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Article: Can Jack Capuano's Decades Of Experience Fix Minnesota's Penalty Kill?


I'd be more annoyed if I was Winnipeg.  This game was tailor made to dominate.  The Wild had like no chances to do anything.  Gus played amazing yes...but how many fucking chances do you need to win against a team that played like fucking dogshit?

Gus has stolen three points from Columbus and Winnipeg.

Edited by Citizen Strife
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One bright spot re our prospect pool, khuz looks like he might be able to help out.  Looks like he’s winning over Hynzy too because he was put into alot of important situations in a tie game in 3rd period.  His short handed turnover and chance was good stuff

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Non-factor, net-negative NoJo against WPG. Just like last year all over again.

NoNoJ.jpg.3658a3e958fefb1fbad71ac19ef20487.jpg

No shots, no-nuthin. Two giveaways in 15mins TOI and nearly twenty shifts. Get Ben Jones from the AHL and get some guys hungry to win or make the NHL. The urgency level and compete in NoJo is nada.

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Let's see....3 games in, and 2 OT losses already.  We have a "C" that is out for more injuries, along with a top 6 center.  And more lacking PK, more lacking finish to close the game at the end 3.  

Probably more rhetorical venting here than merited, but where is this new identity?  Where is the drive to finish plays, finish games in regulation?  Or assembly a team around 97?  Not many major changes since last season, so things are shaping up to be about the same this year.  Or were still in year 1 of a 5 year plan to win the Cup, just like the 31 other teams?  

I've given up on on the Twins and Vikings many years ago.  I know it's only 3 games in, but tone is set for another frustrating season.  

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22 minutes ago, hydguy75 said:

Let's see....3 games in, and 2 OT losses already.  We have a "C" that is out for more injuries, along with a top 6 center.  And more lacking PK, more lacking finish to close the game at the end 3.  

Probably more rhetorical venting here than merited, but where is this new identity?  Where is the drive to finish plays, finish games in regulation?  Or assembly a team around 97?  Not many major changes since last season, so things are shaping up to be about the same this year.  Or were still in year 1 of a 5 year plan to win the Cup, just like the 31 other teams?  

I've given up on on the Twins and Vikings many years ago.  I know it's only 3 games in, but tone is set for another frustrating season.  

Don’t give up on the Vikings. This could be their year! I bet you’ve never heard that before…

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5 hours ago, Burnt Toast said:

It’s hard for me to accept but this is the conclusion I came to. I wanted the Wild to move on after last year even though he’s fun to watch and a team guy. It’s just too important a position to keep a well below average goalie. If a young goalie is being developed, sure take the growing pains. Bottom line is goal tending has transitioned in style and positioning. It’s too late now to make a change. Wild Management has committed a year to MAF. Even as a backup he’s getting 25 starts at a bare minimum. I know this is an unpopular opinion. I don’t even like it myself. 

Pretty much how I feel. He will have a good game every now and again but his average play will lose games.

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5 hours ago, Protec said:

Everybody said this kind of stuff last year too, but look at the goals against objectively. He had the first one jammed yesterday on a play that coulda been called as pushing the pads over the line.

Then there was a backdoor off the skate and a couple top-corner snipes. Those kinds of goals aren't 100% on the goaltender. This same thing happened to Fleury last season. He'd get hung out to dry and then in the comment sections it's all about his age, reaction-time, etc. 

Now a bigger guy might make the saves with physical size. A younger guy might have better reads perhaps, but watching the game against Seattle looked kinda like CBJ where MN payed for their errors.

Boldy almost won it in OT, and Fleury didn't let in a single soft goal. The team let down and allowed goals after they scored and NoJo had a gutless shift when the Wild were up one goal. That's the difference. They need more focus, poise, and determination. The effort hasn't been a full 60mins from everybody. NoJo is the weak link and his guy scored the tying goal on the delayed call. IMO, that's not the time to stand back. Force the play and get a whistle. NoJo on the PK is basically what that turned into and it showed. MN had that game in hand a few times.

Pure cope. That first goal was 100% on Fluery. He let a rebound loose on a soft shot with no screen.  He also didn't make a single save in the shoot out.  His adjusted save percentage last year was at or near the bottom of all eligible goalies. He had a great career and deserved a great career but he is done. 

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19 minutes ago, Patrick said:

Pure cope. That first goal was 100% on Fluery. He let a rebound loose on a soft shot with no screen.  He also didn't make a single save in the shoot out.  His adjusted save percentage last year was at or near the bottom of all eligible goalies. He had a great career and deserved a great career but he is done. 

Maybe if he was on Vegas they could score enough to cover  some of it up  .

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1 hour ago, Patrick said:

Pure cope. That first goal was 100% on Fluery. He let a rebound loose on a soft shot with no screen.  He also didn't make a single save in the shoot out.  His adjusted save percentage last year was at or near the bottom of all eligible goalies. He had a great career and deserved a great career but he is done. 

That's right, nevermind he stopped a clean breakaway or that Eberle got five jams at the first goal plus a skate-redirect. Watch Middleton fail to pickup Eberle's stick. He tries to push him and leaves the guy to poke-away again and again. Your problem is that you're ripping the wrong guy. NoJo is the target, not MAF who might have got a whistle if Midds takes the stick. The Wild had three leads against Seattle. Sure the shootout stops didn't happen, fine but winning in regulation shoulda happened. 

Call it cope if you want, but blaming the goalie is the laziest reasoning in hockey. I don't see soft goals at all. I saw a Wild team that had it in the bag a few times and got caught in hockey's trap which is mentally letting down and needing a goalie miracle. You know when the goalie let's in soft ones, but Fleury is getting the scapegoat treatment.

We did this all throughout last year. Ignore glaring issues and blame Fleury cause he's washed-up.

Hockey games where you don't score on the PP or convert chances combined with penalties or letdowns will cost you wins. You can't simply blame one guy. Even suckazz NoJo is just one guy. The coaches play him. The GM signed him. Team hockey is what the Wild need. No one thing can make it happen or not. 

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1 hour ago, OldDutchChip said:

wasn't Trenin supposed to help with PK? i honestly don't know what to do with him after seeing him play for 3 games.....can we buy him out tonight and pretend he never played for us? 

I thought we'd see more balanced lines this year. That has not been the case. Hynes has all the same guys doing the same things on lines together. Finesse, grit, energy, all with each other. No distribution of talents on balanced lines.

Okay, we'll see how it goes. So far it hasn't looked great. Currently MN is 11th in the league and -1 goal diff. WPG has the best goal differential and MN just lost to them by one in OT. They're a Central rival so MN is better today than last season where they got smoked by most division teams.

Hopefully, there's some adjustments being made and refocus on details that win and lose NHL games.

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8 hours ago, Protec said:

I thought we'd see more balanced lines this year. That has not been the case. Hynes has all the same guys doing the same things on lines together. Finesse, grit, energy, all with each other. No distribution of talents on balanced lines.

Okay, we'll see how it goes. So far it hasn't looked great. Currently MN is 11th in the league and -1 goal diff. WPG has the best goal differential and MN just lost to them by one in OT. They're a Central rival so MN is better today than last season where they got smoked by most division teams.

Hopefully, there's some adjustments being made and refocus on details that win and lose NHL games.

agree. but you still need skills out there and wild are sorely missing that. i have to find one of my most pessimistic takes - but there i spoke about Wild being not only out of playoffs, but battling for bottom 5 picks. i'm worried the younger me was right.

we just don't have the skills to battle it out with good teams. that will mean our goalie and D will be tested this season.....and our "improved" PK needs to be top notch....

how do we plan to play offense and take the pressure off our Goalie and D?? really who do we have? we have our skill guys in Kap, Boldy and Ek (imagine if we finally put these 3 on same line.....the  other team would laugh at our other 3 lines). we do have our little guys that could compliment well enough i suppose (if paired on lines with someone from our core 3) - Rossi and Zuccy. And then skills drop off enormously with MJ, Harty, Foligno, Trenin, Freddy - yuck (if i had to be stuck with one of these five, i guess i'd pick Harty but five of them! idiocy! but that's where we're at)

I just cannot believe we are paying F & T 8 million combined. Do they have any value besides trying to throw their fat slow asses around trying to hit people? couldn't we just keep Reeves for that and save 7 mil? 

Lauco and Marat have been good but they are not offensive dynamos, so expecting them to step into top 9 and produce is premature and unfair.

Ohgren does not deserve PP time nor any playing time right now. If he is the best of the AHL.....ouch

FUN Predictions after game 3

  1.  Western Conference standings - From the rear - Sharks Hawks Wild
  2.  Spurgeon plays less than half the games
  3.  Fleury posts another below 900 save % year
  4.  MJ Freddy Trenin Foligno have ONE combined goal after 10 games
  5.  Hynes is fired mid season

 

 

 

 

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Wild could be a playoff team with Kaprizov, Boldy, and Eriksson Ek healthy.

Lose any one of them and the Wild become a losing team, especially JEE.

4 points in 3 games is on pace for 109 points though. Columbus went out and won in Colorado after losing to the Wild. Winnipeg has had a strong start. If the Wild come out of October with 12 points, they'll still be on pace for 109 points, but they'll need more regulation wins to get there.

Probably should have given Wallstedt a start in the AHL by now if they aren't going to use him as a top 2 goalie in the NHL. Fleury is below average and no longer a playoff-level goalie. Wallstedt is the future, so need to get him some games to continue his development.

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22 minutes ago, OldDutchChip said:

And then skills drop off enormously with MJ, Harty, Foligno, Trenin, Freddy - yuck (if i had to be stuck with one of these five, i guess i'd pick Harty but five of them! idiocy! but that's where we're at)

 

22 minutes ago, OldDutchChip said:

Hynes is fired mid season

MJ is gone after this season so he's really a nonfactor in plans moving forward. None of us had high hopes for this season anyway. Not everyone can be a top-6 forward. I'd argue the others you listed (Freddy being the most iffy) are good bottom-6 role players even on a top caliber team. We've seen how lack of solid depth has hurt the Aves and Oils I've made my thoughts known on the terms of all these players but IMO Hartman's was the most deserving since he's so versatile. We're hoping to hit on Yurov, Heidt, Haight as our next top 6 to improve the scoring.

As far as Hynes being fired, I don't see it happening unless they are well below .500.

 

Edit: Added a sentence 

Edited by M_Nels
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15 minutes ago, M_Nels said:

 

MJ is gone after this season so he's really a nonfactor in plans moving forward. None of us had high hopes for this season anyway. Not everyone can be a top-6 forward. I'd argue the others you listed (Freddy being the most iffy) are good bottom-6 role players even on a top caliber team. We've seen how lack of solid depth has hurt the Aves and Oils I've made my thoughts known on the terms of all these players but IMO Hartman's was the most deserving since he's so versatile. We're hoping to hit on Yurov, Heidt, Haight as our next top 6 to improve the scoring.

As far as Hynes being fired, I don't see it happening unless they are well below .500.

 

Edit: Added a sentence 

MJ is (likely .... who knows with Billy) gone next year, but this year - he still plays for us. so i am counting on his contributions.....

I agree on Harty and if i had to select one of the five, i'd pick him. 

The other players are depth only in name at this point. They likely have no place on competitive teams. but somehow they are our core depth players 😢 i highly doubt that any competitive team would like any of these four on their team - MJ - Freddy - Foligno - Trenin. They have no value anymore. Foligno is again a buffoon, but now a slower one. Trenin is just out there like a hippo. MJ is MJ. and Freddy is i guess a good one to cheer for cause who knows how he made NHL and is still on a team....oh yeah we do (Dean!) 

We're hoping to hit on Yurov, Heidt, Haight as our next top 6 to improve the scoring. Hope never dies with the Wild....

As far as Hynes being fired, I don't see it happening unless they are well below .500. unless a miracle happens - they will be a below 500 team. 😞 

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47 minutes ago, Imyourhuckleberry said:

Probably should have given Wallstedt a start in the AHL by now if they aren't going to use him as a top 2 goalie in the NHL. Fleury is below average and no longer a playoff-level goalie. Wallstedt is the future, so need to get him some games to continue his development.

Heinz has started off his signature season with a number of questionable decisions IMO.  I don't want to start complaining about breaking up the top line 3 games in but carrying 3 goalies is just absurd.

I understand this romantic notion that playing Wallstedt with Fleury and having their lockers right next to each other is some magical Hollywood sports narrative but come on.

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18 hours ago, Protec said:

Then there was a backdoor off the skate and a couple top-corner snipes. Those kinds of goals aren't 100% on the goaltender. This same thing happened to Fleury last season. He'd get hung out to dry and then in the comment sections it's all about his age, reaction-time, etc. 

I believe Fleury's reaction time has slowed, but this had nothing to do with that. It had to do with big time players making big time stops, and Fleury's got to have that one, regardless of if it was a top corner snipe. The thing is, he was there, in position and it plain beat him. Sure, it was 6-5 on the delayed call, but it was a snipe from outside the top of the circle which was enough time for Fleury to get set and he was. It just beat him over the glove. 

He misplayed the 1st goal into a goal too, even though I agree, it seemed like his pads were pushed into the net. But, both those goals, 1 & 4, he's got to be better at in that specific point of the game. He wasn't. It's his 1st start of the season, I'm sure there is some adjustment to the speed that needs to happen. 

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1 hour ago, OldDutchChip said:

I just cannot believe we are paying F & T 8 million combined.

This is gross mismanagement of assets.  Draft these stiffs in the 3-7th rds, pay them league minimum to play 4th line Malachi Crunch hockey and spend the other $7M on NHL hockey players who can execute an ice hockey play.  This team that's starved for NHL talent now has two Foligno's.  Thought it couldn't get worse.

Surprise me Trenin.  Make a hockey play.  Please.

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