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Neither did Ekker. It takes time and experience.14 points
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I think Nyquist has been a plus. His scoresheet might not say but he has improved the PK and is still a good NHLer.11 points
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Oldest, most beat up topic. Guerin-haters keep whining and crying cause he's not going anywhere and just GM'd for USA tacking on more resume-boosting credentials. The Wild were total shit at the end of Parise/Suter. They were whining too in the press and the team had zero prospects or useful 1st round picks. You complainers are a joke, giving F-grades while full-rebuilders aren't any closer to a Cup and big-swingers are striking out with newly-signed Stamkos, Big-Apple Blunders, or Vancouver's vanquished playoff chances. We'll see, but I remember people crying Staal shouldn't have been traded, Suter should have, and Fiala wasn't given a fair shake. Suter had to be bought out AGAIN, Staal retired, and Fiala isn't putting LA into the contender conversation so I don't really give a crud if rando rag'n-rippers wanna armchair GM from their office chair or smartphone. It's not even debatable, MN has good youth, solid defense and goaltending. Injuries always hurt, but MN's penalties will end and they'll be handicapped beyond all other NHL teams no more. The Wild have been better ever since Guerin got hired and not alone getting knocked out of the playoffs. Doomers everywhere nowadays.11 points
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Ohgren has years to figure out his shit. Giving him up better be for someone who is effective right now, not another project like a Cozens or someone too old like a Gourde or Laughton. Rossi didn't figure out his spot right away. Here's hoping Ohgren manages to find a similar path to success.11 points
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Brazeau is now scoring goals at a better pace than Khusnutdinov did for the Wild. More importantly, perhaps, for players with at least 8 games played, the even strength goals against per 60 leaders for the Wild are Nyquist and Brazeau. Brazeau has played around 68 minutes and only 1 goal has been scored against his line even strength. For Boston forwards, only Cole Koepka had a lower goals against per 60 than Brazeau among their regular forwards(those with 20+ games). Guerin traded for Nyquist and Brazeau after the Wild had games where they gave up 3, 3, 6, and 5 goals against in regulation(4.25 per game), with only 1 of them being empty net. Also, before folks completely write off Buffalo, they went into Winnipeg and beat them 5-3 after the Wild smothered their offense much of the last game. Since adding Nyquist, only 1 team(Carolina) in the NHL has a lower goals against per game than the Wild. The Wild's PK has been a tad better since adding Nyquist as well. Hopefully the defense and goaltending can remain stingy against better competition.10 points
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Wild are at 81% on PK% since trading for Nyquist, and 31% on the PP in that timeframe. Sample size too small to be meaningful, but at least the special teams have shown some improved results in the last couple of weeks.9 points
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I'm feeling generous and give Guerin a B. He had a lot of crap to clean up after the Fenton fiasco and the Fletcher ending. He's built a solid prospect pool which was empty and he hasn't really traded those guys away like Fletcher did. As for results, under his regime, the Wild had their best single season. He was the GM that got Kaprizov over here and the one that resigned him. He's made some moves to bring in Faber, Jiricek and signed some absolutely high valued deals. His first order of business was making sure Spurgeon got resigned, and then he went from there. Also, with the buyouts, he promised us a competitive team and has delivered in 3 out of 4 years, possibly 4 out of 5. This team should have never even had the expectation of being any better than competitive, so anyone who had higher expectations needs to check on those in the mirror because that's on them. He hasn't been a perfect GM, but he's also been the best GM our franchise has ever had. I realize, before anyone calls me out on it, that this is a low bar.9 points
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For a short term bump to a lineup that desperately needed a little offense without sacrificing two-way ability (plus another PK option), I'll position myself on the side that thinks this is a decent move. I know, this isn't going to rocket us into another atmosphere but with cap issues, I just don't see too many possibilities for playoff contention without sacrificing some key players (yes I think Spurgeon is still a key player). I'm not too worried about the 2nd round pick given our contention window. The salary retention was a must. This gives us the following lines for playoffs, contingent on injuries. Some mix of Ohgren ($887), Trenin ($3.5), Khus ($925), Lauko ($788), Vinnie ($775), Johannson (2m) Next year, we should be adding Yurov to the mix ($900k?) We'll be carrying 3-4 too many roster spots with potential fall-off/trade or retirement of Zucc, Nyquist, Lauko, Vinnie, Nojo. I like Khus but Vinnie has out-scored him in 6 games and is even LESS money. Some AHL time might not be bad for the 22 year old. Ohgren is in a similar place. Probably too good for AHL but not quite an impact in the N yet. Lauko has great energy, grit and speed but has not showcased much in the skill dept apart from some nice breakaways. Big questions: Is Zucc planning to stick around? He'll be 38 at the start of next season. Is Nyquist the contingency plan? Can Yurov immediately slot into line 2? Do we continue on with Trenin's 3.5m? Does management still have a thing for Nojo? All-in-all, I think we have some cleanup to do which could save us 3-5mil in cap space and after signing KK and Rossi, leave us with a bit to make an off-season change to beef up the lineup where needed based on the answers to the questions above. Ok, done rambling 😉9 points
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All things considered, getting Nyquist seems like a godsend. He instantly is a top line player game 1, and looked significantly better than a number of guys who have been hanging out in our top 6 all year. No need to get excited, but if Nyquist can remove Nojo from the top 6 we all should be happy.9 points
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This team is exhausted due to the players having to play elevated roles. But, I think the schedule moves back into our favor against the Devils. Now, we've got to put up points again. ODC is spot on, Faber, Boldy, Rossi must lead tonight. Quit deferring and take it to the net. The spotlight is on you to bring us out of this slump. Is it a tall ask for 23 year old players? Yes, but needed. This is how you build champions, when an opportunity arises where you can lead the team. You guys have dreamed about this your whole lives, now go out and do it. This cannot be a 1 or 2 player team (Kaprizov & Ek), their absence means new heroes must emerge. This is your time to shine, go out and get it done! Dominate like you've dreamt about, and bring these fans to their feet....repeatedly. The main lesson of Kaprizov & Ek being out is that this team is not dependent upon their contribution, that the others can gain confidence that they can perform too. We need them to know this. I am hoping for Nyquist to get on the board too, I think he needs it for his confidence.8 points
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If Kaprizov & Ek is back and close to 100% - we have a shot. I don’t really care if it’s Vegas or Jets - bring it! Enough of laying out excuses for why we’ll fail (again the obligatory cap mention) The loosing has to end this playoffs! Boldy, Faber and Rossi - step up and lead the team - starting with tonight game. It’s not Hartman or Zuccy - it’s you three that need to lead!8 points
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Gustavsson started 5 games, winning 2 games in 2023 and had the best goalie performance for the Wild since Talbot in 2021(who went 3-4 with a .923 save percentage). Against a top 8 offense, Gus posted a .921 save percentage in his 5 games while the team in front of him was outplayed badly in stretches, partially due to injuries to important Wild players. Fleury got shelled for 7 goals against(.811 save percentage) in his only appearance that playoffs. He started that playoffs with a thrilling 3-2 OT win, and won his next start before Dallas really took control of the series. The Wild only scored 3 total goals in the final 3 games of the series. The officials also didn't do any favors for the Wild in that one, but if the Wild were healthy, it likely could have been a better series.8 points
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Just a couple of thughts about this article. PuckPedia projects the Wild will have roughly $22 million in salary cap this offseason. However, we must factor in Kaprizov's eight-figure extension. Therefore, Minnesota will still have $10 to $12 million to spend, leaving Guering to fill in the pieces of a roster that has been one of the worst teams in hockey since the start of the calendar year. Kap is signed through next year. His extension has no bearing on our cap space this offseason. Rossi's extension would, and if they decide to resign someone else (hopefully not). The number of $10 to $12M might be correct if they make some moves, I guess. The Stars and Avalanche took the opposite approach, building the foundation and supplementing it with big free-agent moves. But while Guerin hypes up his future, it’s all about the present, satisfying this franchise’s desperation to get out of the first round. What big free agent moves did the Stars make? Of their top 15 scorers, they signed Mason Marchment Sam Steel and Matt Duchene as FA's. Duchene was a huge pickup, after getting bought out by Nashville in 2023. He was in such high demand that Dallas had to fork out a one year $3M contract. Results were great but would not call him a big FA signing at the time. The rest of their team was through the draft and trades. How about Colorado? Same thing as Dallas, 3 FA signings among their top 15 scorers. First, Nichushkin all the way back after the 2019 season, a season where he scored 0G and 10A in 57 games for Dallas. Second, Kirvanta, signed in 2023 after lighting it up with the Stars with 8G and 1 A in 70 games. The last "Big" FA signing they had was Parker Kelly who they signed this year after 8G and 10 A in 80 games with Ottawa last year. Neither one of these teams went out and signed a big FA. They signed small deals to players and filled in their gaps with players from their system and trades in Dallas case, or made a ton of trades like Colorado did. Out of their top 15 scorers this year, only MacKinnon and Makar were drafted by the Avs. The players we signed as FA's are Zucc, Hartman, Freddy G and Trenin. The rest are through the draft or via trade. I would say we are building or have built the foundation with Kap, Boldy, Faber, Brodin, and Rossi with hopefully some young guns coming in next year. I will have to wait and see what is done this offseason to add to the roster, but I would say the foundation is there.8 points
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Come on, Tom, this isn't anything like the circus that is the Cowboys. It's not even remotely close.8 points
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If the Wild traded tons for Laughton (30-40 pt player ceiling), it would have been railed on way harder than even Nyquist is. At least with Nyquist, you know if it doesn't work, he's gone after the season. Gourde might have been an option, but he's only played 35 games. There were risks regardless if the team was able to aim high or low.8 points
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such an interesting and unexpected decision.....leaving many in wonder which star is next? maroon or reaves?8 points
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Special teams are incredibly important in crunch-time games, and the Minnesota Wild's power play had been struggling to cash in on their few chances in the last week or so. In their last four games, Minnesota went 0-for-9 with the man advantage, including two losses to big-time teams. Normally, a team like the Wild can ride out a four-game slump. However, needing to get a win against a top Washington Capitals team, John Hynes needed to do something drastic to shake things up. On Wednesday, the usually-conservative Hynes went bold, icing a five-forward power play unit. Some of the best, most talented teams have tried this tactic -- the Toronto Maple Leafs and Florida Panthers come to mind as the pioneers -- but the Wild have been slow to the party. Under Bruce Boudreau, they were among the last teams to fully embrace having four forwards on the power play. Dean Evason always felt confident enough in Jared Spurgeon to have him as a defensive safety blanket. As for Hynes, Spurgeon, Brock Faber, and Declan Chisholm have all had 50-plus power play minutes. You can understand a fully-healthy Wild getting tempted into a five-forward unit. Having Kirill Kaprizov, Joel Eriksson Ek, Mats Zuccarello, Matt Boldy, and Marco Rossi all on the ice? No one would bat an eye at that. But Hynes pulled that lever with Kaprizov and Eriksson Ek on the shelf, putting in Freddy Gaudreau and Marcus Johansson on the top unit. That raised eyebrows, or it would have, if it hadn't worked. 23 seconds into Minnesota's second (and final) power play chance, Gaudreau tipped Boldy's point shot to send the puck past Charlie Lindgren to tie the game. It was a necessary step to secure a crucial two points by knocking off the President's Trophy-leading Capitals. Gaudreau even iced the game by notching an empty-net goal. When Gaudreau first got to the Wild, he was plucked out of obscurity by Evason, whose long relationship with the player came from their days with the AHL's Milwaukee Admirals. Evason staked some of his reputation on Gaudreau, telling Michael Russo in August 2021, "I can attest to him... being a real, real good player, but a real good teammate as well." After a 44-point season, Evason got to take a victory lap. "I think my feelings personally on Freddy are well-known by now and I think it's an organizational feeling as well," the coach declared the following September. "You could play Freddy anywhere." But when Evason got fired amidst a slow start from many Wild players -- including Gaudreau -- it put Gaudreau into somewhat uncharted territory. Gaudreau was a late-bloomer, making the NHL full-time at 28, under a coach who had a unique relationship with him. How would it work under Hynes, who had no connection to Gaudreau at all? As Gaudreau's struggles compounded, it didn't work. During the 2022-23 season under Evason, Gaudreau averaged 16 minutes and three seconds per night for Minnesota. During Gaudreau's final 37 games in his first season under Hynes, that average time on ice fell to 13:24. Early this season, Hynes put Gaudreau on fourth-line duty, with him averaging just under 14 minutes a night in October, a month in which he went scoreless until the final game. His struggles under Hynes led to widespread speculation that the Wild might seek to give him a fresh start under the coach who had 1000% faith in him. However, no such move materialized, and Hynes, Minnesota's front office, and the fans all should be happy about that right now. It’s the State of Freddy Hockey now. Goals have been tough to come by in St. Paul this March, and Gaudreau's been one of the only reliable sources of them. His six scores in March leads the team, and his eight points are behind only Matt Boldy, tying him for second on the Wild. On a squad that's struggling to keep up trying to elevate the team in the wake of an absurd string of injuries, Gaudreau is one of the few players seeming to gain strength as the season wears on. And whether Gaudreau sees it this way, he's proving that he's no one-coach wonder. Hynes is leaning on Gaudreau like he never has before and is finding why Evason had such trust in the player. Since the start of February, Gaudreau is averaging 17:16 per night -- more ice time than Gaudreau's peak season (16:16) under Evason. During that span, Gaudreau is fifth among Wild forwards in 5-on-5 time, fifth in power play time, and by far their top penalty-killing forward. When defending a one-score lead with a 5-on-6 against the best goal-scorer of all time, Hynes had Freddy Hockey out there to stop Alex Ovechkin from tying the game. As Evason said, Hynes is finding he can play Gaudreau anywhere. Of course, some of this increase in playing time is out of necessity. During February and March, Ryan Hartman missed time due to suspension and Eriksson Ek has been out for over a month. If Gaudreau was simply eating minutes, maybe that's not a perfect indication of trust. But Gaudreau is stepping up, and as the five-forward power play showed, Hynes is looking for ways to get him into the game. It's working, and Gaudreau is suddenly in sight of setting a career-high in goals. He scored 19 two seasons ago, which means he needs just two in his final nine games to not just hit a career-best, but crack the 20-goal mark for the first time. More importantly, the perpetual underdog is helping an underdog Wild team claw out points as they grow closer to clinching a playoff spot. Last night saw him help Minnesota pick up a huge regulation win against Washington. Earlier this month, he notched two points in a 4-3 win against the Seattle Kraken. He scored the only tally in a 1-0 shutout of the Boston Bruins. Combine those big-moment scores with his always-solid two-way game, and Gaudreau is showing he's a player capable of earning the trust of any coach.7 points
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I was super down on Freddy after last season and was scratching my head at the term he got for his extension but if we can get this years Freddy for the remainder of his contract that's one hell of a bargain.7 points
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So which of the three commenters are you?7 points
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“It is going to be alright. It’s all good!” “This team is so awful. I’m angry!” “Listen, this is exactly what you’d expect to happen, so really, it is what it is. Just go with the flow, bro.” Odds are that when you think of the Minnesota Wild right now, a phrase that sounds like one of the three above starts running through your head. Whichever one it is, it’s also likely the same phrase that runs through your head most of the time. Sports fans tend to fall into one of three categories. Scroll through the comment section on any sports website. You’re likely to see each one of them battling for the souls of the other two in an increasingly escalating debate that eventually dissolves into a bunch of fiery declarations about who lives in their parents’ basement and who just needs to open their eyes and “actually watch the games.” And let’s be honest, we’re lucky if it stops there. But we here at Hockey Wilderness are a civilized bunch intent on delivering wholesome content to our loyal and knowledgeable readers. So, instead of rehashing the same conversations you’re likely to find in the comment sections on lesser sites, what you’ll see here today is what happens when three highly rational, completely objective hockey fans engage in a spirited discussion about how the Wild will fare in this year’s Stanley Cup Playoffs. In one corner, you have Optimist Brian. In the other, Peter the Pessimist. And up there, perched from the rafters and taking in the big picture, is Rational Randy. ---------------------------------------- The prompt: The Minnesota Wild will find playoff success this postseason and win at least one round. Optimist Brian: They can definitely do it! If you don’t count the past two months, the Wild are basically one of the best teams in the league. No reason they can’t ramp it back up in April with all their big guns. Peter the Pessimist: Listen, good hockey is like jazz music – I know it when I see it, and with this bunch, I haven’t seen it in a while. Plus, I mean, if we’re not counting the past two months, I’ve only gained four pounds since Christmas. So why don’t my pants fit then? Rational Randy: The way I see it, you can’t win or move comfortably in your pants if you’re not healthy, so of course, the Wild have been struggling lately. I believe that answers Peter’s question as well. Let’s see what happens if everyone gets healthy and the Wild can give opponents a healthy diet of Kirill and Co. every night. Time will tell, fellas. Optimist Brian: That’s exactly what I’m saying! We all know that when the Wild put the pedal to the medal and play their game, they get rewarded for their efforts. In general manager Bill Guerin, we trust! This is the guy who finally got Kaprizov to come over and who led the team to the best regular season in franchise history. Peter the Pessimist: Listen Brian, would I trust Bill Guerin to spin a good yarn and pick up the tab at the bar? Absolutely. Do I trust him with my hockey team? Sorry, but that ship flew the coop when he handled the team like he has this year. And really, even before that, things started getting weird. Rational Randy: Well, the way I see it, going into the season, the Wild weren’t expected to be as good as they have been so far, so we have to keep that in mind. Have they been as good as we would have hoped? No. But they haven’t been awful either. Time will tell what happens. We just gotta let the universe unfold as it will, bros. Optimist Brian: Well, listen, the universe unfolds according to the will of the hockey gods, and this year, they have to be on our side! I mean, the Wild put on their hard hats every game and go to work, and they’re bound to get rewarded with some puck luck at some point. Why wouldn’t this be the year they finally do? It’s the final year of Flower Power, after all. The gods be with us, I say. Peter the Pessimist: What in the name of Manny Fernandez are you two blabbering on about? The universe and hockey gods don’t win you hockey games! It’s Xs and Os, execution, being a well-oiled machine, and star power. And right now, the Wild are headed down the home stretch looking like the rickety sled in Cool Runnings, and the team’s stars are being held together with duct tape. Rational Randy: You know, Peter, some people have used duct tape to do some really great things. I had a wallet made out of it for all of middle school. The Wild’s chances have definitely gotten worse with all the injuries they’ve had, but all you really need is a chip and a chair, and then once the cards are dealt, it’s all up to fate. Time will tell. Let’s just sit back and enjoy the ride, dudes. Optimist Brian: You’re damn right I’m gonna enjoy the ride! How many teams do you know that could survive this many injuries to key players and still be pretty much a lock to make the playoffs? You know why? It’s because they have the intangibles and put the pieces in place to succeed. Their goalie tandem features an emerging star and a sure-fire hall of famer. They have a great mix of young talent and steady vets who all know their roles. Look at Marcus Johansson. He’s practically the Greek god of off-puck neutral zone positioning. That’s the stuff you need to win! Peter the Pessimist: Oookay. Let’s unpack this for a second, Brian. Your rationale for the team making a playoff run is that the Wild played well to start the season, they have a backup goaltender who they’ve barely played in the last month, and because they have Marcus freaking Johansson? What in the name of Justin Fontaine are you smoking? Randy, come on, this guy’s nuts, right? Rational Randy: Well, I can see both of your points, really. There’s a lot to be said for having a veteran presence in the room, and Fleury is known to have been a valuable mentor to young goalies in the playoffs. And Johansson does bring some defensive value, but Greek god is a little over the top. So yeah Peter, Brian’s probably smoking something. But that’s just his journey, man, just like the Wild are on theirs. Time will tell what happens, compadres. Optimist Brian: The Wild won this week! They are the best! Peter the Pessimist: The Wild lost this week. They suck. Rational Randy: You win some, you lose some, bros. Optimist Brian: Let’s go Wild! Let’s go WILD! Peter the Pessimist: Uhh yeah…I’m gonna go. Randy, can we be done here? Rational Randy: Sure thing, fellas. Rational Randy abides.7 points
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Its the whole "that's why they play the game" type of thing. Winning the cup, highly doubtful. But when healthy and if Gus (or MAF) get hot who knows what will happen. Puck luck is weird. Being as close to 100% healthy as they possibly can be can't hurt. Losing Ek hurts effort getting to the middle of the ice, Kap, well we all know, Brodin shuts down their best on many occasions. Look no further than 2019 Blues, or 2012 Kings for weird things that can happen. I will jump on the bus MacGayver is driving, if they go in fully healthy they will get past the 1st round.7 points
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BINGO!!! When the Wild started gooning it up and playing undisciplined is when that series went south. Say what you want about Dallas diving but the fact is the team took far too many penalties and Dean made some very questionable coaching (non) decisions. Non-Wild fans can keep up the "Mild" moniker but when this team plays a structured defensive style from the goalie out they can hang with anybody in tight games. We don't have the firepower to win 6-4 type games but can hang with anyone in tight games.7 points
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Wild currently have the 1st tie breaker against all of the teams behind them in the standings, which is regulation wins. The teams behind them would not only need to make up 8 standings points, they would need to get at least 6 more regulation wins than the Wild in the next 14-16 games if they tie MN for points. If the Wild can average at least 1 point per game the rest of the way, they'll almost certainly stay in the 7th spot, unless of course they win at a significantly higher rate and move up ahead of the Kings and/or Oilers. St. Louis seems poised to grab the 8th spot now. They have a winning record since changing coaches early in the year and have been playing well lately. Very possible the standings tighten up with St. Louis making a playoff push, but the Wild close the season with San Jose, Calgary, Vancouver, and Anaheim, 3 of the 5 worst goal differential teams in the West. St. Louis has a few games against Nashville, and a game against Chicago in the next couple of weeks(one of the easier schedules over the next 6 games based upon standings), but closes the year with a more challenging schedule after that, including 2 against Colorado and one each against Winnipeg and Edmonton in their final 8.7 points
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Points are points, even if won by slowing the game to a crawl to survive.7 points
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To be fair, when Kaprizov and Zucc are there, they play catch behind the endline for a 1/3 of the PP until they can send it over to Boldy to wiff on a one-timer.7 points
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I think this is all about bringing in a 4th line guy, some size, and can put a couple in the net. I liked watching Khus, but lets be honest about what he brought. A good fore and back checker..... that's about it, he has 2 goals all season. Always had hope he would take a next step but he hasn't. The wild had 3 total right handed players, one of which is now Vinnie. Marat is 5'11" 176, Justin is listed as 6'5" or 6'6" 227. Per the Bruins blogs he sounds like a big body, decent hands and vision down low. They had hopes of being a net front guy on the PP and "Brazeau impressed with his willingness to be physical and his presence on the forecheck, traits the Bruins needed down the stretch." I view this as a future 3rd or 4th line guy if he gets resigned. Lots of people wanted the Wild to get some size, well there it is. Plus being right handed and the ability to "bang down low". Lauko is always hurt, Khus, like him or not, produced less than Justin and didn't have much size. Best we can hope is he takes off a bit like Vinnie and contributes, and if the wild make the playoffs we can hope he has some snarl, take a page from Folignos book and not Jordan Greenway. This is not a get them over the hump type deal, try viewing this as a solidifying the bottom 6 and making them bigger and tougher. May be all pie in the sky, but as fans, what else do we have?7 points
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First off, I would like to thank Tom for another article with a link to our "bad aging contracts". I missed it in the other articles he has wrote. Now to comment on some stuff from the article, specifically for those of us that see many of the good things that this team has done and maybe to help those that don't view it as good to see it better. Minnesota also would have benefitted from extending Rossi after his All-Rookie season last year: Hindsight is 20/20, but if I recall a majority of fans did not want this to be done. They wanted to see it for more than part of a year, which he has done. Even still, some are not sold on resigning him. They traded a second-round pick for 35-year-old Gustav Nyquist in what’s likely a lost season. That’s weird. A lost season? 8th best points percentage. Also, compared to what some teams are giving up for other players, (Nico Sturm aside), it doesn't look that bad. the Wild have a strange approach to player development So, Rossi scores one point in 19 games, gets sent down to work on things. Comes back the next year and scores 40 in 82 and has 51 in 62 this year. I would say that is what you do to develop a player. Isn't that what Iowa is for? Boldy played a total of 24 games in Iowa and then came up and has played great since. It's not like the we kept him there forever. Minnesota was competing with the Winnipeg Jets for the Central Division at Thanksgiving. Three months later, they’re battling to stay out of a Wild Card spot and made a desperate trade for a 35-year-old former player. Below is how many points teams have gained on us since Thanksgiving (40 games) Colorado- 4 Vegas-5 Oilers-6 Jets-8 Start-10 The following teams we have gained points on Flames-5 Canucks-2 Kings-same Since Christmas, or since Kap went down, we have gained points on Calgary and Vancouver and held the same or lost 2 or less points to everyone but Dallas and Winnipeg. Not too bad without your best players and some of the injuries on top of that. Furthermore, they’ve prioritized veteran experience over young players with upside. So, what young players would have helped us? Ohgren and Khus played a combined 80 games to the tune of 3G and 8A and a -13. I am glad we had some vets, so we were able to send them down, like we did Rossi, and hope they learn some things and come back better next year. It sucked to send them down when we got Nyquist, but would we rather roll with one of those two instead of Nyquist in the playoffs?7 points
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That has worked wonders for Buffalo, Chicago, San Jose, etc. People are worried about Kap resigning with us with what we have done. So a tank would have been better?7 points
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Based on what we've seen so far, there's only one way that Liam Öhgren is helping the Minnesota Wild get to the playoffs this year. As trade bait. I don't say that disrespectfully or because there's any shame in not being ready for an NHL playoff run as a 21-year-old rookie. Öhgren can create his own shot at the AHL level but can't quite do it against bigger, stronger NHLers. That's not good or bad. It just is. Unless you're trying to get the Wild to the playoffs without Kirill Kaprizov and Joel Eriksson Ek. Once Eriksson Ek went on the IR, Minnesota had gone 0-3-0 before being forced to make a move, trading for Gustav Nyquist. It wasn't inspiring, perhaps, but when your team scores two or fewer goals in seven of their past nine games... you gotta do something. To make the Nyquist trade, they had to send Öhgren and fellow rookie forward Marat Khusnutdinov to the Iowa Wild for salary cap reasons. Those ripples showcase Minnesota's issues as a potential buyer: They have little flexibility, few moveable pieces, and almost no draft capital. The Wild will enter the 2025 Draft with only their second and sixth-round picks and a fourth-rounder they picked up from the Toronto Maple Leafs for facilitating a Ryan O'Reilly trade two deadlines ago. They've already moved their 2026 second-rounder to acquire Nyquist. So, what's left? A lot, actually. Minnesota has the second-best prospect pool in the NHL, according to The Athletic's Scott Wheeler. They have cornerstone pieces in Zeev Buium, (and, they hope) David Jiricek, Danila Yurov, and Jesper Wallstedt. Beyond those headliners, the Wild also have intriguing forward depth in Riley Heidt, Hunter Haight, and Charlie Stramel. Öhgren is sort of stuck in between those tiers. Few consider him a potential impact player, but he's close to NHL-ready and a cut above the Heidt/Haight/Stramel crowd. So it makes sense that, when asking Who's expendable?, Öhgren's name would come up. In fact, it did in The Athletic's round-up of players most likely to get dealt. Now, you've gotta give to get. Still, the Wild should go out of their way to keep Öhgren at the deadline, even if it means risking falling out of the playoffs. Why keep him over someone like Heidt, Haight, or even their 2026 first-rounder? It's a long-term fit issue. Many of Minnesota's forwards fit a similar prototype: Smart players who must rely on their offensive skill to make an impact in the NHL. Heidt, Haight, and Ryder Ritchie may play hard, but they don't have the potential to be, say, an elite forechecker like Eriksson Ek. Someone like Stramel might, but despite his strides at Michigan State, whether he makes it to the NHL is still an open question. As I said earlier, that's not good or bad. It just is. Öhgren is simply different from the pack. His 6-foot-0, 187-pound frame isn't imposing, but his playstyle should be once he settles into the NHL. Öhgren's game profiles similar to Eriksson Ek's. He has the skill to be on the power play but is effective on the forecheck. If the Wild want the kind of third-line scoring threat they had a few years ago with Eriksson Ek, Marcus Foligno, and Jordan Greenway, Öhgren is their most likely prospect to fill that role. That's probably not going to be the case with the smaller Heidt or Haight. Ritchie is 6-foot-1, so maybe he will become that player. Still, at least at the draft, he looks like someone whose ID you'd check before selling him lemonade. Obsessing over height and weight charts is a good way to make mistakes in player evaluation, but here's the thing: Someone has to fill the physical role on a team. It's not about fighting or blasting guys with hard hits. Instead, it's about having players who can forecheck and withstand physical pressure, which is essential. Öhgren is their top prospect who cleanly fits that bill. And if they don't develop someone like Öhgren, they'll try to find that player elsewhere. All you have to do is look at the last two summers to see that. Marcus Foligno got a four-year deal that's working out great now but carries the potential to fall off hard toward the end. Ryan Hartman signed a three-year extension and his value has plummeted to the point where he's getting called "just a knucklehead" by NHL executives. Yakov Trenin came in as a free agent and is on pace for eight goals in the first year of a four-year pact that pays him $3.5 million annually. It's hard to say that Öhgren is more important than the Big 4 of Buium, Jiricek, Wallstedt, and Yurov, but arguably, he's just as important, even if Öhgren doesn't quite stack up to them talent-wise. Great teams have great players at the top, of course, but teams also need strong role players to make a deep run. There's a place in Minnesota for someone with, say, Nino Niederreiter-type potential, which is something Öhgren can provide that few others in the system offer. You can't say, The fifth-best prospect in our system is completely untouchable, but the Wild would be wise to find any way they can to keep Öhgren in-house.7 points
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Averaged 101 points the last 3 seasons before this. They had only exceeded 101 points one other time in their history prior to the last 3 seasons and they were on pace to finish above that again prior to Kaprizov's injury. Everyone knows Kaprizov elevates the team like nobody else, and he's highly competitive, so getting him back to the playoffs should be incredibly important ahead of a summer in which they want to sign him to a long term extension.7 points
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Great article Tony. All this for a guy making $2.1m a year. I think Freddy is a guy that is vital to a team. In a year or two if some of our young players blossom, he might be down to the 4th line again, but I would take him over any of the other players we have had on that line the last few years.6 points
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I love the optimism. I will admit I did have to double check the poster😃.6 points
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The 3 teams eyeing up the Wild, have harder matchups in the upcoming weeks. The Wild only have 2 games against teams that are higher than them in the standings. I'm anxious to see how it all plays out. 🤞 Wild Schedule (10 games left, 2pts ahead of Blues, 5pts ahead of Canucks, 6pts ahead of Flames): 2x games against much better teams (Caps + Stars) 6x games against teams fighting for a playoff spot (Devils x2, Rangers, Islanders, Flames and Canucks — granted the two NY teams are both 11 pts behind the Wild) 2x games against bottom dwellers (Sharks + Ducks) Blues Schedule (9 games left, 2 pts back from WC1): 4x games against much better teams (Avs x2, Jets, Oilers) 1x games against teams fighting for a playoff spot (Red Wings) 4x games against bottom dwellers (Preds, Penguins, Kraken, Utah) Canucks Schedule (10 games left, 3 pts back from WC2 with 1 game in hand): 5x games against much better teams (Jets, Knights x2, Stars, Avs) 2x games against teams fighting for a playoff spot (Blue Jackets, Wild) 3x games against bottom dwellers (Kraken, Ducks, Sharks) Flames Schedule (12 games left, 4 pts back from WC2 with 3 games in hand): 7x games against much better teams (Stars, Oilers, Avs, Knights x2, Kings) 1x games against teams fighting for a playoff spot (Wild) 5x games against bottom dwellers (Utah, Ducks x2, Sharks x2)6 points
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What you’ll see here today is what happens when three highly rational, completely objective hockey fans engage in a spirited discussion about how the Wild will fare in this year’s Stanley Cup Playoffs." Are they saying the commenters here are NOT highly rational and completely objective? Nobody here gets heated and we fan(atics) are all totally rational. Seriously well done with the article, good summation of most of what we see in the comments. It boils down to we are all fans and want to see them win and make it to the cup, just differ on opinions on what that will take.6 points
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The Minnesota Wild are coming up on another offseason, and you know what that means: It's time for Marco Rossi trade rumor corner. The Wild's young center has been in the rumor mill for each of the past two offseasons, and it appears his 22 goals and 54 points in 70 games (so far) may not save him for a third round of rumors. After a trade deadline reprieve, the speculation machine started firing up again on Thursday's "Worst Seats in the House" Podcast with Michael Russo. Quoting Russo: Somebody asked [The Athletic colleague] Joe Smith on his podcast that he believes it's 70% [likely] that Marco Rossi is traded this summer. A person asked if I agreed with that, and I would actually say it's higher. I genuinely think that, reading the tea leaves, I think that they're gonna move him this summer... They are so far apart on what Rossi's camp his value is versus the Wild, it's not even funny. They're in different universes right now. Here we go again. There's the possibility that Rossi is on the Matt Dumba track, always available for a perfect return that will never arrive, presenting no one reason to worry Rossi could be on the move. However, Rossi is a restricted free agent this offseason, which means he's in line for a big raise that the Wild simply don't want to pay, perhaps even via offer sheet. It's a situation that at least has the potential to force the Wild's hand. Whether any trade is a good idea depends on the return, and we don't know what that might constitute. However, if Minnesota is looking for a center-for-center trade, it will be tough to upgrade from Rossi. As of Sunday, his Standings Points Above Replacement has been 4.1, which leads the Wild and puts him in the top-15 league-wide among regular centers. Let's just say that Jack Eichel, Leon Draisaitl, or Wyatt Johnston ain't walking through that door. That means the Wild can either try buying low on a formerly elite center like Elias Pettersson or make a lateral move, at best, in a center swap. The former may be a long shot, and the latter doesn't make much sense. That's fairly concerning because if a center-for-center swap isn't possible, then trading Rossi will put them, by definition, down a center. If that happens, the Wild will have become alarmingly cavalier about giving away talent down the middle. This happened, to a lesser extent, at the trade deadline when Minnesota shipped out Marat Khusnutdinov in a trade for winger Justin Brazeau. Khusnutdinov had few NHL accomplishments. Still, flipping a 22-year-old, speedy center for a slow, 28-year-old fourth-line winger was an odd choice, to say the least. Especially given how Rossi's recent injury scare showed how close the Wild's center depth is to running on fumes. Maybe Khusnutdinov wouldn't have helped with that, but he at least offers more upside than the Wild's current options. You don't have to look far to see how other teams value -- and honestly, hoard -- centers. The Colorado Avalanche traded premium draft capital to land Brock Nelson and Charlie Coyle at the trade deadline. The Dallas Stars go six-deep with Johnston, Matt Duchene, Roope Hintz, Jamie Benn, Maverik Bourque, and Sam Steel. Heck, they're throwing Mikael Granlund at the pivot before resorting to a Brendan Gaunce-type. Honestly, even with a healthy Rossi and Eriksson Ek, the Wild's center room will have difficulty keeping up with the sheer depth of the Western Conference's top teams. So what happens if they remove Rossi from the equation? Outside of a center-for-center deal, John Tavares is the only high-end free-agent center. Tavares is having a productive season (29 goals, 60 points in 62 games), but he'll also turn 35 before next season starts. It's also worth wondering whether a player who's played in New York and Toronto will see Minnesota as a desirable landing spot when the franchise has historically struggled to attract free agents without local ties. If the Wild strike out on an established center, then the franchise's eggs all go into the Danila Yurov basket. Yurov is a top prospect, but the Wild just saw a 21-year-old prospect in Khusnutdinov struggle to transition to the NHL after putting up solid numbers in the KHL. Yurov has advantages Khusnutdinov doesn't: he's bigger and has a better shot than Khusnutdinov. Regardless, pinning their hopes on a young player immediately adjusting to a bigger, faster league halfway across the world seems dubious. There's also a difference between shifting from wing to center in the KHL and doing so in the NHL. There's reason to think that Yurov can make the transition -- he has the size, skating, and skill to stick at the position. Still, even lifelong centers are sometimes better suited for the wing. Without Rossi, Minnesota could easily be left without a Plan B if Yurov can't stick down the middle. And even if Yurov is an NHL-caliber center and does make a seamless transition to the position... since when is it bad to go three-deep at center? It's almost becoming a requirement to win now. The Cup Champion Florida Panthers are another team with more centers than spots for centers. The runner-up Edmonton Oilers have two of the best five centers of the league, and Ryan Nugent-Hopkins is behind them on the depth chart. Dallas made the Conference Finals last season, and we've already talked about their situation. Up to this point, Russo and Smith's belief that the Wild will trade Rossi has come up bust, but it's never wise to dismiss someone as plugged-in as Russo. It feels like there's got to be fire to accompany this much smoke. Still, unless the Wild can pull off something huge, Wild fans should hope this round of Rossi rumors don't pan out. Centers are gold in the NHL, and the Wild have two high-end, Under-30 centers on their roster, with the chance to get a third in Yurov. Trading Rossi (likely) wouldn't just be a misunderstanding of the NHL's economy; it'd be a failure to properly read the Wild's map to a Stanley Cup.6 points
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Probably wise to just let him go after this season put foligno, trenin and harty on 4th line and build up top 9 with youth, speed and skill (braz has none of which)6 points
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I agree that all-in would have been a mistake. I'm not sure that it was a mistake to bolster the roster by adding Nyquist. The 2nd round pick was higher than I would have liked to see go out and the points have been underwhelming so far, but I could see him having more success. There have been more setups that easily could have resulted in goals. Nyquist hasn't gotten a goal recently in the NHL, but did tally one in Sweden's win over the US at 4 Nations. He doesn't look like the game has passed him by yet, and hopefully he does get more comfortable in this system before the end of the season. The Wild have had a few rough games, but they've also gotten more from Johansson since adding his fellow Swedish national team veteran. The Wild have tightened up their defense lately and Johansson actually has 6 points in 8 games since the trade. Excluding empty net goals, the Wild have allowed more than 2 goals in regulation just twice since trading for Nyquist, the 5-1 St. Louis loss that wasn't close, and the 4-3 win over Seattle. The Wild had gone 1-3 following the 4 Nations tourney with a -8 goal differential in the 4 games and the 1 win being an OT win. Since the trade, the Wild have gone 4-3-1. The goal differential is -5 in that span due to a few empty netters and the St. Louis game going poorly for much of that one, but they've gotten more than half of the available points. The Blues also have simply gotten hot, so the Wild aren't the only team they've outplayed lately. Since the 4 Nations tourney, the Blues have the 3rd best record and are tied with the Avalanche for 1st in goal differential. Doing nothing or simply selling players might have the Wild on the verge of falling out of the playoffs, which would be extremely disappointing after their hot start(and their lack of a 2025 1st round pick), particularly if JEE and Kaprizov start skating in a week or two. The playoffs do mean a lot to these guys, so I'm okay with the moves even if they only provide marginal benefit.6 points
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I missed the game last night. Starting to wonder if I should stop watching because every time I miss a game we win. If you see me on the game day thread, tell me to GTFO.6 points
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6 points
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Would be really difficult for me to lose a player like Faber who is only 22 years old, still improving and likely to be a top 10 D man in the NHL for the next 10 to 12 years.6 points
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The comparison to an ancient NFL owner is ridiculous. Guerin didn't create all the cap issues the Wild have faced. Other than having Kaprizov & Boldy as drafted prospects, the Wild were in pretty terrible position to compete for several years when Guerin took the job with huge contracts to aging/declining Suter & Parise. Many GMs may have wanted to tank, but the owner did not see that as acceptible. I questioned a lot of how Guerin managed those early situations, but the results have been some of the most productive in the Wild's history despite working with less cap space than virtually every other team in the league. The owner giving Guerin time to get beyond the cap constraints makes a ton of sense. Guerin has been planning for 2025 for most of the last 5 years, adding draft picks, then drafting prospects, and trading for Jiricek, so that they can put a competitive product on the ice from 2025-2030. He will not see 2030 if they aren't making the playoffs, but if he can get Kaprizov signed to an extension, bring in Yurov, Buium, and Jiricek for 2025, along with an impact free agent, the Wild could take a major step towards turning into contenders. I appreciate the fact that he isn't going all and wasting assets now when the team isn't ready to truly contend. Guerin deserves some time to see the team he's been building towards finally take the ice the next couple of seasons.6 points
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Dallas and Colorado are going to pay a lot for the hope they win this or next year. At least in Dallas's case, they have conference championship experience to fall back on to make decisions like these. Colorado has won a cup, so they are going to do everything they can right now. They are going to pay for it eventually, having to offload top stars to keep the ones they have. It's going to wreck their depth if it hasn't already. Nelson for the proposed $7-8m doesn't strike me as a smart move to make. Kinda glad they balked. That said, Minnesota has none such evidence to do the same thing. Say they spent all that stuff to get Nelson, Coyle, or even Rantanen. You could say, "Well at least they did SOMETHING!" But if that doesn't work in a year or two, then you just end up in the same dead end rut Toronto does: All stars, no wins. Keep Kaprizov for 5-8 years, then it doesn't matter what Dallas or Colorado do.6 points
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Um, you can disagree with and dislike the contract. But saying he wasn't worth the contract when he signed it or that he wasn't getting that on the open market is ludicrous. His literal listed market value according to both the Athletic and Evolving-Hockey at the time was squarely above $4M per. Specifically $5.3M a year according to the Athletic, and $4.8M a year according to Evolving-Hockey contract projections. Dislike it all you want. But Hartman actually signed for less than market value at the time to stay in Minnesota. Furthermore, the NMC only encompassed the first year of the new contract and was retroactive to the last year of his prior contract. Essentially a single year and a half over the span of two different contracts. The full NMC ends on July 1st of this year. After which his contract protection drops to a 15-team M-NTC in year two, which is next year. And even further drops to just a 10-team M-NTC in year three, the final year of the contract. In short. Hartman's contract is essentially designed to provide maximum flexibility and allow us the capability to trade him after this seasons end to directly coincide with the deadcap going away. People shit on these contracts yet don't seem to either understand or accept the foresight and forward thinking that went into their signings. Or appreciate what current market values rates for players these days are actually at. Lastly, for everyone's bitching about Hartman not being worth his contract. His current market value according to the Athletic is $3.6M for his current season of play. So just $400k under his $4M AAV. So while Hartman may be underperforming his contract currently, it's not to the degree a large portion of the fanbase seems to think he is. You want to bitch about him taking unnecessary penalties or stupid idiotic actions that get him suspended. That's justifiable and worth pointing out.6 points
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I don't know if Marat actually needs a confidence boost or needs to get used to NHL sized ice or anything like that. He does need more time on the ice and in situations where he can play to his talents. Up here he was forced to play a really conservative game on the 4th line with guys not really skilled enough to put up a consistent offensive effort and would commonly lose the puck in bad spots. So I hope they put him on a line in Iowa that can open it up a little bit.6 points
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I agree with Tony on this, don't trade the guy. We have plenty of talent problems right now, but a 2nd problem of cap space. Anyone worth trading OgZ for is to expensive to fit into the room. Plus, if I'm reading it right, I believe that Shooter is focusing on bringing in the '20-22 drafted players as much as possible. Trading OgZ from the "22 class would mean an upgrade in that group would be needed. I believe there is one more add, and that's Sturm. Big center, they know him, he can fill out that large 3rd line. He's not worth an OgZ. Shooter has been good not to trade out these guys. He traded out Hunt ('20) but got Jiricek ('22). I believe this is the direction we're headed.6 points
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Who promised us a contender? This team even with Nyquist is a competitive team. I don't think anyone has contender expectations. A nice deep playoff run would be nice, but expectations are merely an invitation to the ball.6 points
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"you think Parise and Suter was bought out to sign Kaprizov? what?" July 13th, 2021 https://www.nhl.com/news/zach-parise-ryan-suter-deals-bought-out-by-minnesota-325641738: "The buyouts free up more than $10 million in NHL salary cap space next season, then $2 million the following season before the savings decrease in 2023-24 and 2024-25." Sept. 21st, 2021: https://www.bleachernation.com/blackhawks/2021/09/21/kirill-kaprizov-signs-a-five-year-45m-extension-with-the-minnesota-wild/ So yes, I do think they had to do what they could to move money to make the deal work. They also tried giving Fiala that one year deal with said surplus, leading to the Faber/Ohgren trade. The buyout wasn't done in a vacuum. Five years of Kap and one extra year for Fiala (and the trade afterwards) were bought with the extra money.6 points
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I think we saw another benefit to it; Johansson knows his spot is on the line now that Nyquist is here. I think I saw him play as hard yesterday as I have since we first acquired him at the TDL a couple years back and he was hunting for a contract. Nyquist's re-arrival may have lit a fire under him that was lacking previously.6 points
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One other thing about that 2026 2nd round pick. By the time a player selected in the latter half of the 2026 2nd round is making it to the NHL, the Wild will also be gaining another $1.66M in cap space from the Suter/Parise buy-outs years finally ending. We are talking 2030, at minimum, for a 2026 late 2nd round pick and the Wild could be playing playoff hockey in 2025. Nyquist has talent. I don't know what's behind the Nashville funk this season, but him getting out of there could be a boost for him and the Wild.6 points
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This move makes the Wild better right now, without significant cost to the team over the next few years. I think it’s important for the Wild to make the playoffs this year. They are NOT a lock, especially with injuries to top players. I see this as a smart, measured move. If you want high risk, all in, 2027 might be a better year to do so. Why is making the playoffs important? There’s no better teacher for our players than experience. I think it is important for KK as well.6 points