Article: Jesper Wallstedt Is Shutting Out the Doubters

[manbearpig]

11 hours ago, MNCountryLife said:

Zeev doesn't look as comfortable with Bogo as he did with Hunt.  That isn't a knock on Bogo either.  I thought he played pretty well

I wonder if he got a talking to maybe just play great defense, learn and then do your offensive stuff after he becomes better at defense.  Hes got plenty of time to score goals.

[Fezig]

After a horrendous first month of the season, the defense turned it around in November. I'm not saying both goalies didn't play incredibly well, but the defense does need an acknowledgement also.

[B1GKappa97]

17 hours ago, mnfaninnc said:

I don't think that The Wall will end up commanding a giant raise after next season, so the numbers should be reasonable again. It's the next contract after that where we'll really have to pay him, and that's about when Guus' contract expires. 

It'll be interesting to see what happens with his next contract. He's an RFA so that obviously gives the team some leverage it didn't have with Gus, who would've been a UFA I believe, but also.. if he's playing better than Gus by that point, it'll be hard to tell him he needs to take less money...

[raithis]

21 hours ago, mnfaninnc said:

This would be the wrong move. This is where the eye test comes in. If you watch The Wall, he is bigger in the net than Guus, he's got a better glove hand, and, probably the most important thing, his rebound control is much better. He also finds pucks and anticipates better than Guus. 

Guus works fine in this system, but he is really an average to above average goalie. Our defensive system really helps him out. The Wall, however, is an average goalie now with franchise goalie potential. You don't trade those guys out. I don't think that The Wall will end up commanding a giant raise after next season, so the numbers should be reasonable again. It's the next contract after that where we'll really have to pay him, and that's about when Guus' contract expires. 

At that point, or a year ahead of that, we should have Vaj ready to back up, or we go and get one.

I'm not advocating trading him.  I'm just saying that if a move is made in the near future, Gustavsson's clauses make it more likely that Wallstedt is the one that is moved.  I also don't think Guerin values goalies as much as he does other things, so I could see him viewing Wallstedt more as an asset to make the team better by trading him out than as an asset to team by keeping him here.

It would be a bad move unless we could get a young, emerging 1C that also has franchise potential out of it, but those players are about as available as goalies with franchise potential. It would take the right trade, and I'm not confident that that would ever be reality so it would be bad trade for the Wild in almost all cases.