2022/2023 NHL/Wild Offseason-Season-Postseason Thread

Here’s your boy Wallstedt jamming out to Beat It mid game. Wish there was audio, but this is golden. It’s like Mite hockey.

Gotta scroll down a few to see him.

It blows my mind how good Goudreau is in the shootouts. You see some of that skill during the games but for some reason he almost never puts it all together out there. I thought he had a helluva game last night though.

mahtofire14 wrote:

It blows my mind how good Goudreau is in the shootouts. You see some of that skill during the games but for some reason he almost never puts it all together out there. I thought he had a helluva game last night though.

He definitely has a set of hands on him, but so do some 13 year old YouTube stick handling stars…it’s all about being given an opportunity and then being able to produce when expected to, most crumble, some can do it (typical NHLer) and a very select few excel at it and become hockey superstars (Kaprizov, etc)…Freddy is making the most of the opportunity being handed to him by Evason that’s for sure…my guess is that’s why he would take a very team friendly deal to sign an extension with the Wild, as long as Dean is here, Freddy will get opportunities he won’t get elsewhere….

JoeMX1825 wrote:

<div class=”d4p-bbt-quote-title”>mahtofire14 wrote:</div>
It blows my mind how good Goudreau is in the shootouts. You see some of that skill during the games but for some reason he almost never puts it all together out there. I thought he had a helluva game last night though.

He definitely has a set of hands on him, but so do some 13 year old YouTube stick handling stars…it’s all about being given an opportunity and then being able to produce when expected to, most crumble, some can do it (typical NHLer) and a very select few excel at it and become hockey superstars (Kaprizov, etc)…Freddy is making the most of the opportunity being handed to him by Evason that’s for sure…my guess is that’s why he would take a very team friendly deal to sign an extension with the Wild, as long as Dean is here, Freddy will get opportunities he won’t get elsewhere….

Honestly I’m ok with that. I don’t really like him on the second line, but the guy plays well enough to not make big mistakes and has some nice games. I think he’s shown more and more offensively as well. I don’t think he’s going to turn into some offensive juggernaut but he’s steadily improved in that area since we’ve had him it seems.

yeah, Freddy has grown on me a bit BUT I don’t want Deano to hold up other more offensive players in the future (Rossi as an example) because he “trusts” Freddy more…Gaudreau should really be a 3rd or most likely a 4th line center on a team with established centers, but we’re so thin at the position that he gets bumped up in priority and gets more icetime than he probably should…

Loking at how the Wild are built, if we’re going to keep Ek in a more “shutdown” 3rd line center checking role and rely on the other lines to provide scoring, then the only logical spot moving forward for Freddy is “4th line” and he’ll likely be way overpaid for that roster slot…

I would be ok if the Wild extends him 2 more years at a very resonable aav ($2-$2.5aav) for the reasons I mentioned , but anything longer than 2 years and we’re likely blocking out more offensive prospect options in the lineup (Rossi, Khusnidhinov, ??)

Freddy Hockey… not really good at anything, but not bad at anything either. Low maintenance, plays all situations, reliable, never hurt. No doubt Deano has made him the player he is just based on opportunity. He might not be a full time NHLer if he signs somewhere else 2 years ago, but he’s been a hell of a value contract for the Wild. I love to believe they can keep him at ~2M AAV but then I remember BG offered Sturm 5x$2.5m in the middle of a bad season. Also remember this is likely Freddy’s biggest contract of his career, and he only had 1 full season of NHL Salary prior to signing here. SO who knows how it plays out.

tswoboda wrote:

Freddy Hockey… not really good at anything, but not bad at anything either. Low maintenance, plays all situations, reliable, never hurt. No doubt Deano has made him the player he is just based on opportunity. He might not be a full time NHLer if he signs somewhere else 2 years ago, but he’s been a hell of a value contract for the Wild. I love to believe they can keep him at ~2M AAV but then I remember BG offered Sturm 5x$2.5m in the middle of a bad season. Also remember this is likely Freddy’s biggest contract of his career, and he only had 1 full season of NHL Salary prior to signing here. SO who knows how it plays out.

yep, we agree… maybe in a few years with the cap going up a 4th line center can more easily command a $2+ aav… I’ve always held the beleif that you use the 4th line mostly as a carrot for the minor league guys to claw/scratch/fight for…you know you’re getting their best because they know they could be sent back down if they don’t…That’s really the only issue I have with putting a Vet like Reaves on the 4th line, he knows he’s going nowhere…but Vets being typically more responsible on the ice I guess is the counter argument…

I don’t disagree about all things Freddy. Here me out however. Why do we say or relegate EK to just a shutdown role. He is by far our most gifted center. Most likely won’t be playing with Moose and Greenway long term. He has gotten better every season offensively.
I mean he has 40 points in 48 games playing with wingers that don’t contribute on the score sheet often. He is also going to be here for the long haul.
He is 200ft guy and goes to the net. For the sake of trying things out why not out him with Boldy and x.

Ripjiggen wrote:

For the sake of trying things out why not out him with Boldy and x.

Id be all for it. 5 game run to see how it works. I really like the Greef line, but if we could tap into his offensive potential more it would benefit Boldy too.

Ripjiggen wrote:

I don’t disagree about all things Freddy. Here me out however. Why do we say or relegate EK to just a shutdown role. He is by far our most gifted center. Most likely won’t be playing with Moose and Greenway long term. He has gotten better every season offensively.
I mean he has 40 points in 48 games playing with wingers that don’t contribute on the score sheet often. He is also going to be here for the long haul.
He is 200ft guy and goes to the net. For the sake of trying things out why not out him with Boldy and x.

yeah, I just based that statement on how he’s been used in his career sofar (The shutdown defensive role)
He’s been put between Kap & Zuccy a few times and he just doesn’t have the same mindset (he thinks defense first) so he would zig, when they expected him to zag… On the Powerplay he really doesn’t have much respoensibility other than faceoffs and standing in front of the net and getting the dirty area goals (and he’s great at it) he’s not involved at all with the breakout or zone entry…

I think the Wild brass LOVE what they are getting from Ek the past season and a half, they get his elite defensive shutdown ability with the offense sprinkled in on the PP, not sure they want to mess with it?

I too am kinda surprised they haven’t at least tried him with Boldy yet, but that would mean moving Freddy and Deano won’t have that…

Freddie can play in middle on third line.
Ek with KK and Zucc was also 3 seasons ago now. Well 2.5 but you get my point.
That was before EK sort of came out of his shell offensively.

I too like the Greef line but only when they are all healthy and going good which has been very rare this year.
And most likely not a line in 2 years.

I think Deano and Staff will change things up after the all-star break. It gives them an excuse to try Hartman back on the 1st line and see if it lights a spark with their 5-5 play…not sure what Steel would give Boldy other than a bit more speed on the wing, but Hartman didn’t have any chemistry with them…

The GREEF line is something special when they’re rolling and that’s why JEEK stays there. Last year he turned Foligno and Greenway into a line that could play against the best in the league and dominate them. But I was also clamoring for Boldy with Ek to start the season, and still would love to see it.

Foligno Broke MacEwen’s jaw in that scrap… ooof!

Ripjiggen wrote:

Freddie can play in middle on third line.

IF expected to be a shutdown line center, I don’t think Freddy has the chops…he’s too soft on the puck and along the boards…he’s been mostly getting away with those defficiencies because he has a good stick and is an agile skater, but I don’t think he would be sustainable as a defensive checker…That’s the pickle with him imo, he’s too soft for a shutdown role and not gifted enough for an offensive role (on a team with adequete center depth) so that leaves 4th line duties and he would likely be overpaid for that role…

I think Term is going to be the big decision maker on his extension if offered. as mentioned this is his “cash in” contract and the Wild likely doesn’t have a long term top 9 spot for him on the roster…

I don’t think Deano has much issue moving Goudreau off the Boldy line as long as he’s still on the ice. I also think he might break up the GREEF line in the near future because they just aren’t the same this year. Moose and Gway just aren’t the same players this year.

Well, Greenway is.

Off Wild topic, for the Athletic subscribers, Blackhawks beat writer Mark Lazerus wrote a good article released today (poorly timed imo) regarding the death of Bobby Hull “The Golden Jet”. It struggles with how Bobby should be remembered, as the Golden Jet flying down the ice with the wicked curve slapshot and a personality that made everybody anybody a hockey fan or the alleged repeated domestic abuser and other alleged abhorent comments made AFTER his playing days…

It’s a interesting article and stresses how the Blackhawks have a really tricky situation on their hands when they get back from break and will have to acknowledge his passing during the first game back…

This beat writer has had some serious battles with the ownership & fanbase recently when reporting about the Kyle Beach situation and not letting the story die and holding the Blackhawks accountable…

This is obviously not the first time a sports legend/idol has had “off field” issues that conflict with their “on field” genius. Think Kobe Bryant/Kirby Pucket, etc it’s definitely a tough situation to talk about and often times there are circumstances that leaves a sliver of doubt in the stories/accusations…

His number is retired in Chicago and Winnipeg I believe. A little late to not celebrate his hockey career.

JoeMX1825 wrote:

This beat writer has had some serious battles with the ownership & fanbase recently when reporting about the Kyle Beach situation and not letting the story die and holding the Blackhawks accountable…

When he sticks to writing about hockey Mark does a great job, but he does tend to tweet political and other controversial things that get a bit irritating.

CaptainMusky wrote:

<div class=”d4p-bbt-quote-title”>JoeMX1825 wrote:</div>
This beat writer has had some serious battles with the ownership & fanbase recently when reporting about the Kyle Beach situation and not letting the story die and holding the Blackhawks accountable…

When he sticks to writing about hockey Mark does a great job, but he does tend to tweet political and other controversial things that get a bit irritating.

I don’t know alot about him or his writing history, but I do give him alot of credit for sticking up against the Blackhawks Owner/Family during the Beach story…Ownership did all they could to surpress the story and make it go away, but this guy never gave in…

Who the hell had Bo Horvat to the Islanders on their bingo card?

Just seams like odd timing to write a piece about someone and how crappy they are on the day that he dies.

Holding them accountable in the Kyle Beach scandals was the right thing to do. Then again all parties were still alive to defend or accuse.

JoeMX1825 wrote:

Who the hell had Bo Horvat to the Islanders on their bingo card?

Interesting. At least he went to the east for now.

Yeah seriously. Definitely not all the Wild fans that thought he was coming here!

Ripjiggen wrote:

Just seams like odd timing to write a piece about someone and how crappy they are on the day that he dies.

Holding them accountable in the Kyle Beach scandals was the right thing to do. Then again all parties were still alive to defend or accuse.

I’d be willing to bet he was sitting on this story to unleash right when he died.

Lazerus is super woke, loves writing about how terrible hockey culture and everyone involved is.

So much for Horvat to the Ducks for their unprotected 1st lol. I guess we got the non-playoff team part of that dream but it’s top 12 protected. WTF is Lou doing?? He must have a $9m x 8 extension in the works. In which case, WTF is Lou doing?

Friedman mentioned the islanders as a top team after Horvat this morning.

Lol, Scott Wheeler just sent out a tweet showing the Islanders with the 2024 32nd ranked prospect pool….

tswoboda wrote:

Foligno Broke MacEwen’s jaw in that scrap… ooof!

Really?!? That’s crazy.

tswoboda wrote:

Lazerus is super woke, loves writing about how terrible hockey culture and everyone involved is.

So much for Horvat to the Ducks for their unprotected 1st lol. I guess we got the non-playoff team part of that dream but it’s top 12 protected. WTF is Lou doing?? He must have a $9m x 8 extension in the works. In which case, WTF is Lou doing?

Friedman mentioned the islanders as a top team after Horvat this morning.

Any chance they can flip him again. They have a month before trade deadline…
Probably unlikely but if they fall further back.

Sure, but I think there’s a lot better chance that Lou is senile and this is his last year as GM/President in the NHL

All three athletic writers gave the trade a C for both teams. Well one had a B- for Vancouver.