Article: Wilderness Walk: Wild's Roster Has Been Finalized

[Thomas Williams]

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[Imyourhuckleberry]

Nuggets from The Athletic:

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If it looked like Hartman was playing on one leg during the playoffs last year, it’s because he was. Hartman, the hero of Game 1 with the double-overtime winner, suffered an MCL injury earlier in the game. He told coach Dean Evason on the bench, “I understand if you don’t want to put me out there, but I’m there if you need me.” Evason took Hartman off the top line so he wasn’t playing as much, but the veteran center came through to end the longest playoff game in franchise history.

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“Hartsy? He’s a great player,” Kaprizov said. “He’s always played well and knows what we want to do. He always tries to open things up. He has a nice shot, sometimes better than me and Zuccy. We know what Hartsy does and he knows what we want to do.”

 

[MrCheatachu]

1 hour ago, Imyourhuckleberry said:

If it looked like Hartman was playing on one leg during the playoffs last year, it’s because he was. Hartman, the hero of Game 1 with the double-overtime winner, suffered an MCL injury earlier in the game.

I saw somewhere that it's likely Hartsy is going to start the season on IR, and the reason we've sent Khaira down now is so that it's more likely he passes through waivers.  And if he passes now, we'll have the 30-day waivers exempt period to give us the flexibility with him.

A player does not need to pass through waivers if the player has not been on the NHL active roster for a cumulative 30 days since last clearing waivers, OR has not played in 10 or more NHL games. CBA Reference 13.2(b) (Despite the CBA reference saying 30 days AND 10 games, the rule is actually 30 days OR 10 games)

[Up North Guy]

3 hours ago, MrCheatachu said:

I saw somewhere that it's likely Hartsy is going to start the season on IR, and the reason we've sent Khaira down now is so that it's more likely he passes through waivers.  And if he passes now, we'll have the 30-day waivers exempt period to give us the flexibility with him.

A player does not need to pass through waivers if the player has not been on the NHL active roster for a cumulative 30 days since last clearing waivers, OR has not played in 10 or more NHL games. CBA Reference 13.2(b) (Despite the CBA reference saying 30 days AND 10 games, the rule is actually 30 days OR 10 games)

Perhaps we will see tonight how Hartzy is doing.

[mnfaninnc]

To start, I'd like to give a huge shoutout to the Twins for getting to the next round of their playoffs. Isn't it nice to win a round? It's also nice to cancel the 18 game losing streak! Maybe we can go on a run!

Huck, thanks for the nuggets from the Athletic, those are always appreciated! As for Hartzy, this guy pretty much gutted out the full season. His shoulder was messed up and then his knee. I think it's upper body again???

Kaprizov talked about his talent, but even more impressive is his ability to handle pain and just go with what he has. I don't know what work he had done in the offseason, but nothing would surprise me. I've enjoyed him as long as he's been here. 

So, how does this work with our 3 injured players? Do they siphon off cap space while they're hurt? Would it be worth sticking Hartman on LTIR and really letting his body heal? Sometimes you have to protect the player from himself. It's a long season, so giving a little more on the front end might work.

[Imyourhuckleberry]

30 minutes ago, mnfaninnc said:

As for Hartzy, this guy pretty much gutted out the full season. His shoulder was messed up and then his knee. I think it's upper body again???

Hartman came to camp less than 100%, but Evason thought he'd be ready for the season opener, and he was skating with the team within a week.  Now that they trimmed the roster to 12 forwards, I think we might see Hartman play tonight.

If he does go to tonight, I'd have to believe they just go with the 12 forwards they trimmed down to for a few weeks.  Sounds like it takes about 9-10 games to open up the cap space that would allow for Sammy Walker or another of the non-minimum guys to be elevated to the Wild.

 

[Up North Guy]

I would not be surprised to see the 12 forward set up last as long as possible. Right now they could not call up Walker because he makes too much money ($875,000 vs $800,000 cap space). They will probably have to add a13th for an extended trip to either coast but short trips they can play 11-7 for a game if needed. They were very successful last year first half banking cap space but they did not have a huge number of injuries at the time.

[MrCheatachu]

1 hour ago, mnfaninnc said:

So, how does this work with our 3 injured players? Do they siphon off cap space while they're hurt? Would it be worth sticking Hartman on LTIR and really letting his body heal? Sometimes you have to protect the player from himself. It's a long season, so giving a little more on the front end might work.

When a player goes on IR that means they will miss more than 7 days.  They are allowed to be with the team (practice, rehab etc).  The 7 days can be retroactive (i.e the injury happened 2 days ago, therefore you will be eligible to return in 5 days).  The IR does not provide salary cap relief, but it allows a team to exceed the 23 man limit.

Additionally, placing players on IR would allow for an Emergency Callup which is "If a team has less than 20 players and less than $875K (minimum salary of $775K + $100K) cap space to call up a player, they must play 1 game with less than 20 players, and then they can call up a player with a Cap Hit of $875K or less and are permitted to exceed the cap for that player until an injured player returns. "

LTIR allows a team to exceed the salary cap by that players salary (slightly more complicated equation).  However a player must be on it for the duration of 24 days and 10 games.

50 minutes ago, Imyourhuckleberry said:

If he does go to tonight, I'd have to believe they just go with the 12 forwards they trimmed down to for a few weeks.  Sounds like it takes about 9-10 games to open up the cap space that would allow for Sammy Walker or another of the non-minimum guys to be elevated to the Wild.

Cap is a daily calculation .  Season is 186 days long, and with Khaira down they have $818k.  Walker makes $855k so they can afford him 9 days into the season (the 3rd game vs. the Habs).  We could do that sooner if we send Boldy down on off days.

He cleared waivers on the 4th of October, so he wouldn't have to pass through again (30 days or 10 NHL games )until after the Devils game on Nov 2

Edited October 5, 2023 by MrCheatachu

[Protec]

Nice summary. Thanks.

[vonlonster67]

1 hour ago, MrCheatachu said:

When a player goes on IR that means they will miss more than 7 days.  They are allowed to be with the team (practice, rehab etc).  The 7 days can be retroactive (i.e the injury happened 2 days ago, therefore you will be eligible to return in 5 days).  The IR does not provide salary cap relief, but it allows a team to exceed the 23 man limit.

Additionally, placing players on IR would allow for an Emergency Callup which is "If a team has less than 20 players and less than $875K (minimum salary of $775K + $100K) cap space to call up a player, they must play 1 game with less than 20 players, and then they can call up a player with a Cap Hit of $875K or less and are permitted to exceed the cap for that player until an injured player returns. "

LTIR allows a team to exceed the salary cap by that players salary (slightly more complicated equation).  However a player must be on it for the duration of 24 days and 10 games.

Cap is a daily calculation .  Season is 186 days long, and with Khaira down they have $818k.  Walker makes $855k so they can afford him 9 days into the season (the 3rd game vs. the Habs).  We could do that sooner if we send Boldy down on off days.

He cleared waivers on the 4th of October, so he wouldn't have to pass through again (30 days or 10 NHL games )until after the Devils game on Nov 2

MrCheatachu, WE need to give you a new handle MrCapwatchu or "temporary"........

Thx for all your digging, it can be a thankless job some time for that nitty gritty NHL lawyer speak. WE are all about handing out slang terms and names  here at HW

[mnfaninnc]

I watched my first preseason game last night. The lineup that was put on the ice is pretty much our starting lineup this season. While the Wild tied the game late on a nice snipe from Maroon, and won it in a shoot out, and it was against the Blackhawks, why was this so close?

MAF was in net for the Wild. He played steady and most of his saves were pretty easy. But, he was really good in the shootout. The game was much more physical than a preseason game should be. To me, it looked like the rivalry was back and Chicago had some bite in them. Also, Spurgeon played 1 period so the Wild played 5 D for 2 periods. This was not bad practice to have either. 

Individually there were some standouts:

1. Rossi assisted the final goal by Maroon. Really, this was all Rossi effort, Maroon cruised in like we'd expect Foligno, Rossi stripped the defender of the puck and took his time putting a very nice pass on Maroon's stick. Actually, Rossi was visible and in a good way. He is much stronger on the ice, and the articles written about him progressing matched the eye test. He had more jump and was quick laterally, just what we want to see.
2. Faber-Brodin started out as a pairing. This pairing is pretty exciting. What is interesting is that both Brodin and Faber were playing down a little deeper in the offensive zone, relying on their superior skating to get back. It's only about 5', but they were steadily holding the zone. Faber was also seen deep in the zone, yet was quick to get back. He's got far more offensive upside than I thought and he was finding open guys. 
3. You could tell from the Wild point of view this was a preseason game. Big guys like Foligno, Maroon, Duhaime did not want to drop gloves and wear down in preseason. But Dewar certainly did to a much bigger opponent. And Boldy was mixing it up too. Boldy looks stronger to me, and Dewar remains a feisty little guy. Kaprizov also was in a couple of scrums, so there is some aggression down the ranks. 
4. Maroon played very little but was rewarded from 8' out in the 3rd period. However, he looks exactly like the type of guy who could lose his mind at the drop of a pin. What was funny was seeing new PP guy bring the guys together for the 5-3 strategy. Maroon sat in the background staring straight ahead knowing he would not see any PP time. He may have been listening, but he sure wasn't looking!
5. Faber got twisted into the wall and hit his foot awkwardly. He got up limping, but skated it off and spent no time in the tunnel or with the trainer. He told him he was fine. Sometimes it's nice to have young legs and knees. 
6. On the 2nd Chicago goal, Faber attempted to make a cross ice pass to Merrill that was picked off and sent Hall in on a breakaway. Faber should not have made that pass, it was a mistake, but, Brodin would have covered for it (I believe). Merrill could not, and Merrill looks like he has lost a step and is no longer fast enough to compete. I would expect that Merrill will, once again, be replaced in the playoffs. I also am expecting that he will bail sooner and play a step more back in the zone so as not to get beat. At this point, I'm betting that they want Lambos to get heavy minutes in Iowa and that the 2 swap positions at some point this season. 
7. Addison still scares me when he's on the ice. He gets caught puck watching a lot. He then loses track of his man and position. Watching him in contrast with Faber was very eye opening. Faber has more offensive instinct than Addison has defensive instinct. Faber pays attention to detail in the defensive zone and made several positional plays that gave MAF a break. Addison doesn't do those things. So, I would conclude that the bad sv% while Addison is on the ice is warranted to him. Simply put, Faber bailed out the goalie, the goalies have to bail out Addison. 
8. Addison did get some good PP time. I still do not see the crisp, quick decision making that everyone else sees. His passes, to me, look pretty vanilla. I just don't see that much creativity there. In an article written earlier, a point was made about Spurgeon getting more 5v5 time and that was a good reason why Addison was there. Until hurt, Spurgeon is the #2 PP point guy. I believe Faber-Brodin get the 1st shift after the PP. If Spurgeon is the 2nd PP guy, it doesn't seem to me that there is too much difference in the time allotment. Maybe it comes as we score from the 1st unit, and the 2nd unit doesn't have to play?
9. This whole lineup looked like it had some rust on it. Hartman was flubbing opportunities, Gaudreau wasn't crisp either, whiffing on his shootout shot, even. Zuccarello looked a little slow to me. Kaprizov was passing in HDSC places. Boldy looked off. I'm hoping this improves. 
10. Because of the 5D for 2 periods, we got to see a pairing of Addison-Middleton a few times. This was not a terrible pairing. In the playoffs, I could see this:

• Spurgeon-Brodin
• Lambos-Faber
• Middleton-Addison
• Middleton moves up when defending a lead and we run with 4 in Spurgeon-Middeton, Brodin-Faber at 10 minutes left in the 3rd. 

One final note, it would have been really nice to have seen the original reverse retros being our away jersey. I'd like to switch to that configuration as soon as we can. 

[mnfaninnc]

Here's another player dealing with an issue

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• TSN 1200: Senators coach D.J. Smith said that Norris isn’t 100% mentally ready to play and they are working with him.
• Shawn Simpson: “Norris is not 100% mentally ready to test the shoulder. What a tough hurdle to get over after two major shoulder surgeries. Makes you wonder if he really feels it will hold up in live fire? Wish this terrific talent and person nothing but good health.”

This is a great example of what I've been saying, that the mind is the last thing to heal. I believe this was also the same thing with Rossi's myocarditis. It often happens to young players who have never been injured before and they find out for the 1st time that they're not superman.

I certainly hope Norris can overcome his fear. For what it's worth, Viktor Rask had the same thing. It wasn't just his sliced finger, but he also had major shoulder surgery, and I don't think he ever really trusted that it wouldn't happen again. We're not inside his body, but, sometimes after these things, you never really feel quite right, and there is a constant ache. You'd be surprised but you CAN feel different weather patterns come in, and low or high pressure can make you feel a lot worse. 

[Willy the poor boy]

Does anyone know if I'll be able to watch most of the Wild games on ESPN + this season? I'm confused as to how to watch them this year with the Bally situation.

[vonlonster67]

5 hours ago, Willy the poor boy said:

Does anyone know if I'll be able to watch most of the Wild games on ESPN + this season? I'm confused as to how to watch them this year with the Bally situation.

I'll keep an eye on any updates and post updates. I have Bally through Direct TV Stream for Minnesota local and separate Hulu/Disney+/ESPN+. What area you in? So far they are telling us this year on same as last year.

[Willy the poor boy]

1 hour ago, vonlonster67 said:

I'll keep an eye on any updates and post updates. I have Bally through Direct TV Stream for Minnesota local and separate Hulu/Disney+/ESPN+. What area you in? So far they are telling us this year on same as last year.

I don't have cable and don't use streaming services other than ESPN + during hockey season. I suppose Hulu might be an option if ESPN isn't picking them up.

Thanks.