Article: Matt Boldy, Wild Beat NHL's Best Team

[Thomas Williams]

View full article

[Imyourhuckleberry]

Huge win! Blues pulled out the come from behind win over Nashville, but still trail the Wild by 2 points and have 1 fewer game remaining. If the Blues go 5-3 in their last 8 games, the Wild only need to win 4 to retain the 1st Wildcard.

Blues have the 10th most difficult remaining schedule while the Wild have a bottom 10 schedule difficulty, so hopefully the Wild win at least 5 of their 9.

Vancouver has a top 5 schedule difficulty ahead. It would be shocking if they played a more difficult schedule than St. Louis and passed them by.

Calgary's schedule isn't as daunting, but they would need to win at least 77% of their remaining games just to catch the Blues and I don't know that they're good enough to win over 80%. The Flames must face Vegas twice and have games against Colorado, LAK, and Edmonton, as well as a late season game against the Wild, likely with Kaprizov and Eriksson Ek back in the lineup.

[mnfaninnc]

Stars did us a solid last night taking out the Flames.

I thought Matt Boldy read our motivational speeches last night and took them to heart. He did show urgency, and he did play like his dreams. Rossi, not so much, but Faber battled all night too. I liked what I saw from Faber and Boldy.

Thing is, that can't be a one off. They need to be bringing that nightly. Next 2 games, Boldy's got to be the best player on the ice against a tired NJ team who is equally handicapped with injuries. They will be flying in from Canada on a b2b with an early game time, and then we catch them the 2nd time in a 3/4. We need to take advantage of the energy lull.

But, that wasn't all the hockey last night. What a game between Cornell and MSU. I thought Stramel played well as #1C, especially from what I saw last year at WI. I didn't see the explosive skating, or the hard physical play, but he has good reach and was positionally strong making good 1st passes. His PP assist was nice, and he was on the top PK and did pretty well. Tough loss, but I saw a lot of improvement. He needs another year there. Stramel does not appear to be a play driver, but he is good in front of the net. I would say his peak is probably as a shutdown #3C

[Imyourhuckleberry]

19 minutes ago, mnfaninnc said:

Stramel does not appear to be a play driver, but he is good in front of the net. I would say his peak is probably as a shutdown #3C

Could be a solid line 4 contributor, like Brazeau. Stramel did finish the game -2, but I have no idea how the goals were scored by Cornell.

Brazeau had a major screen on that Merrill goal from the point last night. Brazeau has been on the ice for 2 goals for and 2 goals against even strength with MN. As much as people may not like his skating, his line is still tough to score against, and they aren't losing games for the Wild.

[TheGoosesAreLooses]

40 minutes ago, mnfaninnc said:

I thought Matt Boldy read our motivational speeches last night and took them to heart. He did show urgency, and he did play like his dreams. Rossi, not so much, but Faber battled all night too. I liked what I saw from Faber and Boldy.

Rossi has looked slow and a little lost as of late, but Russo's podcast also indicated he is playing injured. Apparently the coaching staff is okay with this with our lack of depth, because he is currently playing well under his standard.

[Citizen Strife]

If Faber can play injured and still contribute, Rossi can too.  Can't say he doesn't gut things out.  I forget if it was Suter or (everyone in the NHL really) who said, "You're never 100% after the season starts.

I'll take an injured Rossi.  He's going to try and win despite it all.

Edited March 28 by Citizen Strife

[Imyourhuckleberry]

1 hour ago, Imyourhuckleberry said:

Brazeau has been on the ice for 2 goals for and 2 goals against even strength with MN.

For comparison, in roughly 2 games worth of ice time, Khusnutdinov has been on the ice for 3 goals for and 7 goals against even strength with Boston. Knudi was played nearly 6 full power plays(11.8 MINs) and his team has scored 0 goals. He's also 0 for 2 on faceoffs, but playing wing for Boston.

I take no pleasure in providing this comparison, but with so many people ragging on the trade because Marat scored 2 early goals, a little more data helps to see why Guerin may have had interest in the larger 4th line guy for the current version of the Wild.

Speaking of trades, Nyquist currently has the lowest goals allowed(1.0) per 60 among all Wild players who have played in at least 8 games.

[Citizen Strife]

I understand wanting to think the world of everyone and hoping they do things.  But the Wild needed a defensive improvement much less the offensive improvement.   They didn't think Khusnutdinov was going to learn fast enough.  I made the Donato and Kunin examples.  Donato killing it this year in an elevated role doesn't excuse waiting 10 years for him to get there.  

[SkolWild73]

Glad to a see Boldy get rewarded last night for his hard work.  I know some have been disappointed with Boldy's performance of late, but I think sometimes we are prisoners of the moment and get hung up on one or two games with zero points, especially when we lose, and the teams below us are winning.

In the past 18 games, Boldy has 6G and 11A for 17 points.  That is pretty solid.  For a year, that equates to 27G and 50A for 77 points.  Goals are slightly less than the last two years, but assists would be up.

Some will say, well, he has so many games where he isn't on the scoresheet or doesn't show up.  Of the last 18 games he has 7 games without a point.  For comparison's sake, Rantanen has 10 in his last 18 and Mark Stone 8.  In three of those games, Boldy had 6,7 and 8 shots on goal.  The other 4 games he had one shot on goal in each game, all losses.  Would love to see some more shots in those 4 games, but it isn't like he has "disappeared" for that many games.  

If Boldy could put up a few more multi point games and less zero-point games, that would be great.  The Wild are 13-2-2 when Boldy gets 2 points or more in a game, 15-7-1 with one point, and when he has 0 points, we are 13-18-2.  Hopefully these last 9 games he gets a point in 7 of them.  That should equate to at least 5 more wins and get us to 97 points and the #1 wild card spot.

 

[Enforceror]

2 hours ago, TheGoosesAreLooses said:

Rossi has looked slow and a little lost as of late, but Russo's podcast also indicated he is playing injured. Apparently the coaching staff is okay with this with our lack of depth, because he is currently playing well under his standard.

I was wondering about this as well. He just hasn't looked like himself lately. That shot to the knee might still be an issue, at the very minimum.

[raithis]

10 minutes ago, Enforceror said:

I was wondering about this as well. He just hasn't looked like himself lately. That shot to the knee might still be an issue, at the very minimum.

It certainly seems to coincide with that.  I give him credit for gutting it out.  Just hope he doesn't push it so much that he really starts to fall off in the playoffs.

Maybe if they can put together a small string of wins, he might be able to get a game or two off right at the end of the season once the seeding is pretty much determined.  No idea if that would be enough to make a difference though.

[Sam]

46 minutes ago, SkolWild73 said:

97

 

 

[Thatoneguy]

2 hours ago, Imyourhuckleberry said:

For comparison, in roughly 2 games worth of ice time, Khusnutdinov has been on the ice for 3 goals for and 7 goals against even strength with Boston. Knudi was played nearly 6 full power plays(11.8 MINs) and his team has scored 0 goals. He's also 0 for 2 on faceoffs, but playing wing for Boston.

I take no pleasure in providing this comparison, but with so many people ragging on the trade because Marat scored 2 early goals, a little more data helps to see why Guerin may have had interest in the larger 4th line guy for the current version of the Wild.

Speaking of trades, Nyquist currently has the lowest goals allowed(1.0) per 60 among all Wild players who have played in at least 8 games.

It's not that they traded Marat, it's that they traded 2 young players and a draft picks for a 27 year old rookie giraffe on skates, with very little hockey skills. If they had just traded 1 for 1 most would be fine, but Guerin gave up way too much for this clown. He should have been on the ice for 1 more against last night except a post saved that shot. And who was the last one back into the D zone trailing the shooter? Brazeau. 

[Imyourhuckleberry]

23 minutes ago, Thatoneguy said:

a 27 year old rookie giraffe on skates, with very little hockey skills.

Brazeau does have 11 goals and 10 assists this season(in 833 minutes=1.51 points/60 minutes), and he scored 61 goals in a season in the OHL back in 18-19.

In 82 career games(982 career minutes, 745 of which were not short handed), Khusnutdinov has 5 goals and 8 assists(1.05 points/60 when not short handed).

He's clearly not a top 6 player, but Brazeau has some ability.

Lauko was hurt a lot and doesn't score much. I believe the Wild decided neither of these guys would be on the team next season, and determined Brazeau was a guy they could play in the playoffs this season. There's no denying that Khusnutdinov has some potential due to his skating, but he wasn't playing at a high level in the role the Wild had for him today, and the Wild were going to build up with different players for next season, limiting the possibility of him elevating to a top 6 role.

I'm not suggesting the Wild got an incredible return, only reading into the rationale behind the decision given the way things have been playing out, and the fact that Brazeau's lines have not gotten scored on at a high rate with either team.

Khusnutdinov's line is allowing 3.5 goals per 60 even strength while generating 1.5 goals per 60 in Boston so far. He has 5 shots on goal in 9 games there, and his shooting percentage is likely to fall far below the 40% he's currently at if he can get more shots to the net in the remainder of the season. Boston lost to San Jose and Anaheim in their last 3 games(those are not defensive juggernauts), sandwiched around the LA Kings. In his "elevated role", Khusnutdinov averaged nearly 15 minutes per night and registered zero shots on goal across those 3 games.

Down the road, Ryder Ritchie may have higher upside, and Riley Heidt is a similar player to Khusnutdinov that may be ready next year or the year after. Heidt was actually ranked higher than Khusnutdinov as a prospect in this year's rankings by The Athletic which were done halfway through the year--late January.

Yurov and Ohgren are also ahead, of course.

Bankier, Stramel, Kumpulainen, and Hunter Haight are other depth forwards in the pipeline. Mike Milne is another fast-skating wing. The Wild may not end up missing the potential of Khusnutdinov given their relatively strong pipeline.

I just hope everyone on the Wild is healthy for the playoffs so we can see how they perform in that atmosphere when fully healthy--then add Buium, Jiricek, Yurov, Ohgren, possibly Wallstedt, and a free agent to be named later for next season.

[RedLake]

Boldy played hard last night so did Zuccy. Merril is off my shit list and Lightwinds is on it now. Good game Boldy. 

[Will D. Ness]

2 hours ago, Thatoneguy said:

It's not that they traded Marat, it's that they traded 2 young players and a draft picks for a 27 year old rookie giraffe on skates, with very little hockey skills. If they had just traded 1 for 1 most would be fine, but Guerin gave up way too much for this clown. He should have been on the ice for 1 more against last night except a post saved that shot. And who was the last one back into the D zone trailing the shooter? Brazeau. 

Yeah the guy is a major liability when he gets caught down low and the puck gets turned over.  He is the slowest guy in the league.  

Since his only game is at the net it is almost guaranteed that we will give up a few opportunities just to put this guy on the ice.  

[mnfaninnc]

Zeev Buium's game. A nice 3 pointer versus Providence. One thing I noticed was that Denver plays a much faster game than MSU does. Their skaters are faster, their movements are sharper, and they seem to have a better offense. 

That being said, what it looks like we get in Zeev is a very talented, great skating defender with a lot of offensive upside. He defends much like Brodin's style where he doesn't really take much of the body. He played PK and I really didn't like that style, but, with the threat of a stretch pass if he gets control, that can back off some forwards. 

What I learned from last night was that Zeev is too good for the NCAA. He also seems to have that Faber gene where you don't get tired with long shifts and can recuperate quickly and hop back over the boards. The key question here is: Can Zeev make a seamless transition into the best hockey league in the world? Zeev would need to ramp up his speed and decision making a bit more to be as effective. 

Also, Denver looked really good last night, and I expect the upcoming game against BC is going to be very, very entertaining. I also happened to like the Denver goalie, and I think he might be a guy to look at and invest in if he's undrafted. Davis is 23 and a quick check on elite prospects shows him as available. This would be one of my signings coming out of college, he should be a senior. 

I'll be honest, I am torn between saving an ELC year with Buium vs. getting him into uniform and seeing what he can do in our playoffs. Watching our PP go against Washington where they took all defensemen off the #1 unit scared me. Are Faber and Spurgeon really that bad? Or, are they conserving some TOI because they're exhausted? Buium could help, but what would really help is getting Kaprizov and Ek back for that top unit.

[Will D. Ness]

3 hours ago, mnfaninnc said:

Are Faber and Spurgeon really that bad?

I think so.  Chisholm is our best PP dman, but he just can't stop making bad plays at the worst times.

[Pewterschmidt]

On 3/28/2025 at 2:37 PM, Imyourhuckleberry said:

I'm not suggesting the Wild got an incredible return, only reading into the rationale behind the decision given the way things have been playing out, and the fact that Brazeau's lines have not gotten scored on at a high rate with either team.

Fair.  Bruins on ABC at 7pm tonight.  Tune in for a Khuz spot shadow.

[Pewterschmidt]

On 3/28/2025 at 3:09 PM, RedLake said:

Lightwinds

who's lightwinds?

[AKwildkraken]

13 minutes ago, Pewterschmidt said:

who's lightwinds?

Brazeau 

[Willy the poor boy]

Ollie Moore and Sam Rinzell debut with the Hacks tomorrow.

[mnfaninnc]

4 minutes ago, Willy the poor boy said:

Ollie Moore

I was so hoping we had drafted him.

[mnfaninnc]

I just got done watching the replay. To me, this is the frustrating part. How can Matt Boldy be so dominant against Washington and then take the night off against NJ? This is the thing he needs to learn the most, being consistent with a floor level, and getting hot. The floor level should look like 1 point in 4/5 games. I can't get mad at Rossi, he's just gutting through the knee thing, it's obviously bothering him, but as he looks throughout the locker room, who else is there to fill in for him?

As a team, how is it that you play loosey goosy through the 1st part of a game where your opposition played poorly the night before? I realize that NJ probably got seriously chewed out about their effort in Winnipeg, but still, how do you not lock things down until you can wear this team out? Goose has to be better. He didn't play poorly, but this team needs more from him on a nightly basis. Boldy and Faber need to bring it every night and move past that exhaustion wall. 

I expect a very different result come Monday. NJ will be on the final leg of their 3/4 and home from a road trip. We've just got to finish plays, play low event hockey and lock down our own end. I hate the 5 forwards PP. I also can't understand why we can't get a decent penalty kill. This team is likely playing as hard as it can, but more is needed. Reinforcements are drastically needed. I suppose if you move most of these forwards down a line, this will be a much better team. Nyquist needs a goal....bad.

[mnfaninnc]

And, tonight at 7 pm EDT is Zeev vs. BC. Plus, I think all our WHL players are in action tonight.

Metallurg is down 3-0 in their 1st round series.