Article: Can the Wild Get Better By Standing Pat?

[Tony Abbott]

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[0 Stanley Cups]

Let's hope Hynes allows the youngsters (Yurov, Ohgren, Jiricek and Buium) to play through their first year learning curve, and doesn't sit them in favor of older vets.  If those four can play and learn and put up a reasonable 20-30 point seasons, that's all I'm expecting.  If they exceed those expectations, then terrific. 

But at the end of next season, we'll have a lot of players that are one year older and slower: zuccy, bogo, spurgeon, brodin.  Our roster as it sits doesn't haven the depth to be true contenders against the leagues best like FLA, EDM, etc...

I'm hoping Rossi signs $6Mx2yr contract, but I think that's wishful thinking at this point.

[MNCountryLife]

Wild have 7 D and 12 F signed (not including Rossi).  Sitting idle may be BGs plan.   See what is available at the TDL.  Would be a bit of a bummer since we have waited all this time to suddenly have cap space and do next to nothing with it.. yet spending to spend is not a solution.  

Would sure like to see the Wild trade away Vinnie and Freddy.  Then look to sign at least 1 premium player and Rossi.  Nojo can sit in the press box.

[OldDutchChip]

Toni is this one sponsored by Bill and Leo? 

Everything is OK - we are fine! we are going to go in with same team and count on rookies (four or five of them if you count Wally) to produce. There is a long proven record of that working out - look at last year! and we are still in only our second year of our second five year plan! "ahead of schedule!"

How is that appetizing for Kap? I guess it would shock me that Kap signs with status quo. 

As for opportunities to upgrade the team - you have to come ready to deal. You going to dangle Rossi - you'll get the same type of return back. That's why no one is biting.

Larkin, Tage, Tkachuk, Elias.....they are not untouchable. this is not dealing with FL or EDM who is locked into their core and will go at it again next year. This is DET, BUF and OTT - teams who've been dysfunctional for some time (OTT is a bit better off, but having Mr America as their Captain is not really a sure thing for a stable path forward) and if the deal is right - they may bite. 

Kap wants to compete. When a team competes, they do not rely so heavily on rooks or youth. We are overloaded with both - Faber, Rossi, Wally, Yurov, Zeev, Jiri, H&H boys, Ohgren are all still young. You want them all on the team?? You have to pick a route that makes sense for Kap. If he wants a slow go and maybe experience winning when he is 35-38 - OK, but i doubt that. He wants to win and win now when he leads the team. In his prime. So - We have to trade our surplus of youth and go for it. Not scraps but something juicy. 😱

I think Bill gave the indication to Kap that he will be bold and he will sacrifice youth and make a splash. I think Rossi is going to be packaged with either Zeev or Yurov and we will have someone big here. No not Duchene. And not Bjugstad. and not Zucker. 🍻

[Sam]

1 hour ago, 0 Stanley Cups said:

Let's hope Hynes allows the youngsters (Yurov, Ohgren, Jiricek and Buium) to play through their first year learning curve, and doesn't sit them in favor of older vets.  If those four can play and learn and put up a reasonable 20-30 point seasons, that's all I'm expecting.  If they exceed those expectations, then terrific. 

But at the end of next season, we'll have a lot of players that are one year older and slower: zuccy, bogo, spurgeon, brodin.  Our roster as it sits doesn't haven the depth to be true contenders against the leagues best like FLA, EDM, etc...

I'm hoping Rossi signs $6Mx2yr contract, but I think that's wishful thinking at this point.

Add Wallstedt to that list of youngsters. I’ve been curious to see him play and develop. I’m sure Gus will need a break every now and then. 

[Tony Abbott]

1 hour ago, OldDutchChip said:

Larkin, Tage, Tkachuk, Elias.....they are not untouchable. this is not dealing with FL or EDM who is locked into their core and will go at it again next year. This is DET, BUF and OTT - teams who've been dysfunctional for some time (OTT is a bit better off, but having Mr America as their Captain is not really a sure thing for a stable path forward) and if the deal is right - they may bite. 

Well, when they make that trade you'll get to have a big, big laugh, won't you?

[Beast]

Absolutely not.

They were healthy. They got all anyone could ask for from Kaprisov, Boldy, and Gus in the playoffs.  Hartman even played well. Rossi chipped in (from the 4th line, inexplicably). They still couldn’t even come close to escaping the first round, let alone something like the conference finals.

What could possibly improve?  Gaudreau or Mojo somehow become a 30 goal scorer?

Yurov isn’t going to come in and light the world on fire.

If they can’t get a deal done, I don’t want to hear the “aw shucks, we tried.”  Guerin has been planning/building for this moment since he wrote off Parise and Suter.  If he comes out of this off-season without a significantly better team, that’s a result of his poor decision making, and he absolutely needs to be fired.  

 

Edited 16 hours ago by Beast

[Citizen Strife]

I doubt Bennett, Duchene, and Tavares want to come to the Wild.  Other than Peterka and Byram, no one has been publicly hassled as "they want out.". So just stop with the Touch, Thompson, Larkin, and Tkachuk things until their team insiders stir shit like Russo does on a weekly basis.

Funny how the one time Guerin might let the floodgates open and have 5-6 rookies make the team, it's suddenly a bad idea.

Well, a bad idea to Brady's biggest fan anyway.  But playing fantasy GM must be fun.

Rossi just wants to play.  The Wild aren't guaranteed any outside help.  Get it from the inside first.

 

 

 

 

Edited 16 hours ago by Citizen Strife

[OldDutchChip]

19 minutes ago, Tony Abbott said:

Well, when they make that trade you'll get to have a big, big laugh, won't you?

that's how it usually goes - you have to pay up to get something good. this is the time wild go for it. cash in some prospects and bring in elite help. 

[OldDutchChip]

4 minutes ago, Citizen Strife said:

I doubt Bennett, Duchene, and Tavares want to come to the Wild.  Other than Peterka and Byram, no one has been publicly hassled as "they want out.". So just stop with the Touch, Thompson, Larkin, and Tkachuk things until their team insiders stir shit like Russo does on a weekly basis.

Funny how the one time Guerin might let the floodgates open and have 5-6 rookies make the team, it's suddenly a bad idea.

Well, a bad idea to Brady's biggest fan anyway.  But playing fantasy GM must be fun.

Rossi just wants to play.  The Wild aren't guaranteed any outside help.  Get it from the inside first.

 

 

 

 

I doubt Bennett, Duchene, and Tavares want to come to the Wild. that's ok, Wild don't want them (Bennett maybe - but not at the price he'll command)

Other than Peterka and Byram, no one has been publicly hassled as "they want out.". sometimes it doesn't come out until it actually is done. see ranty and the shock 😱 (no to peterka and byram) 

So just stop with the Touch, Thompson, Larkin, and Tkachuk things until their team insiders stir shit like Russo does on a weekly basis. why stop? you want to be happy just to be mentioned? happy that Nelly thought about us before retirement? you have to actually be bold and take chances. there are probably 5 players in the entire league that are untouchable (Kap is one of them). the rest are fair game. 

you think Yzerman won't consider dealing Larkin for Faber and Rossi and prospect/pick? that team is going nowhere and it may buy him more time to play GM.

same for Sabres GM - you think a "reset' of sorts will give him some job security? Yes, sir. And for a GM on that trash team - that may be worth dealing. Either that or he is out. 

[SkolWild73]

Great article Tony.  Like you say, there are not many options out there that would make us considerably better.  Better to hold out and see what transpires.  There is the 2026 free agent class that if they do not resign, they may be available for trade during the year, or at the trade deadline, much like Ranty was last year.  Sometimes it is better to be patient and get what you want than to do something just for the sake of doing it.  

[TheGoosesAreLooses]

With the free agency market looking incredibly lacking in talent, I would tend to agree that the best route is to hold our cards and retain Rossi. 2026 free agency looks far better or even the TDL this year. Why overpay now? As highlighted by Tony above, we have 4 rookies looking to be in the mix and should see what we have before wholesaling young talent to get a 1c. 

It will be a good growing year. Let's not fool ourselves into believing that this team, as it was last year, is one piece away. Let's develop some prospects and see where we sit at TDL. Move when it makes sense, not just because we have money to spend.

[walt]

Going to be interesting to watch what KK does this off-season. If I'm him, no way I'm signing an extension.  Why would he. BG should be fired if he can't make a big addition this year. That's all they've been telling the fans "July 1st is going to be like Christmas morning" I guess JOJO was the big present.🤦‍♂️

[Patrick]

I'm a big fan of this approach. No Merrell, No Bogo and no 4th line made up of AHL guys has got to be worth a few more points on top of what Tony mentioned.  Wait for the deadline. There will be a few teams ready to blow it up. 

[Pewterschmidt]

5 hours ago, OldDutchChip said:

I think Rossi is going to be packaged with either Zeev or Yurov

I thinks it’s Rossi + Ogz to BUF for Peterka + 3rd rd. prospect BUF drafted in 2022

[Pewterschmidt]

2 hours ago, walt said:

I guess JOJO was the big present.

NoJo was signed because Ogz is gone this offseason and NoJo is the break glass in case of emergency injury fill-in guy

[FredJohnson]

8 hours ago, MNCountryLife said:

  Would be a bit of a bummer since we have waited all this time to suddenly have cap space and do next to nothing with it.. yet spending to spend is not a solution. 

He can overpay KK97! 😂

[Need4speed99]

Signing and keeping kap only counts if they build a better team. He should have been playing the youngsters last year to see what they had. Now he won't allow it. The team has to be in playoff contention, otherwise liepold is pissed(fans in the stands)... while it sucks maybe they take a flyer next year. No big names out there you won't overpay for longevity, and by the time the contracts up, we have parise/suter situations.

Should have let the rooks play and figured it out,last year. Now you are desperate and prone to DUMB Moves. 

Let's not pay Rossi the average, let's go get duchene(old) or bennet(never a huge prs guy) for more and longer when they are old.... makes total sense.

 

[DennisIN]

I fully agree with the writer. Let's not forget that MN was among the top teams after the first quarter of the season. The only thing that really hurt us were the injuries and the bad special teams.

Regarding this off-season, we are basically replacing players that had less of an impact with fresh young talent:

Brazeau < Öhgren

Nyqvist < Yurov

Bogo < Jiricek

Chisholm < Buium

If we add another quality player, the team will have a great core. There  is more upside in the team than risk:

Regression candidates: Zucc, Spurgeon, Bogo, Foligno

Improvement candidates: Rossi, Boldy, Brock, Hartmann, Trenin

Workload management can help to keep the older players away from injuries and fresh for the second half. Additionally, a full season of Spurge, Ek and Kap will make this team significantly better.

We should not overreact and burn assets for short term promises. Get a star producing (+60 points) winger via UFA, extend Rossi and we are set.

Only if the market is heating up and GMs get desperate we should try to capitalize. Would hate to see Öhgren or Lambos go. Both of the will he NHL ready at some point next season.

[0 Stanley Cups]

10 hours ago, Pewterschmidt said:

NoJo was signed because Ogz is gone this offseason and NoJo is the break glass in case of emergency injury fill-in guy

NoJo was signed because the Nyquist deadline pickup backfired so spectacularly

[0 Stanley Cups]

Gus also needs a new contract after this season, UFA, hopefully BG lets the season play out a little bit before resigning him.  He'll be highly motivated and could have a terrific season.  We're still going to need him the next 4-5 years because it 's going to take Wally a few more years with the big club.

[Scalptrash]

Billy can't and won't sit on his hands. He will be on the wrong side of another lopsided trade or will grossly over pay someone that doesn't want to come here.

Having said that, he is doing exactly what was asked of him, keeping butts in seats. There is no plan to win a Stanley Cup, never was, just keep the revenue streaming in. It's ok if the team doesn't improve, just remain a bubble team and they will come.

[TCMooch]

It would be the most Minnesota Sports thing ever to just spend on overrated players just because they have money burning a hole in their pocket after years of cap hits. Spend more; same results.

[Scalptrash]

14 hours ago, walt said:

Going to be interesting to watch what KK does this off-season. If I'm him, no way I'm signing an extension.  Why would he. BG should be fired if he can't make a big addition this year. That's all they've been telling the fans "July 1st is going to be like Christmas morning" I guess JOJO was the big present.🤦‍♂️

If he wants his name on the cup, he'll leave. The only reason he'll stay is for more cash and more security. Which is more important to him? Time will tell.

Everyone is predicting 15x8 (too much IMO, injury prone). If he rejects that offer, the Wild should trade him immediately.