The Wild's Youth Movement Has Reached An Awkward Stage

Faith in the old guard is strong within BG.  But Luke won the day... not Yoda.

You can want and wish for players to succeed all you want, but when Marcus Johansson has over ten points, and is winning you games, as opposed to young forwards getting one or zero points, and being "serviceable", you have to accept they need time to improve.

I hope Yurov, Ohgren, and Jiricek all get to the point Rossi did: sucked for 25 games, played in the AHL, and then kept getting better and better.

If the Wild's two game win streak was fools gold, ok. But they are only a few wins from the Wild Card bubble.  I want the youth to succeed, but I would also like them to tilt the ice.  Only Buium and Wally really offer anything close to that.

Accidental double post

Not that All the youngsters are deserving, but years of bad contracts (No move/Limited move) create a impediment to them coming up for a lengthy stay or more minutes. 

The problem is Hynes. He is a cowardly and uninspiring coach. Foligno has zero points and is a minus 10! Hartman has been invisible after the first couple games. KK is lackadaisical at best. He is putting up points but not playing a winning style of hockey.  The team needs a shakeup and probably a coach like Tortorella to give them a kick in the butt. (But not Torts, too boring)

Bogo needs to come back soon so they can send Jiricek to Iowa.  He obviously isn't trusted right now and playing from the press box isn't going to show the coaching staff he is figuring it out.

Yurov getting a head rest might help but he is another one that if they aren't going to play him they need to send him to Iowa.  He is probably in St. Paul because they are waiting form Zucarello to come back.  Which is really dumb in my mind.  Is Yurov not better than Jones, Pitlick, etc?  If he isn't better than those two maybe they need to think about trading him.

The Wild have this tendency to not play young players because they don't play like seasoned vets but they won't become seasoned vets because they aren't playing.  The younger players probably know this and they play with that in their head.  Don't make a mistake because you won't play and get sent back to Iowa.   Ohgren is probably done as a NHL player in St. Paul because he is constantly sent down for simple mistakes everyone else gets to make. 

Yurov isn't at the Ohgren level yet but it looks like the Wild might treat him the same way.  Jiricek was like that before he got here.   

Jiricek is a bust. We 1000% traded for a guy that was “a top 10 draft pick” instead of realizing we were getting a guy that “couldn’t even make it with CBJ”.

 Absolute bat shit crazy trade

Young players learning how to play isn't the only problem. 

10 hours ago, 1Brotherbill said:

Bogo needs to come back soon so they can send Jiricek to Iowa.  He obviously isn't trusted right now and playing from the press box isn't going to show the coaching staff he is figuring it out.

Yurov getting a head rest might help but he is another one that if they aren't going to play him they need to send him to Iowa.  ....

Yurov isn't at the Ohgren level yet but it looks like the Wild might treat him the same way.  Jiricek was like that before he got here.   

Drives me crazy that they sit Yurov and send Ohgren down but keep marching Foligno and his 0 goals, 0 assists, minus 11 out there. He is 34 and looks completely cooked this year. Sadly we have to watch him for 2 1/2 more years.

I wish I knew what was going on with team defense and goaltending.  The power play and top line are getting 3 and usually more goals a game, but there's almost always 4-5 going the other way (with usually 2 in short order).  I wouldn't be so worried about the lack of secondary scoring if other teams weren't always given free reign in the d-zone so much.  It seems like everyone (Brodin and Spurgeon included) are just a complete reversal.  I won't say they were "amazing" last year, but usually solid.  One season should be that big a dropoff.

This season has been a slow start, but it is far from lost.  Until we reach that point where we're not going to make the playoffs, that's when the Wild should sell a few pieces and completely play all the kids, but that's not until later in the season.  The kids are getting plenty of opportunities, most haven't risen to the occasion and that's somewhat normal, but it's ok for them to sit at times as well, or go to Iowa.  However, there's times when some of these vets have deserved to sit as well and that's frustrating.

I didn't see all of the Carolina game, but I thought Hunt looked good, I'd like to see him get more playing time.  Zdeno Chara had a slow start to his career too, so overall I've liked what I've seen from Jiricek.  Even though he's causing an occasional turnover, our top four D haven't looked great this season either.  I'm hoping Ohgren comes up and gets a goal right away to help his confidence, the Wild could use his speed.

They had three perfect years, that teams rarely get, to give their youth meaningful NHL experience. Blew it. Now they aren't ready and the vets are old. Quite a pickle you put yourself in Billy.

6 minutes ago, Scalptrash said:

They had three perfect years, that teams rarely get, to give their youth meaningful NHL experience. Blew it. Now they aren't ready and the vets are old. Quite a pickle you put yourself in Billy.

The 2025/26 season looks like it’ll be 82 games of Hynzy trying to keep his job.  Prepare to watch a lineup of middling vets gut out one goal losses

14 hours ago, Citizen Strife said:

 

But they are only a few wins from the Wild Card bubble. 

This is the thinking of ownership, management, and fans that dooms this team to mediocrity year after year.  

This team, as constructed, is not going anywhere.  Same as last year, and the year before that, and the year before that.  Play the youth and sweep out all of the great guys we know and love who have never, and will never be able to get us over the hump.

PS....Why keep riding Gus to Death?  Stick Wally between the pipes more and more until he is outplaying Gus.  

In other news Benak had another three point game. He's at 30p in 15GP, 2nd in the OHL only to his teammate. 

I don't think Hynes will play the rookies en masse like the beginning of the season unless injuries or trades happen.  That's a Guerin decision at this point.  Force the bottom six out via trade if possible, then you don't give Hynes the option.

But let's stop pretending Yurov was some God on skates.  He "may" be one day, but putting him anywhere over Rossi and Ek right now is laughable.  "Maybe" Hartman, but Hartman has 6-7 points over Yurov's 1.  He'd get the nod over Yurov is almost any scenario other than Guerin going scorched earth

.

Guerin dumped Gaudreau, Nyquist, Brazeau, Chisholm, and Merrill specifically to open up spots for these players.  Buium has his moments, but this is the risk they ran with the strategy.

The entire team forgetting how to defend though?  Can't answer that one for you.

11 minutes ago, Citizen Strife said:

Force the bottom six out via trade if possible, then you don't give Hynes the option.

As the GM, he doesn't even need to trade them, he can just send Pitlick and Jones back to the AHL where Hynes cannot play them.

Quote

 Danila Yurov was a healthy scratch for the third straight game (the fourth line of Trenin-Jones-Pitlick had been together for the team’s previous three wins). -- The Athletic

They aren't scoring at all, but I guess not giving up goals has Hynes happy with the 4th line play. I want Yurov to see minutes. Trenin delivers hits, but I don't see Pitlick or Jones doing as many good things on the ice as Yurov.

Just found that Pitlick, Trenin, and Jones are leading the team in hits/60, so apparently, that is one of the main reasons. Ben Jones has also won over 60% of his faceoffs so far. It's not exciting hockey, but the hits might add up. Foligno is 4th on the team.

This was the statement that I loved from Chris:

Quote

Wild fans don’t want to hear this. They just want the young players to learn from their mistakes on the ice.

Here is the conclusion of this Wild fan: The vets in their 30s are not going to get us to a deep playoff run. Their usefulness is in mentorship of the kids. The kids are the future. Integrating and acclimating them into the lineup and giving them experience should be priority #1. This is the long game, and this is the way.

It is no shock that the kids will struggle until they get acclimated. This is always going to happen. Even the top draft picks struggle, but they figure it out a little sooner. The thing that makes them figure it out is being in opportune places in the lineup where they can contribute, not jettisoned to some 4th line role where they are considered "them" by the coaching staff limiting their TOI to the lowest on the team. That is how confidence gets broken. They need to be playing up with the skilled players, as they are also skilled players themselves. 

In a 5 year plan, you were always going to have a transition year or 2. By playing these vets like Hynes is doing, you keep pushing back the clock on when these guys can make a difference. The time is now to do it, don't keep pushing it back to year 4 or year 5, you'll never get anywhere with that mindset. 

With the acclimation mindset, you then slowly start pushing out placeholders and giving the opportunity to the kids. The 5 rookies had a really good camp. But they are green in experience. How does this get better? By giving them experience. They need N experience not A experience. They need to throttle into the N speed of the game, not the A. 

It is time for transition, just swallow hard, make the switch, and realize that this will be a long thankless season to the coaching staff. Let Hynes know there is a job for him in the future, but he has to get this right. If you relieve the pressure of job security from him, he should behave differently. Somebody here is going to have to make the sacrifice to get this train back on the rails. 

Also, I think there is a general expectation that the Wild have to be in the mix for the playoffs and that winning is the reason they go. I don't think this is true for this year and maybe next. I think what Wild fans want is an up and coming team that can make deep playoff runs. This may not be the year for that and I think they understand that. What they want to see is improvement, not the same old same old. 

Note to OCL: Give the fans what they want!

31 minutes ago, mnfaninnc said:

 

The kids are the future. Integrating and acclimating them into the lineup and giving them experience should be priority #1. This is the long game, and this is the way.

 

That is pretty much all that needs to be said.  I was for this approach the last couple years, and I admit some of the "kids" would have not merited any time in the NHL.   But too many people think if we just make the playoffs.......

I for one could care less about a first round series where we exit and then am just mad about how poorly they played or how they let it slip away.  I could care less about entering the playoffs again until there is a team with a shot at moving past the first round at the very least.  Sneaking in from the bottom as we have done so often is never a solid sign of belonging.

2 minutes ago, Dis-allowed display name said:

That is pretty much all that needs to be said. 

This could have also been done with Yurov had Guerin left room for a bonus structure for him. Instead he had a lost year in the K with injuries. Yes, Guerin needed to make room last season for him, but he was too focused on producing another playoff team (which was likely demanded by OCL). 

Sometimes it seems like OCL continues to shoot himself in the foot. I'm surprised he has any toes left.

It’s the eye test that’s troubling this season. This is the worst Wild team I’ve watched since… well it’s been awhile. I don’t want to though Gus under the… but he’s not been as sharp as last year either.  Choose your hard looks like choose your funk. What ever is the opposite of confidence I’d say that’s what I’m seeing. Right now I’m hoping Zuc can be the encouraging glue guy that jump starts the Wild. Another team that came out really flat and lifeless this year is St. Louis. I think there must be locker room stuff or something going on, I’m not sure. 

The question I'd have for the"pack it in and play the kids" crowd is when GMs typically acknowledge that as the outcome of a losing season?  The Wild have been around the playoff bubble for 12-13 years now, even amongst a couple years ago being "somewhat" like this when Evason was fired.

I envision Guerin making any and all trade offers, but he's never really been put in the " fuck this season" scenario.  I don't know if he'd do anything like the Twins did until the trading deadline.

I'm hearing there's some noise about an undrafted center currently playing in the KHL. Vitali Pinchuk. Have a look:

Vitali Pinchuk - Stats, Contract, Salary & More

I wonder what it would take to land him...