Article: The Wild Are A Monster Of Thier Own Creation

[Tom Schreier]

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[Luke Sims]

Bill Guerin dug his grave with those contracts in the offseason. Now he must lie in it.

[Luke Sims]

Bill to Bill:

[MNCountryLife]

Uffda.  There is a lot wrong with this team.  If I try to focus on a couple of the good things. 

1)  Our PK has looked better...still not great...but better. I'll take a positive on this team where I can find it. 

2)  Spurgeon seemed to really be trying to hold the blue line last game.  Most of our D-men have been allowing easy entry into our d-zone.. So good to see at least 1 of our D trying to improve in that area.

3) Even with his Chiclets being picked off the ice.. Ek was easily our best player. 

[Will D. Ness]

We gave up two exact same goals on the PP vs Detroit.  We have the worst PK in the league.

Why hasn't the new coach been fired yet?  Talk about low hanging fruit.  Get that guy off the team already.

[Greenbean]

If I hear Guerin mention grit 1 more time, I'm picking a different cheer for until he is gone. I can't stand that moron anymore. 

[Jamesgang]

Good strategy for a playoff team but the Wild have proven repeatedly, this does not work. Now, they are not playoff worthy but they are tripling down on “grit”.

How about we give our vaunted pipeline a chance to prove themselves so we can fish or cut bait. This is the year to work that strategy

How has out new special team’s coach not been fired. We are terrible in all areas of special teams and have actually regressed from bad to terrible. 
 

Trade deadline: Foligno, Johannson, Gudreau, Hartman, Merrill, Goligoski, Fluery

[joebou15]

I, for one, am shocked - SHOCKED, I TELL YOU - that the Johansson deal isn't working out. 

 

How many people loved Guerin for coming in and making the difficult decisions no one wanted to make on Parise, Suter, and even Koivu? 

But rather than make difficult decisions on aging vets like Zuccarello and Foligno, he doubled down on them. 

And for what? What have those players done for this team when it's mattered? No, Guerin wants to keep running the same team back that has been ousted multiple times in the first round and act like he's somehow doing something different than Chuck Fletcher.

 

In fact, he's created the Country Club 2.0. As long as you're in it, your safe, rewarded with a NMC because damn it, people like you around here. 

Only person Guerin should be yelling at is himself. He's not a good GM. There's been some good (drafting), but mostly questionable free agent signings, re-signings, and trades at the NHL level that fans and local media have given him a pass on for too long. Any plan forward is wasting more seasons of Kaprizov.

[joebou15]

I'd feel so much better about the position this team is in if I knew the kids had a place next season. Instead, we have to watch this same squad next year, and the year after that, and the year after that. And the year after that. Cool GM'ing.

[Up North Guy]

2 hours ago, Jamesgang said:

Trade deadline: Foligno, Johannson, Gudreau, Hartman, Merrill, Goligoski, Fluery

I am not sure how you trade these guys. I believe the only one who does not have at least some move restrictions is Merrill and he could be moved to Iowa as i doubt he is tradable.

[mnfaninnc]

3 hours ago, Will D. Ness said:

We gave up two exact same goals on the PP vs Detroit.  We have the worst PK in the league.

Why hasn't the new coach been fired yet?  Talk about low hanging fruit.  Get that guy off the team already.

I may be wrong, but I don't think the new PP guru also does PK. I think that falls on an already existing coach.

[mnfaninnc]

I have an opposite take than Joe. 

When you come back from a road trip getting 1 pt. in 3 games and you reward the players and yourself with some precious time off at the beginning of the season and then just run a routine 1 hr. practice on the 3rd day, you know what you get? Players who don't pay attention to details and lack compete level!

It goes back to that specific time and place. We had the opportunity to work the players hard and get them to pay attention to detail, amp up the compete level AND fix some things that were obviously broken. Instead, the head coach chose rest! And when asked about it he doubled down and was thankful that the front office believed in days off.

I believe in days off too, like when the team is playing well and producing points. Clean up some of the bad habits that sneak in with a minimal practice. But when things go wrong, players stay late! Everyone else has to do that in their real jobs too. Nobody likes it, but that's just how it is for salaried personnel.

Joe talks about Country Club 2.0. Perhaps this is the greatest expression of it. But the players don't even show up to take swings off the practice tee!....Well, maybe Boldy did 😉

[joebou15]

21 minutes ago, mnfaninnc said:

I have an opposite take than Joe. 

When you come back from a road trip getting 1 pt. in 3 games and you reward the players and yourself with some precious time off at the beginning of the season and then just run a routine 1 hr. practice on the 3rd day, you know what you get? Players who don't pay attention to details and lack compete level!

It goes back to that specific time and place. We had the opportunity to work the players hard and get them to pay attention to detail, amp up the compete level AND fix some things that were obviously broken. Instead, the head coach chose rest! And when asked about it he doubled down and was thankful that the front office believed in days off.

I believe in days off too, like when the team is playing well and producing points. Clean up some of the bad habits that sneak in with a minimal practice. But when things go wrong, players stay late! Everyone else has to do that in their real jobs too. Nobody likes it, but that's just how it is for salaried personnel.

Joe talks about Country Club 2.0. Perhaps this is the greatest expression of it. But the players don't even show up to take swings off the practice tee!....Well, maybe Boldy did 😉

I am annoyed with Evason's Laissez Faire approach to coaching. When they didn't practice down the stretch of the regular season leading into the Blues series, I was done. But then after multiple offseasons charged with improving the PP and PK and its progressively gotten worse, I think his jig is up. 

 

The guy believes every morning skate is an optional. He falls back on rest rather than practice. I don't know how you break bad habits or refine systems if you never practice. Idk. He was bad 2 seasons ago, was bad last year, and he's bad this year. His Ronco cooking approach to the lineup each night wore thin on me a long time ago. And we've only seen that change this year ever so slightly because he's actually up against it for once. Coaching is a major issue on this team. 

Players are certainly to blame for a lot here. But there is some talent on this team. And there's some grit. And the coaching staff isn't getting any of it right now.

 

[Dean]

What a great article Tom. Much needed. There was also another great article in Minnesota sports fan yesterday titled { Minnesota wild suck and it’s bills fault)

      I agree with everything in article but I would also add Fred and spurg contracts. Spurg you had to give a contract to but I don’t think it will age well with a no move clause. I’ll give Bill a pass on Spurg. Freddy g s contract should have been a warning sign that bill was not the ruthless smart Gm we all thought. Locking a 2 m bottom six guy up for 5 more years was insane to me at the time. It was the beginning of these crazy contracts.  Fred didn’t deserve a no move clause. Now like everyone else you have to figure out a way for them to contribute because you can’t get them of your roster. We can’t get these guys off roster even if the waived there no trade. No team will want any of them with there no move clauses. The wild are stuck and the fans pay the price once again for bad management. 
      When Bill came in we all thought he’s this tough guy, hard and smart decision making breath of fresh air. Nope! He’s exactly like every gm. They come in and move out the previous regimes players and staff . He did the buyouts but that was almost a necessity due to cap penalties if one or both of praise or suter retired. It didn’t take big bullocks to do buyouts   It was necessary. Bill then showed his true colors with Freddy g contract. He showed he was weak at managing roster and cap.  Good GMs are RUTHLESS when it comes to salary cap and roster management.  Bill is Oprah. Giving sh_t away . He’s like Mike Ditka trading all his picks away for Rickey Williams. . Pushing there chips in for no reason other than ego. 
     Boston Bill gave his gaslighting end of season presser last year sayin that was success.Fans like me saw the opposite   It was a warning sign that nothing has changed culture wise. it’s pretty much the same crap we’ve seen for 2+ decades . There is no winning culture bill installed . Instead it’s a new country club with pres bill and a new cast of members.. the wild learn nothing from past just keep doing same . 
      The wild need to find a coach to motivate unmotivated aging vets . They need to give the captaincy to EK the only guy on team who shows up every night and is worth every penny he’s paid. Unlike spurg . If they aren’t going to fire Bill than they need to keep him the f ___ away from giving out contracts.  Get a professional negotiator to bills job. 
     There is no way in heck this will ever be a good team if they can’t manage salary cap / roster. That’s great we have prospects years away but it’s nothing to hang your hat on. Every team has them and some drafted higher .  Hopefully Judd did good but to say we will have a cup contender in a few years is so premature and exactly the false hope this team has sold for 20+ years. They need to fix the here and now!!!

[Dean]

With all the drama around the team. One thing I’m very curious about is when does Craig go to the people for taxpayer money to totally renovate the excel ? I was reading earlier this season about hiring lobbyists and multiple meetings with the governor. Few weeks ago they were talking about being ready to go to the people. Now you hear crickets. 
      My guess is Craig’s plan was to have that exciting team of years past this year to sell the people on it. Now that we’re in the dumps it’s probably not the right time.  However I’m also guessing he needs to do it and get it through legislation before the new expansion teams that are coming. Hard to ask for money when you an other owners are pocketing 4 billion to split between them. 
    I’m personally not for billionaire handouts to owners that aren’t committed to putting best product on ice. Craig to me seems to take advantage of the fan bases loyalty and banks on pr to sell garbage to them.  All for that taxpayers money and increasing value of team. Not winning. Selling. 

[Greenbean]

1 hour ago, Up North Guy said:

I am not sure how you trade these guys. I believe the only one who does not have at least some move restrictions is Merrill and he could be moved to Iowa as i doubt he is tradable.

Merrill might be worth an old pair of socks!

[mnfaninnc]

3 hours ago, joebou15 said:

Players are certainly to blame for a lot here. But there is some talent on this team. And there's some grit. And the coaching staff isn't getting any of it right now.

Would you conclude that the players have quit on him? Or, at the very least just tuned him out?

[mnfaninnc]

3 hours ago, Dean said:

I agree with everything in article but I would also add Fred and spurg contracts. Spurg you had to give a contract to but I don’t think it will age well with a no move clause. I’ll give Bill a pass on Spurg. Freddy g s contract should have been a warning sign that bill was not the ruthless smart Gm we all thought. Locking a 2 m bottom six guy up for 5 more years was insane to me at the time. It was the beginning of these crazy contracts.  Fred didn’t deserve a no move clause.

Dean, you're a little over your skis hear. Freddy has an M-NTC 15 teams, and Spurgeon's NMC turns into an M-NTC 10 teams next July 1. They aren't immovable. 

[joebou15]

10 minutes ago, mnfaninnc said:

Would you conclude that the players have quit on him? Or, at the very least just tuned him out?

Looks like thr move has been made. Not sure they quit, but I don't know if they had the answers because he didn't either.

[Dean]

59 minutes ago, mnfaninnc said:

Dean, you're a little over your skis hear. Freddy has an M-NTC 15 teams, and Spurgeon's NMC turns into an M-NTC 10 teams next July 1. They aren't immovable. 

Yeah you’re right I read cap friendly wrong. However 10 or 15 team no trade lists is basically same. They can figure out teams to put on list that might want them  and the rest of teams have no cap space or interest. However you’re right I miss read nmc on Fred.  Still doesn’t deserve a clause. Spurg does but will be impossible to move in future . Unless you giving up prospects or picks if his play declines . 
I’ll be better at my facts . 

[Dean]

Sweet send Fred to minors 

[Up North Guy]

19 hours ago, mnfaninnc said:

I may be wrong, but I don't think the new PP guru also does PK. I think that falls on an already existing coach

Woods was in charge of the defense and PK and he was fired also.

[FredJohnson]

On 11/27/2023 at 3:16 PM, Greenbean said:

Merrill might be worth an old pair of socks!

But he's really good at reading the lineup card before the game!