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  • Iowa Wild Need To Hire New Head Coach

    Image courtesy of © Alyssa Hertel / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images
    Thomas Williams

    By Thomas Williams -

    The Minnesota Wild's AHL affiliate, the Iowa Wild, suddenly need to look for a new head coach.

    Whether it was expected or not, Brett McLean, who was Iowa's head coach was named as one of Adam Foote's assistants with the Vancouver Canucks, leaving the AHL position and now Minnesota will need to fill that hole.

     

    McLean has been in the Wild organization since 2017. Entering the coaching ranks as an assistant with the Iowa Wild for the 2017-18 season, then being promoted to an assistant coach in Minnesota before taking over the head coach position down in the AHL for the last two seasons.

    Where will the Wild turn now? Will they just promote someone like current Iowa assistant Ben Simon, who previously held the head coaching job with the Grand Rapids Griffins for several years? Or, are they going to look outside the box for an opportunity to get an up-and-coming coach from one of the junior leagues? They have options and it will be interesting to see what path they take.

    • More on McLean leaving the Wild organization for the first time in his coaching career and how the Wild will go about replacing him. [The Athletic]
    • The New York Rangers and Wild could be perfect trade partners this summer. [Hockey Wilderness]

    Off the trail...

    • Game 1 of the Stanley Cup Final was a barnburner. What a game. Takeaways from the Oilers taking the 1-0 series lead and what to look for in Game 2. [ESPN]
    • Rogers, the telecommunications company up in Canada, did a fun and weird thing. They took ice from a couple of Oilers' hometown rinks, and dropped some scrapings down in Edmonton's arena. Huh. [CBC]
    • More coaching news! The Boston Bruins officially hired Marco Sturm to be their new head coach. [NHL.com]
    By Thomas Williams  

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    MNCountryLife

    I don't see this as a big loss.  The IA Wild have not been doing a good job of getting these kids ready for the move to the N.  Boldy, Rossi and Ek barely spent any time there and we've gotten very little from IA.  Players that were supposed to step in an fill roles ended up flopping.  Get these kids on weight training programs to increase speed and strength... feed them the proper foods to build that muscle and work on skill and skating until their ankles fall off.   Those that commit to it heart and soul should move to the N with confidence rather than trepidation.  You can't build through the draft unless you have a proper process in place.

    Edited by MNCountryLife
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    bisopher
    11 minutes ago, MNCountryLife said:

    I don't see this as a big loss.  The IA Wild have not been doing a good job of getting these kids ready for the move to the N.  Boldy, Rossi and Ek barely spent any time there and we've gotten very little from IA.  Players that were supposed to step in an fill roles ended up flopping.  Get these kids on weight training programs to increase speed and strength... feed them the proper foods to build that muscle and work on skill and skating until their ankles fall off.   Those that commit to it heart and soul should move to the N with confidence rather than trepidation.  You can't build through the draft unless you have a proper process in place.

    Agreed. The entire philosophy of the Iowa Wild organization needs an update, possibly a full overhaul.  The statement "We want to develop players, we're not focused on winning" rings hollow when the Chicago Wolves (Carolina) and the Hershey Bears (Washington, twice) have won the last three Calder Cups, and Charlotte (Florida) is already in this year's final, with Texas (Dallas) and Abbotsford (Vancouver) alive in the West.

    It seems that strong organizations build a strong foundation in the AHL, including building a winning mentality. Meanwhile, the Wild promote their highest-quality prospects quickly (Boldy/Ek/Rossi/Faber/etc.), and everyone else (Walker/Beckman/Lambos[?]/Spacek[?]/???) "doesn't pan out". 

    Question for the commentariat:  Who is the last Wild player that truly developed their game in Iowa, which I'll (arbitrarily) define as spending at least two years in Iowa before moving to MN and becoming a quality contributor?  The only ones I can think of would be the Deweys, and they're both gone. 

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    mnfaninnc

    Ok, so, reading this news brief, my first thought was Christmas in June. Sometimes the right things that need to happen merely drop into your lap. The old Griffin's coach comes from the Detroit model of also over marinating the prospects. This is an easy fix!

    Find a head coaching candidate who can teach. Surround him with a good goalie coach, good forward coach and good defensive coach. These guys have to have a passion for helping the kids grow. So, this concept isn't very difficult to understand, in fact, it's pretty easy. And, PLEASE hire a strength coach who can actually get these guys strong in NHL bodies!

    Internally, we have FO intern, Goligoski, who could be that guy to train the defense. When the time comes, I also thing Spurgy would be good in this role. This is a perfect opportunity for a guy like Koivu to help mentor the forwards into good Selke type guys, teach winning draws and mental responsibilities. Equally, a guy like Modano can certainly help out with stretching the offense. I'd also let MAF work throughout the organization with the goalies. These guys would not be their coaches, but they would be in charge of specific areas of development. We've already got Andy Ness to handle the skating areas. Every name on this list is recognizable, and respected. The moment they enter the room, they will have a young prospect's attention.

    If Koivu isn't available, perhaps a guy like Matt Cullen would be? 

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    MNCountryLife
    48 minutes ago, mnfaninnc said:

    The moment they enter the room, they will have a young prospect's attention.

    Definitely.  Putting successful/recognizable players in front of these guys instantly lends credence to the program.  Chart the players progress and be open with players on where they should be and when.  The post by Bisopher was spot on.  The top teams in the league are also winning in the minor leagues.  IA must be better or we will never be a contender. 

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    FredJohnson
    1 hour ago, bisopher said:

    Question for the commentariat:  Who is the last Wild player that truly developed their game in Iowa, which I'll (arbitrarily) define as spending at least two years in Iowa before moving to MN and becoming a quality contributor?  The only ones I can think of would be the Deweys, and they're both gone. 

    I’d have said Rossi but I think he played in 2 seasons in IA but not 2 full seasons. Might go all the way back to Spurge?

    Edited by FredJohnson
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    mnfaninnc
    2 minutes ago, MNCountryLife said:

    The top teams in the league are also winning in the minor leagues.  IA must be better or we will never be a contender. 

    Just off the top of my head, I believe the Texas Stars have always been near the top of the division for several years.

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    mnfaninnc
    Just now, FredJohnson said:

    I’d have said Rossi but I think played in 2 seasons in IA but not 2 full seasons. Might go all the way back to Spurge?

    Scandella was there too at that same time. Zucker spent parts of 3 seasons there as he got familiar with all the landmarks on the I-35 express. Haula too. Then, the black hole happened.

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    mnhockeyfan03

    Go get Dan Bylsma to coach Iowa.  He has a great history of success in the AHL.  We need to develop and win.  Stop looking for the same internal country club guys.  Also if Deboer is let go from Dallas if Billy doesn’t call him and offer him a job immediately something is wrong.  Hynes is not the guy. 

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