bit with the kids? We could, essentially, run a 25+ man roster with a lot of transactions, giving the kids time to acclimate a bit and then assignments to work on. 

I think we need to see some of these guys up and how they react with the big club to know how far they've come. Let's see what happens with opportunity and if there's a couple of guys who get the opportunity and refuse to give it up?

Also, I noticed that we did not qualify Mason Shaw. My bet is we sign him for minimum. Whether or not that happens when he's closer to playing again, or this summer is anyone's guess. But I'm pretty sure he stays with the team. 

Edited July 1, 2023 by mnfaninnc

[Up North Guy]

2 hours ago, mnfaninnc said:

I looked at the other 3 teams and it's not quite so bad.

Winnipeg- they got height, but not weight yet. They also had a pathetic amount of picks for a team about to blow it up.

St. Louis- average size, and again not huge weight yet. 

Smashville- Body type didn't really matter here, they were looking for skill and backfilling with size in the free agent pool. This team is changing as Trotz will mold it into his team. But, they wanted big swings in skill this draft. 

Something to note: Winnipeg, Nashville, Chicago, Arizona, and St. Louis are going through a rebuild/retool. Winnipeg and St. Louis seem to be a bit closer. So, for us, on paper it looks like another trip to the playoffs this coming season...and another 1st round exit unless we catch fire. We've got a lot of kids that don't need to pass through waivers to get to Iowa, why not mix this roster up a bit with the kids? We could, essentially, run a 25+ man roster with a lot of transactions, giving the kids time to acclimate a bit and then assignments to work on. 

I think we need to see some of these guys up and how they react with the big club to know how far they've come. Let's see what happens with opportunity and if there's a couple of guys who get the opportunity and refuse to give it up?

Also, I noticed that we did not qualify Mason Shaw. My bet is we sign him for minimum. Whether or not that happens when he's closer to playing again, or this summer is anyone's guess. But I'm pretty sure he stays with the team. 

I think it is also possible Sahw gets signed to an AHL contract so he can have access to AHL/NHL trainers and rehab specialists. When he is ready to return a decision could be made as whether he stays in Iowa until he is fully able to play  for the Wild (NHL).