It Is Time to Shuffle the Power Play Units

The narrative surrounding the Wild following the 2014-15 season was a message that a few minor tweaks could solve a lot of problems. The team was riding high on the play of a hot goaltender over the second half of the season, while boasting the league's best penalty kill, and allowing the 4th least shots against. A resurgent offense that placed 12th in the league over the full season indicated that things were going the right direction offensively, especially at even strength. But the glaring weakness was the team's power play, mired in a a lowly season-long funk as both units failed to launch, and the coaching staff made minimal changes, which resulted in a full season 15.9% success rate good for 27th in the league. This was the most glaring weakness for a team that made it to the Division Finals by posting stellar defensive stats and above-average offense throughout the regular season.

Perhaps the most frustrating thing for Wild fans to watch throughout the course of last season was not just the ineffectiveness of the power play, but the insistence of the coaching staff to continue to deploy the same personnel and system that was clearly not working. It was a demonstration of the definition of insanity: "Doing the same thing over and over and expecting a different result," and it was incredibly frustrating to watch. It also led to resounding calls for the firing of Andrew Brunnette, who has been aggressively defended by the head coach and general manager.