Minnesota Wild: Dany Heatley looks to make an Impact

Last season, Heatley missed the last 17 games of the season because of a season ending shoulder injury. Through 36 games last season, he underachieved, scoring an unimpressive (11g-10a-21pts).

Actually, Heatley would've been a prime candidate for an amnesty buyout, if he hadn't been on injured reserve at the end of last season. The new CBA doesn't allow the NHL teams to use an amnesty buy out on a player that is injured.

Fast forward to this season, according to Michael Russo, Heatley is looking to make an impact this season and prove that he can still play hockey. Wild fans have to be happy with this revelation.

Over the course of his career, Dany Heatley has been a proven NHL scorer, putting up (360g-403a-763pts) in 787 NHL games. If you looking at points per game, he's scored .969 points per game over the course of his 11-year NHL career.

Let's take a look at Heatley's point's production over the last three seasons. From 2010-2013, he's scored (61g-72a-138pts) in 198 NHL games. For those that are mathematically challenged, like me, that's an average of .696 points per game. That's a pretty big drop off from his first eight-years in the league.

Checking out the site Capgeek, Heatley's contract has s a massive cap hit for the Minnesota Wild. Based on his play, the past three seasons, it's not hard to make the argument, that he's highly over paid, making $7.5 million dollars per season.

In conclusion, I've walked you through the former Badgers points production over the past 11 years. At his current pay, Wild fans are going to expect more from him. The question most of us want to ask; will Wild forward Dany Heatley be able to resemble the player that was contributing on the score sheet, at higher clip, than he has the last three seasons? Or is he too old and past his prime? We will soon find out.