By Bekki Antonelli -
No Minnesota Wild player has ever debuted in the playoffs until Zeev Buium stepped onto the ice for his rookie lap for the Minnesota Wild’s first playoff game against the Vegas Golden Knights last Sunday.
The 19-year-old defenseman was the 12th overall draft pick in 2024 and has won back-to-back gold medals in the 2024 and 2025 World Junior Championships. Buium had 98 points in two seasons at the University of Denver. However, is he ready to step up to the professional level, especially during the playoffs?
The short answer: Yes!
The long answer? Let’s get into it.
The Wild are leaning on Buium immediately
Buium has played in both first-round playoff games, totalling 13:27 minutes on Sunday for Game 1 and 12:45 minutes on Tuesday for Game 2. The Wild placed him on the top power play, where he played 2:45.
In Game 1, Buium got his first shift 1:49 into the first period and wasted no time getting his hands on the puck. He stepped up on the blue line, carried the puck, and got physical with the other team.
A reporter asked Buium about his nerves postgame.
“Actually, after my first shift, the nerves completely went away,” he responded. “[There were] less nerves than I thought there were gonna be.”
As young as he is, he was ready for his NHL debut.
He’s capable defensively
Defensively, Buium played a great game.
His passing and decision-making immediately translated to the next level. Buium made quick, clean D-to-D passes. He connected breakout passes to forwards like an NHL veteran. He didn’t hesitate to step up on the blue line or push opposing players in the front of the net.
An aspect of his game that stands out is how infrequently opponents beat him and his ability to recover when they do. Knights players constantly tried shooting through his legs or were forced to pass since they couldn’t get around him.
Size can be an issue for a 19-year-old rookie. 6-foot-6, 245 lbs. Knights defenseman Nicholas Hague dwarfs Buium (6-foot-0, 183 lbs.). Still, the NHL is much more physical and less forgiving than the NCAA, but Buium can take hits and keep playing. He had no issue landing them either and made the most of his size to intimidate puck carriers.
Buium still needs to adapt his offensive game to the NHL
Buium is impressive offensively, but he must adjust his play style to the NHL. The defenseman is used to being one of the best guys on the ice and having time and space to make decisions.
During the second period, Buium had the puck in front of the net and stood still stickhandling while trying to pick a spot. That helped him generate scoring opportunities at Denver. Especially at the point, he has time to stop and make the best decision, like he does here:
However, Vegas wasn’t going to patiently wait for him and knocked the puck from him before he could shoot. Buium adjusted by moving the puck, but he still needs to account for faster, more skilled players in the NHL.
He plays like he belongs
Buium plays with a ton of confidence.
I love that he hops up on the rush and can play F3. F1, F2, and F3 usually refer to the 3 forwards in the zone. However, a defenseman occasionally hops up and becomes that third man in support, and the forward covers him.
He consistently carried the puck down the ice, stickhandling through his opponents and often getting the puck deep. While Buium was somewhat successful getting through, he was not always able to get a shot off before being forced to dump the puck into the zone or make a last-minute pass.
Recently, I broke down the Wild’s goal and their offensive style. None of their goals came from a player walking it end to end and going top shelf.
While we occasionally see players like Connor McDavid do this in the NHL, it’s rare and definitely not Minnesota’s style. Joel Eriksson Ek, Matt Boldy, Kirill Kaprizov, and the Wild’s other top forwards are so successful because they move and pass so much that the opposing defense is tripping over each other, and the goalie is looking the wrong way when they finally shoot.
Defensively, Buium made smart passes. However, when he carried the puck, he often waited until the opposing team was on him to pass. Buium may have kept it in possession, but he was not making the most strategic play or setting up his teammates as well as he could have.
Buium is still getting up to speed
I actually do think Buium should continue to rush the puck and play offensively, but he needs to get used to the NHL's speed first. Additionally, this is a riskier style of play that he needs to develop earlier in the season when the stakes are lower.
He played more conservatively by the end of Game 1, undoubtedly after a chat with John Hynes, which continued into his next game.
Buium improved between Games 1 and 2
Buium didn’t try to rush the puck as much for the second game, except on the power play. When he hopped on the ice for the power play in the third period, he rushed the puck end to end 3 times.
He was able to get the puck deep again, but the power play couldn’t set up in the offensive zone and get a good shot off. The Wild have struggled to get the puck over the offensive blue line on the power play, so Buium has an important role here. However, Minnesota will have to work on the setup post-entry with him.
Overall, Buium played a more conservative game on Tuesday, but ended up -2 instead of +0 like the first game. He did not make any glaring mistakes, but needed to make minor tweaks on some of these plays.
Vegas got its first goal with a 3-on-3 rush. Buium is in the right spot, but gives Nicholas Roy just a little too much space, and has to stop and move forward to step up on him. Buium manages to knock it loose from Roy, but in such a way that it goes straight up the slot to Noah Hanifin, who picks it up and scores.
While there was an element of bad luck on this play, Buium needed to be closer to Roy and step up into him or be more aware of where he was knocking the puck.
He didn’t join the rush as much during Game 2, which was disappointing because he has so much potential for scoring goals. However, this may have been due to a lack of opportunity or direction from the coaching staff.
Buium had a great couple of debut games and fits in well in Minnesota.
Defensively, his decision-making and confidence with the puck make him look like a veteran player. Offensively, Buium has a ton of talent but needs to work better within the Wild’s playing style and has already made adjustments. While he will likely play more conservatively for the remainder of the playoffs, he has signed a 3-year, $2,899,500 rookie-scale contract, so we’ll see the extent of his offensive talent next season.
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