Minnesota Wild In-Season Thread 2022-23

[Icechipper]

Joel Erickson-Ek skated solo today, per Russo of The Athletic.

 

Sundquist and Johanson out as well. Shaw of course done for season.

 

Some call-ups headed back to Iowa for AHL playoff push?

 

[Jimtown guy]

8 hours ago, ClusterChuck said:

I was hoping for the Av's since we played a bit better vs them especially later in season.
In the 4 games we split with Dallas, Aside for the 1st on 6-5 (OT) we had trouble scoring getting only 4 goals in 3 games. 
Also gave them points in all 4. Both our wins went to OT. 

I guess we'll see how well built for the PO's Guerin did this time. The guys just have to go out and do it then.

Taking Stars in 6. I just can’t get all that pumped until they can prove to get out of the first round. Prove me wrong boys 

[ClusterChuck]

13 hours ago, Jimtown guy said:

Taking Stars in 6. I just can’t get all that pumped until they can prove to get out of the first round. Prove me wrong boys 

I'm having the same problem getting fired up for playoffs this year.
Probably the nice run that fizzled late and no real interest in the last 3 games by Team and then to us has a part..
Whether we got 1st or HIA didn't matter but to go and try for them and prepare for the PO's by doing so turned to dissapointment seeing all the vets getting rest with 3 to go.
Also for me missing the last game a bit after starting didn't help. First game I missed all year.

I'll go and hedge bet with either team wins in 5  
I can't even do anything but guess at this point.

 

Edited April 16, 2023 by ClusterChuck

[Alexandron]

I am still guessing that we will pass 1st round in 7 games if Gustavsson will be in the net. Otherwise Evason will be fired.

Russo published our lines for 1st game.

Kaprizov - Hartman - Zuccarello;

Johansson- Gaudreau- Boldy;

Nyquist-Steel-Foligno;

Duhaime-Dewar-Reaves

 

Middleton-Spurgeon;

Brodin-Dumba;

Klingberg-Faber.

 

 

[Jimtown guy]

12 hours ago, ClusterChuck said:

I'm having the same problem getting fired up for playoffs this year.
Probably the nice run that fizzled late and no real interest in the last 3 games by Team and then to us has a part..
Whether we got 1st or HIA didn't matter but to go and try for them and prepare for the PO's by doing so turned to dissapointment seeing all the vets getting rest with 3 to go.
Also for me missing the last game a bit after starting didn't help. First game I missed all year.

I'll go and hedge bet with either team wins in 5  
I can't even do anything but guess at this point.

 

I just got back from Denver as I delivered a vehicle to a customer. Listened to NHL Network radio for about 10 hours. Only 1 so called expert picked the Wild out of roughly 14/15 guys I listened to. Their big concern was the health of Ek. He did skate today and they also said no goalie has been named starter yet. We shall soon know 

Edited April 17, 2023 by Jimtown guy

[Jimtown guy]

5 hours ago, Alexandron said:

I am still guessing that we will pass 1st round in 7 games if Gustavsson will be in the net. Otherwise Evason will be fired.

Russo published our lines for 1st game.

Kaprizov - Hartman - Zuccarello;

Johansson- Gaudreau- Boldy;

Nyquist-Steel-Foligno;

Duhaime-Dewar-Reaves

 

Middleton-Spurgeon;

Brodin-Dumba;

Klingberg-Faber.

 

 

Nothing like throwing Faber into the fire right away. Going to be interesting to see how he handles it 

[Jimtown guy]

From The Hockey News:
 

DALLAS STARS (4) VS. MINNESOTA WILD (6)

Why the Stars could win: The Stars have one of the very best, incredibly well-balanced top-nine forward groups in the league. They also have a defense corps anchored by perennial Norris Trophy candidate Miro Heiskanen and buttressed by star goaltender Jake Oettinger. They’re outstanding in all the right places.

Dallas finished the season on an 8-2-0 run, and they’ve got the NHL’s third-best defense (averaging just 2.62 goals-against per game) and the league’s sixth-best offense (averaging 3.43 goals-for per game). They have high-stakes game experience (Joe Pavelski, Ryan Suter, Jamie Benn, Tyler Seguin) and youthful exuberance (Jason Robertson, Roope Hintz, Wyatt Johnston). They went 2-0-2 against Minnesota this season, with both losses coming in a shootout. And the last time the Wild and Stars played was back on Feb. 17. Two months of no contact between the two teams means there’s going to be a feeling-out process in the first couple of games, but over a seven-game series, the Stars should be able to win out and move on to the second round.

 

Why the Wild could win: Full disclosure: we haven’t been a fan of the Wild as currently constructed for some time now. Minnesota may have the NHL’s sixth-best goals-against number (2.67), but their offense is in the bottom 10 of the league (2.91 goals-for per game). The Wild have a better-than-average 1-2 punch in net, with Marc-Andre Fleury and Filip Gustavsson making good cases to be Minnesota’s starting goalie in Game 1. But they lost five of their final seven regular-season games this year, and in four of those five losses, Fleury and Gustavsson allowed four goals. Worrisome for Wild fans, to be sure.

There is a drop-off in skill from the Wild’s third line of forwards to its fourth line. And their defense corps isn’t particularly big or imposing. They need to keep Dallas’ top two lines off the scoresheet as much as possible, but we feel like they’re not going to be good at that. It’s not to say it can’t happen; it is to say you have to respect Dallas’ depth and experience at least as much, if not more, than Minnesota’s. The Wild could win, but that’s not our pick for this series

 

Who is going to win: Dallas

The Stars are a well-oiled machine entering this year’s post-season. Since Feb. 27, they’ve only once lost more than two games in a row, and even then, that losing streak ended at two games. Dallas went 16-5-1 in their final 22 games of the season, and they’re a better, deeper team on paper than Minnesota is. Oettinger is the best goalie in the series, which is another advantage for the Stars. And Dallas is well-coached with Peter DeBoer at the helm. 

This series could go seven games, but we also think the Stars are good enough to make quick work of the Wild. Minnesota will have its moment in the sunshine of victory in the playoffs, but we suspect Dallas will limit that moment and roll over the Wild in short order. 

PICK: Dallas in five games. 
 

 

[ClusterChuck]

12 hours ago, Jimtown guy said:

Nothing like throwing Faber into the fire right away. Going to be interesting to see how he handles it 

At least he played in the Championship just days before hitting the NHL ice, So there's a little bit of pressure experience.

Now you know why I didn't want to play Dallas. Not because scared of them, But facts are facts as you posted the team's comparisons.
I'm sure it looked similar way back when we went on the PO run and have that as hope to repeat.

Now I'd be pleasantly surprised if Gustavsson starts tonight. But there's that feeling.........
 

[Alexandron]

Kind of a pessimistic prognosis. I still believe into miracles. At least during the 1st round. A lot would depend of our goalie and defense.  

[Jimtown guy]

2 hours ago, Alexandron said:

Kind of a pessimistic prognosis. I still believe into miracles. At least during the 1st round. A lot would depend of our goalie and defense.  

How long have you been a Minnesota Wild fan?

[Alexandron]

57 minutes ago, Jimtown guy said:

How long have you been a Minnesota Wild fan?

23 years. Since the beginning of the Wild existence - year 2000. 

[Tomdog]

1 hour ago, Jimtown guy said:

How long have you been a Minnesota Wild fan?

Being a 63 year old Minnesota sports fan, pessimistic is all I can do.

How I would love to have the Wild be as dominant as Boston is this year.

Yet there would still be the nagging uneasiness in the playoffs after living through all those Vikings superbowl collapses etc etc etc etc.

[Jimtown guy]

11 minutes ago, Tomdog said:

Being a 63 year old Minnesota sports fan, pessimistic is all I can do.

How I would love to have the Wild be as dominant as Boston is this year.

Yet there would still be the nagging uneasiness in the playoffs after living through all those Vikings superbowl collapses etc etc etc etc.

I’m 61 and right there with you. I was at game 6 at the old Met when the Pens throttled the North Stars 8-0 and win the Cup. I’m like 1-6 at playoff games. Was going to go to fridays game but something else came up so I’ll keep my jinxed ass out of the X 

[Jimtown guy]

47 minutes ago, Alexandron said:

23 years. Since the beginning of the Wild existence - year 2000. 

Hopefully we don’t see the same movie like we have in the past. Not holding my breath 

[Tomdog]

1 hour ago, Jimtown guy said:

I’m 61 and right there with you. I was at game 6 at the old Met when the Pens throttled the North Stars 8-0 and win the Cup. I’m like 1-6 at playoff games. Was going to go to fridays game but something else came up so I’ll keep my jinxed ass out of the X 

I was at one of the North Stars vs Islander’s Stanley cup finals game. 
The North Stars were rolling until Tim Young blew up his knee. 
They played the 3rd period with pretty much 2 centers. 
Bobby Smith and Neil Broten centered 3 lines. 
They might have had a chance with Tim Young but not without him. 

Edited April 18, 2023 by Tomdog

[Alexandron]

15 minutes ago, Jimtown guy said:

Hopefully we don’t see the same movie like we have in the past. Not holding my breath 

I hope so. Sincerely, my nature is more optimistic because of my work for almost 46 years (will be in July) in a medical field. We (medics) must to be optimistic even if prognosis is not looking bright. It makes my life a little bit easier. And I always was hoping for the better outcome even when we had Yeo, Boudreau as coaches. I am still hoping (for 23 years already) to see 4-5 Russian players playing for the Wild club despite of all "democratic" bureaucracy. Probably by that time(23 years) we would have 2-3 Stanley Cup finals and a Cup title. Nice examples were Red Wings, Capitals, Lightning, St. Louis ... in their history. But I had seen in our club more Finland players and from Sweden (this year we have 7), but Russian players just 1 (Sergei Zholtok) who played 2,5 seasons at the beginning of the club (2001-2003) for Lemaire coach and helped  us to pass 2 playoffs rounds in 2002-2003 season (2 goals;11 assists in 18 games including Brunette winning goal against Colorado in game 7). Then we had one player for a half of the season in 2013-2014(goalie Bryzgalov) who helped us to get into the playoffs and helped to pass 1st playoffs round. Last year we had a nice warrior defenseman Kulikov and we are having now a 3rd season in a row a real professional star Kaprizov. That is all in 23 years of the Wild history despite of drafting at least 12 Russian speaking players during that time from different countries ( USA, Canada, Belarus, Ukraine, Russia, Kazakhstan).

Here is a nice article published in 2005 for remembering Sergei Zholtok who died in November,2004 on hands of our Minnesotan player Darby Hendrickson when he had a heart attack during the game in Belarus.

https://www.nhl.com/wild/news/remembering-sergei-zholtok/c-486058

 

 

[Jimtown guy]

 

[Jimtown guy]

https://www.thescore.com/nhl/news/2630785

[Icechipper]

With Iowa out, wonder how many minor leaders will be called up to the taxi squad/black aces.

 

Walker, Rossi, Beckman, maybe McIntyre or Walstadt as practice goalies.

 

But with Army and his staff out, I imagine Darby Hendrickson will be conducting a second practice off days and game-day skated for the aces.....

[Jimtown guy]

Pretty cool story on Bill Guerin

 

 https://www.thehockeybeast.com/nhl/when-bill-guerin-surprised-nhl-referee-knocking-on-the-dressing-room-door-with-a-plastic-bag-with-him/?fbclid=IwAR07pjt6e8GKSWVcmx77HxMJi-oBq0WqtP743hlOrzg_yPM0GF8Q0JBqEEw&mibextid=Zxz2cZ#lgu9ur56crfd1bs39w9

[TropicalFruitGirl26]

Closed off thread, started a new one for the Wild off season while moving any relevant postings to the new thread with @Jimtown guy's post about EEK leading things off, followed by any postings that came afterwards.