Article: The Wild Have A Creative New Solution To Their Goaltending Issue

[Justin Hein]

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[Citizen Strife]

I'm all for Rossi back on the top line, but will Kaprizov and Zuccarello pass it to him once in a blue moon?

Either way, I am not worried about team offense. It is only 15th-20th in the league, but it is still 3 per game.  It is up to them to TRY and defend for a change for it to matter.  More than four goals per game gives me cause for concern, regardless of how many goals the team scores.

 

[Will D. Ness]

In my mind, the lackluster performance of KK97 is mainly due to pairing him with Zucc and this cross ice game of passing through traffic, blindly at times and hoping for the "magic".  It will produce a very pretty goal once in a while.  It produces many pretty goals on the opposite end in the form of a breakaway or odd man rush.

Does the coaching staff think that this dynamic will self correct?  Do they think Rossi is going to take control of this line and do some form of rookie leadership and deter this somehow?

I'm seeing a lot of deferment in regards to KK97 by both coaches and players and it seems that nobody wants to upset the superstar, when it is obvious that it is exactly what he needs.

[TheGoosesAreLooses]

I think Rossi might be a good fit with Zucc and Kap. He is defensively sound and has been playing a great possession game. Pair that with Faber and Brodin and tell them to play like the defensive stalwarts they are and I think you have a winning combo.

Boldy - Ek - Jojo is a dangerous combination and one that has both offensive and defensive chops. 

Maroon and Foligno will have to play pretty responsible and that line can knock some head and our forth is what it is. 

Looks like the premium level line combos for the forwards. The one thing I am utterly terrified of is that third pairing. Merill and Bogosian smells like trouble to me, but I will reserve my commentary until after we see how they play together.

[Imyourhuckleberry]

I wouldn't be at all surprised if Evason flips Hartman back to #1 and Rossi back to line 3. Johansson and Zuccarello complicate the top 2 lines as both need to play, but both seem to be defensive liabilities. They don't really work well together nor can they play down with 3rd or 4th lines.

The rest of the forwards are a bit more interchangeable. Johansson came at a pretty low price point, but I'd definitely expect someone else in his roster spot once the cap hits significantly reduce for 25-26.

Also, this article suggests that the Wild didn't bring Wallstedt to Sweden, but other news sources have indicated that he was traveling with the team to serve as the 3rd goaltender there.

[MNCountryLife]

Calling out Boldy because he has a $7M Cap hit... Nope.. I don't like that.  At 22 years old he is still young and nowhere close to his potential.  We knew the back end of his contract would look better than the front end.  This is still the front end and I don't think you can start calling him out for not producing.  It is rare for a 22 year old to carry a team.... not sure it is fair to ask it of him.  We want his confidence to grow... not diminish.  Call out the veterans on the team that are not getting it done and showing the right way forward.

[raithis]

1 hour ago, TheGoosesAreLooses said:

I think Rossi might be a good fit with Zucc and Kap. He is defensively sound and has been playing a great possession game. Pair that with Faber and Brodin and tell them to play like the defensive stalwarts they are and I think you have a winning combo.

Boldy - Ek - Jojo is a dangerous combination and one that has both offensive and defensive chops. 

Maroon and Foligno will have to play pretty responsible and that line can knock some head and our forth is what it is. 

Looks like the premium level line combos for the forwards. The one thing I am utterly terrified of is that third pairing. Merill and Bogosian smells like trouble to me, but I will reserve my commentary until after we see how they play together.

I don't disagree with you, but I am a little concerned that with all the forwards being that small that they are just going to get bodied by the other team mercilessly, and Zucc and Kap will just start flinging pucks toward where they think each other is.  That's what they've seemed to do all season.

I'm also a little concerned about the 2nd line too.  Sure, last year for a bit, that line looked really good, but I haven't seen it at all this year.  Honestly I feel like both the 1st and 2nd would benefit from less dump-and-chase.  They frequently slow offensive zone entry and wait for the defense to get set before attacking the net, and often it's because they dump the puck in and try to regain possession.  We seem to do that a lot more often than anyone we play against.

On the defensive side, we also seem to pressure enough to prevent the other team from gaining access to our defensive zone.

I'm fine with Evason not hanging the goalies out to dry.  Fleury has actually played pretty decent overall.  You give the other team that many breakaways and the box score for the goalie is going to look horrible unless the goalie has cheat codes enabled.

I feel like it's less that the offense needs to score and more that they need to give themselves better chances and take better care of the puck.

[Justin Hein]

2 hours ago, Citizen Strife said:

I'm all for Rossi back on the top line, but will Kaprizov and Zuccarello pass it to him once in a blue moon?

Either way, I am not worried about team offense. It is only 15th-20th in the league, but it is still 3 per game.  It is up to them to TRY and defend for a change for it to matter.  More than four goals per game gives me cause for concern, regardless of how many goals the team scores.

 

By the numbers, goaltending is just as responsible as the defense for these awful nights of 5+ goals against. Hopefully a little scoring boost can help set their minds at ease and get at least one goaltender onto a hot streak. 

[Justin Hein]

2 hours ago, Will D. Ness said:

In my mind, the lackluster performance of KK97 is mainly due to pairing him with Zucc and this cross ice game of passing through traffic, blindly at times and hoping for the "magic".  It will produce a very pretty goal once in a while.  It produces many pretty goals on the opposite end in the form of a breakaway or odd man rush.

Does the coaching staff think that this dynamic will self correct?  Do they think Rossi is going to take control of this line and do some form of rookie leadership and deter this somehow?

I'm seeing a lot of deferment in regards to KK97 by both coaches and players and it seems that nobody wants to upset the superstar, when it is obvious that it is exactly what he needs.

I'd love to see a simpler game from Kirill and Zuccarello. Their elite blind passing game forces teams to cover man-on-man rather than collapsing into the slot. Theoretically, Kaprizov and Rossi should be able to capitalize on that dynamic by driving the net with the puck on their sticks. 

[Justin Hein]

45 minutes ago, Imyourhuckleberry said:

I wouldn't be at all surprised if Evason flips Hartman back to #1 and Rossi back to line 3. Johansson and Zuccarello complicate the top 2 lines as both need to play, but both seem to be defensive liabilities. They don't really work well together nor can they play down with 3rd or 4th lines.

The rest of the forwards are a bit more interchangeable. Johansson came at a pretty low price point, but I'd definitely expect someone else in his roster spot once the cap hits significantly reduce for 25-26.

Also, this article suggests that the Wild didn't bring Wallstedt to Sweden, but other news sources have indicated that he was traveling with the team to serve as the 3rd goaltender there.

Wallstedt is NOT with the team -- it was speculated he may join the team, but he's still in Iowa. 

I love your point bout Zucc and Johansson. Both were retained for the chemistry with Kaprizov and Boldy respectively. That makes the lineup a lot less flexible. 

[Justin Hein]

45 minutes ago, MNCountryLife said:

Calling out Boldy because he has a $7M Cap hit... Nope.. I don't like that.  At 22 years old he is still young and nowhere close to his potential.  We knew the back end of his contract would look better than the front end.  This is still the front end and I don't think you can start calling him out for not producing.  It is rare for a 22 year old to carry a team.... not sure it is fair to ask it of him.  We want his confidence to grow... not diminish.  Call out the veterans on the team that are not getting it done and showing the right way forward.

I agree! Literally all the kid likes to do is golf and play hockey. Might be nice to treat him like a growing star rather than call out his 2023 salary, since he gave up a lot in future pay as well as future flexibility with that extension.  

[Justin Hein]

31 minutes ago, raithis said:

I don't disagree with you, but I am a little concerned that with all the forwards being that small that they are just going to get bodied by the other team mercilessly, and Zucc and Kap will just start flinging pucks toward where they think each other is.  That's what they've seemed to do all season.

I'm also a little concerned about the 2nd line too.  Sure, last year for a bit, that line looked really good, but I haven't seen it at all this year.  Honestly I feel like both the 1st and 2nd would benefit from less dump-and-chase. 

I hate the dump and chase game too, especially from such a skilled top-six. As for the top line, they're not much bigger with Hartman, which never stopped them from scoring before. 

That second line wasn't just good last year, they were really dominant. For most of that stretch, they were the focal point of the offense because Kaprizov was out. They still put up comparable numbers to Kaprizov's line that year. It was a relatively small sample size, but given the circumstances of that sample I think it's reliable. 

[Will D. Ness]

1 hour ago, Justin Hein said:

I'd love to see a simpler game from Kirill and Zuccarello. Their elite blind passing game forces teams to cover man-on-man rather than collapsing into the slot. Theoretically, Kaprizov and Rossi should be able to capitalize on that dynamic by driving the net with the puck on their sticks. 

Zucc looks like about 75% of what he was in both speed and poise and all that.  He was never a strong on the puck guy but was such a good playmaker that if he had enough time and space then he was effective.  Right now I don't see the speed, I don't see the space and I don't see the creativity.  I see bad passes through traffic or a turnover by being out battled.  

Do we really want to put the future of this season, of KK97, and the future of this team all contingent upon an aging Zucc returning to form?  Rossi will help some because he does seem to have that speed and creativity that Zucc used to have.  

Seems like a long shot from Evason... or maybe worse... fear of change.

[mnfaninnc]

22 hours ago, Justin Hein said:

By the numbers, goaltending is just as responsible as the defense for these awful nights of 5+ goals against. Hopefully a little scoring boost can help set their minds at ease and get at least one goaltender onto a hot streak. 

"By the numbers" is a suggestion that this is so. The eye test must also prove it. A few games ago, I would say it was the defense letting the goalies down but I haven't been able to watch the last 4 games except for 2 periods of Dallas. 

I can say there are way too many chances in the home plate area which we have defended well in the past, but aren't defending now. I see defenders chasing guys to the top of the zone, as if it's a man to man defense. Probably going more zone is what's needed. 

But the point still remains, the eye test must also confirm what the numbers appear to be saying.

[mnfaninnc]

22 hours ago, Justin Hein said:

I hate the dump and chase game too, especially from such a skilled top-six. As for the top line, they're not much bigger with Hartman, which never stopped them from scoring before. 

I also hate this, but if opponents are defending the blue line, it's something that has to be done. Dump and chase for dump and chase's sake is stupid. It would help if the dump was better placed. We are a terrible dump and chase team, it's like the players don't even know how to do it. We dump and chase with guys standing flat footed at the blue line. We need to be going in with speed from more than the dumper. 

Place the dump into a place where you can go get it, not the defender 1st with plenty of time to gain possession and find the outlet.

[mnfaninnc]

20 hours ago, Will D. Ness said:

Do we really want to put the future of this season, of KK97, and the future of this team all contingent upon an aging Zucc returning to form?  Rossi will help some because he does seem to have that speed and creativity that Zucc used to have.  

Seems like a long shot from Evason... or maybe worse... fear of change.

What happens to all of this when Evason is relieved of his duties and a new coach comes in? I would have to say that change would be coming and a lot of guys with clauses will need to be waiving them.

[TheGoosesAreLooses]

On 11/18/2023 at 11:17 AM, mnfaninnc said:

"By the numbers" is a suggestion that this is so. The eye test must also prove it. A few games ago, I would say it was the defense letting the goalies down but I haven't been able to watch the last 4 games except for 2 periods of Dallas. 

I can say there are way too many chances in the home plate area which we have defended well in the past, but aren't defending now. I see defenders chasing guys to the top of the zone, as if it's a man to man defense. Probably going more zone is what's needed. 

But the point still remains, the eye test must also confirm what the numbers appear to be saying.

I don't know, in his first six games started he was facing an average of 38.16 shots a game, and many from high danger. I think any goalie is going to have a rough start to the season getting rained on like that. Our defense to start the year was terrible. Gus looked less like the all star level he had been the year before but was also getting zero help from his defense. MAF was facing an average of 26.5 and still has a worse save percentage, so not sure there is much of a excuse there.

[mnfaninnc]

On 11/23/2023 at 10:35 AM, TheGoosesAreLooses said:

I don't know, in his first six games started he was facing an average of 38.16 shots a game, and many from high danger. I think any goalie is going to have a rough start to the season getting rained on like that. Our defense to start the year was terrible. Gus looked less like the all star level he had been the year before but was also getting zero help from his defense. MAF was facing an average of 26.5 and still has a worse save percentage, so not sure there is much of a excuse there.

So, my point was that the statistics don't show it's necessarily the fault of the goalies. And it's not just the home plate area shots either. It was home plate area shots that were uncontested, where shooters pretty much had a clear path and weren't hurried. This had happened over and over to start the season and Goligoski, Merrell, Addison, and even Middleton were to blame for most. In Middleton's case, it seemed like he was trying to do too much. For others (and you'd expect some from Mermis) it was simply blowing coverages, angles, gaps and positioning failures. Surprisingly, Faber had a few gaffes but held up very well as a rookie. 

So the conclusion would be from that that the goalies were being hung out to dry way too much, and that the main fault would lie with the leaky defense.