Thought Bubble: Luck O' The Irish

Hey Wilderness! Been a while (again) since I transmitted my thoughts to you. My life's been completely upside-down this year, and I've been having trouble staying on top of things, but I've got a bit of slack now, so I thought I'd go ahead with a little Thought Bubble. As you all know, the Wild acquired Patrick O'Sullivan on waivers yesterday, and it's been a big topic in this 4 day game-less period. This will be much of the focus of the TB this time around.

Join me will you?

Opening panel: After BTE, BWPE?

Second panel: Fears about Sully

One stat that scared off a lot of suitors this summer was his horrid -35 last season playing with the lowly Oilers. True, he will never will the Selke award. True, he's a defensive disaster. BUT! +/- isn't a very accurate stat. You can have a minus if you've only been on the ice for a second before the opponent scores. It's all about situations. Sully was with a team with a horrible defense and a horrible goaltending tandem. In Minnesota right now, we're seeing some great defense and some heroic goaltending, so we shouldn't expect Sully to post a -35 in Minny. With our strong D and G, it won't matter quite as much if Sully does a few mistakes (not that they should just be thrown under the rug either). Besides, CF didn't bring him in to help out defensively, he brought him in to spark some offense in a group that sorely lacks it, and CF sees the untapped offensive potential that this kid has. From thehockeynews.com on Sully's assets:

 Just what the doctor ordered isn't it?

One more thing, I challenge you to find a single flaw in this move. We picked up a player with potential. If it doesn't work out, he can easily be put right back on waivers. It's inexpensive and it's a one-year contract. We may not hit oil on this drilling, but we could find a diamond in the rough. However, this may be Patrick O'Sullivan's last chance to prove himself, because he probably won't ever get this kind of opportunity again.

Final panel: Roster movements

Punchline: Patrick O'Sullivan... that has to be one of the most Irish names possible. One of his nicknames is POS... I will wait to see if he plays well before I call him that because... well... you know!

Feels good to write again. PEACE OUT!

CORRECTION: I thought we were the 25th today, but we are the 24th, which means Sully was acquired on the 23rd, exactly one year after G-Lat... Spooky... it just has to be a sign!