Article: The Wild Can Win This Series If One Thing Doesn't Change From Game 1

[Tony Abbott]

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[SkolWild73]

Nice article Tony.  I agree that I hope the refs let them play.  I just wish they would have called the obvious trip on Freddy on the face off which would have negated the PP for Vegas and kept the game 1-1. 

During the broadcast, the "rules official" did mention that the crosscheck to Hartman could have been called but so could have Hartman for holding the stick so not too upset over that one.  Otherwise, I thought it was called about how you would expect a playoff game to be called and hope it continues.

Also, shout out to Hartman.  He was getting beat up last night but kept his cool, even drawing Vegas's only penalty. Also, even though it won't show on the score sheet, Boldy doesn't score that second goal without Hartman holding his position.

[Aimlessone]

5 minutes ago, SkolWild73 said:

Nice article Tony.  I agree that I hope the refs let them play.  I just wish they would have called the obvious trip on Freddy on the face off which would have negated the PP for Vegas and kept the game 1-1. 

During the broadcast, the "rules official" did mention that the crosscheck to Hartman could have been called but so could have Hartman for holding the stick so not too upset over that one.  Otherwise, I thought it was called about how you would expect a playoff game to be called and hope it continues.

Also, shout out to Hartman.  He was getting beat up last night but kept his cool, even drawing Vegas's only penalty. Also, even though it won't show on the score sheet, Boldy doesn't score that second goal without Hartman holding his position.

I agree with the statement about Hartman keeping his cool. After getting pancaked nowhere near the play and no interference call, I thought he was going to burn us with retaliation and he didn't. Good on him, hopefully the refs call a more even game Tuesday as I felt it was a little slanted. 

[greg]

Unfortunately whenever the Wikd lose a game especially in the playoffs, too much attention (blame?) Goes to the officiating.  The NHL has had terrible officiating for several years now.  What I don't like is the officiating Philosophy changes for the playoffs.  It turns to let the boys play.  Let's not make a call that could benefit one team over another.  My contentionis by not calling penalties the refs ARE influencing the games outcome.  Bottom line is Wild played very well.  The just lost to a better team.

[OldDutchChip]

Here is what to do to win!

bench Braz and Nyquist and freddy 

double shift Kap and Boldy

play Zeev on offense - yes

Harty Zuccy Kap (it’s inevitable)

Ek Rossi boldy

 Foligno Trenin zeev

MJ Kap Rossi

no one else on O

[Patrick]

Was it just me or was Johansson playing with more physicality and effectiveness than I've ever seen before.  He looked good!

[Dean]

Blame officials, blame injuries, blame buyouts and start times . Always something. I saw a playoff game. One team is much better than the other. How many years has Billy been here and Fred g is 2 nd line center on healthy team. Ridiculous! He lost  the game . Getting caved in on crucial draws, thrown around like a wet noodle , couldn’t defend anything and can’t get to the middle of ice. Why is he a center? Every time he was on ice the wild were in danger because he can’t do anything. Stick handles in a phone booth my arse . No time and space in playoffs should lend to this made  up ability he has . It doesn’t. Move him down the lineup and he makes a Checking line impotent. It’s not like we don’t already know Fred  isn’t a center on a playoff team yet we keep putting him out there and waste draft picks on nyquist instead a center. they switch out coaches for pk and still the same. They didn’t change the players on it. Fred is a highlight reel of faceoff losses that go right into net. Yet we keep putting him  out there because he works hard they say.  Simply working hard doesn’t mean anything. It’s what you do for the money your paid. He is the weak link. Vegas knows this and go at his line salivating. Just like they know Hartman is the guy who will blow his top , so they were trying hard to get him to bite. Good on Hartman for not biting but how long will that last. Kappy , ek and Boldy can’t win this series when Fred and his gang keep getting run over and scored on.  
    Why is your 9 th overall offensively talented center on a checking line and ahl Fred is 2 nd line? Bad coaching an a clueless gm.  Fred needs to be in the press box . The other ahl centers are better than him. It’s because of Billy’s dumb contract he got and the fact Billy won’t admit mistakes.  They need to stop force feeding Fred on the fan base . He doesn’t fit on any line. He just lost you another playoff game . Enough opportunities for this guy he is what he’s always been , not a player for a playoff contender!!

[RedLake]

1 hour ago, OldDutchChip said:

Here is what to do to win!

bench Braz and Nyquist and freddy 

double shift Kap and Boldy

play Zeev on offense - yes9pp up

Harty Zuccy Kap (it’s i7p79nevitable)

Ek Rossi boldy

 Foligno Trenin zeev

MJ Kap Rossi

no one else on 

 

 

Well get rid of Rossi,  Zuccerallo, NoJo, Freddy, Trenonion, Lightwinds, Folingo, Spurgeon, Bogosian, Merril, the ownership, Billy G, and the entire coaching staff, and forfiet the series.

[SkolWild73]

13 minutes ago, Dean said:

Blame officials, blame injuries, blame buyouts and start times . Always something. I saw a playoff game. One team is much better than the other. How many years has Billy been here and Fred g is 2 nd line center on healthy team. Ridiculous! He lost  the game . Getting caved in on crucial draws, thrown around like a wet noodle , couldn’t defend anything and can’t get to the middle of ice. Why is he a center? Every time he was on ice the wild were in danger because he can’t do anything. Stick handles in a phone booth my arse . No time and space in playoffs should lend to this made  up ability he has . It doesn’t. Move him down the lineup and he makes a Checking line impotent. It’s not like we don’t already know Fred  isn’t a center on a playoff team yet we keep putting him out there and waste draft picks on nyquist instead a center. they switch out coaches for pk and still the same. They didn’t change the players on it. Fred is a highlight reel of faceoff losses that go right into net. Yet we keep putting him  out there because he works hard they say.  Simply working hard doesn’t mean anything. It’s what you do for the money your paid. He is the weak link. Vegas knows this and go at his line salivating. Just like they know Hartman is the guy who will blow his top , so they were trying hard to get him to bite. Good on Hartman for not biting but how long will that last. Kappy , ek and Boldy can’t win this series when Fred and his gang keep getting run over and scored on.  
    Why is your 9 th overall offensively talented center on a checking line and ahl Fred is 2 nd line? Bad coaching an a clueless gm.  Fred needs to be in the press box . The other ahl centers are better than him. It’s because of Billy’s dumb contract he got and the fact Billy won’t admit mistakes.  They need to stop force feeding Fred on the fan base . He doesn’t fit on any line. He just lost you another playoff game . Enough opportunities for this guy he is what he’s always been , not a player for a playoff contender!!

Not sure I would blame Freddy for the loss.  He had 12 minutes of ice time.  Only, Braz, Trenin and Nyquist had less amongst forwards.  Yes the faceoff on the pp goal was against him, but he gets out to cover his guy if he isn’t tripped.

 

[OldDutchChip]

18 minutes ago, RedLake said:

 

 

Well get rid of Rossi,  Zuccerallo, NoJo, Freddy, Trenonion, Lightwinds, Folingo, Spurgeon, Bogosian, Merril, the ownership, Billy G, and the entire coaching staff, and forfiet the series.

Ok fred

[RedLake]

5 minutes ago, OldDutchChip said:

Ok fred

Well it's truthful.

[RedLake]

The Jets look so good. Wish Minnesota had that lineup.

[RedLake]

Plug in Hunter Haightand Ohgren. Sit Rossi and Freddy G.

[1Brotherbill]

The idea that the refs will level out the penalties as the series goes on is laughable.  Because the same thing happened in Dallas a few years ago.  People probably forget what kind of ridiculous non calls went on in that series.  Everyone remembers Dumba hitting Pavelski and how that was dirty.  I remember all the non calls like fully extended above the head high stick plays that lead to a goal.  Stuff like that happened a lot in that series. 

Somewhere along the way Minnesota has become the team that gets zero benefit of the doubt calls.  Kaprizov get jumped on from behind and messes up his hip by Logan Stanley, that is considered a good hockey play, goes without a penalty.  Hartman gets suspended because he checked Valardi as he was skating up the ice with his head down.  Ryan Reaves lays out three Wild players on one shift Freddie out for twenty plus games, no call.  Lowry from Winnipeg cross checks Kaprizov over the breezer and on the hip bone, out for 20 plus games no call.  The last home game at the X. The refs didn't call a single penalty for two thirds of the game and both teams should have had multiple penalties.  Yet when OT starts they call a slash on Ek where he was fifteen feet away from the play.  Patrick Kane gets his skate touched by a stick takes three steps and goes down, a key tripping call goes against Minnesota and they lose the game because of it.  

People will say boo hoo. Wild players are soft and need to play better.  Reality is the calls that go against Minnesota never go the other way.  And when the playoffs start the calls never go Minnesota's way and when they start to the series is over. 

[Pewterschmidt]

10 hours ago, Patrick said:

Was it just me or was Johansson playing with more physicality and effectiveness than I've ever seen before.  He looked good!

He gives you 15-20 games like this at the end of each contract.  Don’t take the bait AGAIN bill. 

[Citizen Strife]

What I appreciate about Hynes is he's not going to bitch about the refs.  "You play with what's there."  Letting the officials get in the way is just going to get them in your head.  The refs were looking for Foligno to start shit after he and Evason went after them.  Sure enough...

Hynes knows this, and gets them focused on getting back in gear.  The Wild may or may not win Game 2.  The best thing is to focus on beating the team in front of them, whether or not the NHL has striped shirts in their back pocket.

[Fezig]

I'm a simple man with a simple mind who enjoys the simple things. One thing confounds me... How can a team be that bad on penalty kill and another be that good on power play? Yes, Vegas is talented so that has a role, but the Wild matched up with them 5 on 5! I suspect it's "if you want different results and won't do anything to change it..."

[Scalptrash]

19 hours ago, RedLake said:

 

 

Well get rid of Rossi,  Zuccerallo, NoJo, Freddy, Trenonion, Lightwinds, Folingo, Spurgeon, Bogosian, Merril, the ownership, Billy G, and the entire coaching staff, and forfiet the series.

I actually agree with this, even though you are being sarcastic. I would keep Rossi and cut the rest. I would also trade Karizov this summer, while he's still worth something.

It's truly what the Wild needs if they ever have a legitimate chance of winning a cup. The truth is, however, the NHL will never let the Wild succeed and they have their man firmly implanted to guarantee this, Leipold.

[M_Nels]

1 hour ago, Scalptrash said:

I would also trade Karizov this summer, while he's still worth something.

You wanting to load up on draft picks or get what exactly in return?

[Aimlessone]

On 4/21/2025 at 10:57 PM, 1Brotherbill said:

  Everyone remembers Dumba hitting Pavelski and how that was dirty. 

Except it really wasn't. One could argue it was slightly late as the puck was gone,  but, so are so many hits along the glass behind the net. That one just happened to flatten Pavelski because we wasn't paying attention. 

[RedLake]

15 hours ago, M_Nels said:

You wanting to load up on draft picks or get what exactly in return?

Kaprizov and Rossi for Fiala, Kempe and Gabrokov

[raithis]

5 hours ago, RedLake said:

Kaprizov and Rossi for Fiala, Kempe and Gabrokov

Any more bad suggestions, or are you just going to stop with that one?

If I was going to trade away my best player and a center with maybe the highest trade value (or one of the highest) on our team, I'd sure as hell want something better than that.

Plus, Gavrikov is a UFA this off-season and most of the people involved have some sort of trade clause in their contracts.

That, and Fiala wanted to be in someplace like LA.  He certainly wouldn't want to come back here.

[RedLake]

2 minutes ago, raithis said:

Any more bad suggestions, or are you just going to stop with that one?

If I was going to trade away my best player and a center with maybe the highest trade value (or one of the highest) on our team, I'd sure as hell want something better than that.

Plus, Gavrikov is a UFA this off-season and most of the people involved have some sort of trade clause in their contracts.

That, and Fiala wanted to be in someplace like LA.  He certainly wouldn't want to come back here.

LA wouldn't take that trade with injury history and a Rossi no show against better NHL teams.

[FredJohnson]

On 4/21/2025 at 5:05 PM, OldDutchChip said:

Here is what to do to win!

bench Braz and Nyquist and freddy 

double shift Kap and Boldy

play Zeev on offense - yes

Harty Zuccy Kap (it’s inevitable)

Ek Rossi boldy

 Foligno Trenin zeev

MJ Kap Rossi

no one else on O

Braz and Nyquist on the bench…

 

[raithis]

23 hours ago, RedLake said:

LA wouldn't take that trade with injury history and a Rossi no show against better NHL teams.

You were the one who suggested it.