By Clay Gregory -
The season is not even one month in, and the Minnesota Wild are sitting in last place in the Central Division with a 3-4-1 record (7 points). How does a team with this much talent sit in last place in their division?
They have not been consistent all season long.
The Wild have looked good, like when they beat the St. Louis Blues, 5-0, and they’ve looked bad against the Washington Capitals, losing 5-1. One night, the offense is clicking, and the next, they seem unable to put the puck in the net or even stop it. They are sitting at 21 goals for and 27 goals against. Still, there are reasons for optimism.
Minnesota’s offense is too talented not to be on a scoring pace with the league's best. They have their superstar, Kirill Kaprizov, locked in for the next eight years, and he will be paired with youngster Matt Boldy, who is also a star.
The problems that have plagued this team on offense are kind of every if we are being honest. They have had trouble scoring goals in 5-on-5 play. The other elephant in the room is pucks missing the net, which has plagued Matt Boldy this season.
Those two categories alone will prove that this offense, when clicking, won't have the scoring lulls they have had throughout this season. Being consistent on offense and putting more of those pucks in the net will allow the Wild to climb the standings. However, even though it's only October, these games count just as much when it comes to games in April, and you're fighting for your seeding in the playoffs.
Consistency on defense will be key for a sustained run in the win column for the Wild. Only the San Jose Sharks and Calgary Flames have let in more goals than the Wild.
Filip Gustavsson has not been horrible, minus two starts he would like to have back. Still, he has a 3.04 goals-against average (GAA), meaningfully higher than his career 2.68 GAA. Gustavsson should improve as the season progresses, and once it is all said and done, he will have put another good season on his resume.
On the other hand, Jesper Wallstedt has been really good, even with only a small sample size of two games. He is sporting a 2.35 GAA, compared to his career 3.11, which is only seven games. Wallstedt is the future for the Wild. However, that future may become now if Gustavsson continues to let in soft goals.
The Minnesota Wild are celebrating their 25th season, and even here they need to show some consistency — but not in the way you would think. They need to reverse their consistent pattern of making the playoffs, then going home, and finally bringing a Stanley Cup championship to the Twin Cities.
The talent on this team is capable of making some noise in the playoffs this season, but to do so, they will need to show some consistency to make it there. If they do not start soon, this will be a season that even the most cynical Wild fan would be disappointed in.
My feelings on the matter are that they will turn it around, start putting up some wins and points in the standings, and start moving up. If they don’t, it will be due to inconsistency, which would be a significant disappointment for their 25th anniversary.
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