Article: The Wild Have Prevailed With Two Hands Tied Behind Their Back

[Luke Sims]

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[Imyourhuckleberry]

As anticipated, not long ago due to injuries, the Wild have slipped to 6th in the conference in points percentage. They are still a bit ahead of Colorado, and 8th place Calgary is relatively far behind.

Kaprizov and Faber seem pretty close to return, and Spurgeon might not be far behind, so that could stabilize them and stop them from falling further, but climbing back to the top 4 could be a tall task.

If they Wild can stay healthy the last few months after these guys return, it's possible they could climb back to #4, but more time lost for key players could have them fighting just to make the playoffs.

 

Johansson, placed on IR, has to miss at least seven days from the time of injury, so the soonest he’s eligible to come off IR is next Thursday’s game against Utah. Ohgren returns!

Edited January 17 by Imyourhuckleberry

[Imyourhuckleberry]

Ohgren had 2 goals and an assist in his last game with the Iowa Wild and could slide into a top 6 role for the Wild immediately upon his return.

[mnfaninnc]

Ohgren is a 2nd half player. It is very likely that Ohgren may step in and not look back. I think he will offer more hustle and better corner play than Johansson can give. 

Any news on Kaprizov being back for Saturday? Faber? That would be a tremendous boost if they can come back. Lauko is already activated.

[Thatoneguy]

41 minutes ago, mnfaninnc said:

Ohgren is a 2nd half player. It is very likely that Ohgren may step in and not look back. I think he will offer more hustle and better corner play than Johansson can give. 

Any news on Kaprizov being back for Saturday? Faber? That would be a tremendous boost if they can come back. Lauko is already activated.

I read an article this morning saying Kap could be playing tomorrow night. I haven't seen anything on Faber. 

[Thatoneguy]

2 hours ago, Imyourhuckleberry said:

Ohgren had 2 goals and an assist in his last game with the Iowa Wild and could slide into a top 6 role for the Wild immediately upon his return.

I hope they give him a shot to play a scoring role instead of stuffing him on the 4th line. I'd like to see him play in NoJo's spot on the 2nd line. 

[Imyourhuckleberry]

Russo confirms the plan is for Ohgren on line #2, and a Faber return Saturday!

1. Boldy-Rossi-Zuccarello

2. Ohgren-Eriksson Ek-Hartman

3. Foligno-Gaudreau-Trenin

4. Shore-Khusnutdinov-Lauko

Gaunce

1. Middleton-Faber

2. Chisholm-Bogosian

3. Merrill-Jiricek

Dermott

[mnfaninnc]

This doesn't look like Kaprizov is returning 🤬.

When Brodin gets back, I'd like to see him and Jiricek become a pair. I think you'll find that Jiricek becomes far more reliable with Brodin at his side. 

[M_Nels]

36 minutes ago, mnfaninnc said:

On another note, since narrative and perception is being discussed, we also have the perception of being a boring team. Visually we are boring until the '78s come on. I know it's like a broken record, but changing visually the uniform will help change the perception. We need that. 

This is another point we’re going to have to agree to disagree. 
 

I'm in the camp that those colors are of an era past that ended shitty and the Wild have their own “identity”. The 78’s are fun every once in awhile but I do not want them full time. I think the NHL has weird jersey rules IIRC but the Wild desperately need to bring back the script jersey, that was a beaut. 
 

Winning on the big stage changes perception more than uniform colors every will. 
 

See this is why I like these boards, differing opinions but for the most part it’s all civil. I just wish it was a tad more mobile friendly, same with HF. Reddit is the easiest for mobile but I’m on there less and less, that place is a cesspool. 

[mnfaninnc]

2 minutes ago, M_Nels said:

See this is why I like these boards, differing opinions but for the most part it’s all civil. I just wish it was a tad more mobile friendly, same with HF. Reddit is the easiest for mobile but I’m on there less and less, that place is a cesspool. 

I have to comment on a PC. If I used my phone, I'd have gone through probably 5 or 6 by now just from throwing them out of frustration.

3 minutes ago, M_Nels said:

I'm in the camp that those colors are of an era past that ended shitty and the Wild have their own “identity”. The 78’s are fun every once in awhile but I do not want them full time.

Take a look around the rinks and see which colors stand out. The '78s (though I prefer the '80s) stand out great, both home and away. The forest greens blend into the chairs, and the whites just look really stale. 

On a personal note, the '78s as a design (not the colors) is a premium jersey, and at the very least you could change the colors but keep the design. It would be my preference to do the '78s using a purple and turquoise which would also be quite vivid, but the green and yellows have a bit of history. When I moved out of state in '84, the team was still doing well, they didn't fail until the '90s, but I think even then they were playing in black and greens. 

Visually, though, the change of colors suggests a new era and a new team in town. Since we will be transitioning to a more offensive team, flashy uniforms is what we want. We want the team to get noticed. Out with the stale and in with the flash. This will help nationally. 

[RedLake]

The Mild haven't prevailed in 24 years. 2003 was a fluke. At this point get Walz outta da booth and have him play 3c.