2022 MN WILD/NHL THREAD

CaptainMusky wrote:

Are the Oilers actually going to win this series?

I hope so just so I get to watch McDavid for a few more weeks. He’s been unbelievable, I can’t remember a playoff performance this dominant. It’s funny that Mike Smith has actually been really good – one of the best goalies in the playoffs actually. I just hope the wheels don’t fall off.

There’s another clip of Zadorov just casually poking Draisatl’s ankle in a scrum after the whistle. Yeah they’re targeting it but what is the NHL supposed to do about it – start calling penalties on a play that happens 100x a game because a superstar is playing hurt? Just goes to show why coaches and GMs want to keep injuries as hidden as possible.

CaptainMusky wrote:

Yes, that Draisaitl targeting was absolutely obvious and the first thing I thought of was bountygate. They slashed the same ankle at least 4 times.

It would be just like the “should-we-enforce-it-or-shouldn’t-we” Bettman NHL to suddenly decide that since it’s a star player, well, NOW we’d better finally do something about this. Can’t risk having the Oilers handicapped, the league NEEDS McDavid’s TV numbers too badly.

Watching Parise getting hammered in the lower back with 6, 8., 10 crosschecks in front of the goal and no calls and NOW the NHL wants to take a look? BS. Even Bettman should know that this looks bad and looks like an attempt to favor a certain team after ignoring the issue forever. No action will be taken, but the officiating crews will be put on notice.

Overall, I have to say it’s pretty interesting watching playoff games where the rules are enforced for once. Wow. What a change.

Yeah, I know we all see these types of things happen ALL the time, but it just gets old. What is going to be the straw that breaks the camel’s back?
Listening to the Straight from the Source, its obvious from BG’s comments about Jost “moving up the lineup” whose spot he is talking about. I like the thought about him up the lineup a bit and if he is placed with Boldy and Freddy/Rossi could be fun to watch.

Yeah it’s BS they’re targeting the ankle but the league can’t really do anything about it right now. If we see anything change it will be another crack down on slashing next season. Just like last year when Kucherov took that cross-check in the playoffs so the NHL put emphasis on cross-checking for this season.

McDavid’s greatness really can’t be overstated. He is at a +24 overall goal differential – next closest players (Kadri & Kane) are at +12

What McDavid is doing is just phenomenal. We have talked about him for years and it just hasnt come together for him in the playoffs (not all his fault) until this year. Man, is he fun to watch. Its funny on Twitter people are crowning him the GOAT and some old curmudgeons are saying pump the brakes. He’s the best hockey player I have ever seen. Granted I never saw the likes of Bobby Orr, but seen Gretzky and McDavid is just another level.

The only thing different about this Draisaitl targeting vs other players is that its just so obvious that they are doing it…Parise would get cross-checked in the back like any other player would when they back their way into the crease in front of the goalie, but the Flames going out of their way to chop at his ankle is just too obviou, it’s almost like it was a checklist item for each player…I don’t expect anything to happen other than the Refs will keep an eye on it, the Flames just need to blend it into the normal play more…

and yes this is exactly why teams try to hide injuries…

CaptainMusky wrote:

What McDavid is doing is just phenomenal. We have talked about him for years and it just hasnt come together for him in the playoffs (not all his fault) until this year. Man, is he fun to watch. Its funny on Twitter people are crowning him the GOAT and some old curmudgeons are saying pump the brakes. He’s the best hockey player I have ever seen. Granted I never saw the likes of Bobby Orr, but seen Gretzky and McDavid is just another level.

Bobby Orr is about on the same level as McDavid in terms of just how much BETTER he was than everybody else at the time…Gretzky was by far the smartest hockey player to ever live (to make up for the areas of his game that suffered – Lack of Speed & Strength) but he also played with pretty much all hall of famers during his successful years… The thing that separates McDavid from all of them is that the NHL skill level has jumped several levels since the days of Gretzky, Lemieux, Orr & Howe and he’s another level or two better than everyone else right now…and most experts agree NHL players don’t hit their peak until they are 27-28 years old, so he’s likely to get even better…

The only thing that scares me about McDavid is that he’s already had several injuries with his knee and one required a surgery that had never been attempted before, so we just keep our fingers crossed we get to see him at full strength for years to come (except when they play the Wild)

starting to see alot more chatter that the Wild should ask for a 2023 1st round pick vs 2022 due to the improved draft class in 2023…if that’s the case, they just need to make sure there’s no protection for the pick then, otherwise it’s pointless to wait until 2024 draft to ultimately get their pick (we really need this pick to be NHL ready in 1-2 years to help infuse skill during the worst cap years)

Comparing players from different generations is an exercise in futility

I would agree but it really would depend how high the #1 pick is. If its in the top 5 or so this year that would be fine, but if its to 15 next year that isnt real good, but we wont know what it would be yet either. Only projecting how bad the team could be. I dont think teams like NJ and Ott will be drafting as high in 23, but I could be wrong.

tswoboda wrote:

Comparing players from different generations is an exercise in futility

It is, but the game has changed so much over time. Do you think Gretzky would be as effective now vs the 80’s? I dont think hed have near as many points because the game is so much more defensive, but he would still be a very effective player. Orr I think would be about the same now as he was then IMO.

tswoboda wrote:

Comparing players from different generations is an exercise in futility

agreed, you can really only compare how much better they are/were vs everyone else in the league at their time…That’s how I came up with Orr comparing to McDavid…they both were just next level vs everyone else in the league at the time..What’s crazy is that with the increased skill training kids are now getting at much younger ages, there will be players in the future that make McDavid look human…

CaptainMusky wrote:

I would agree but it really would depend how high the #1 pick is. If its in the top 5 or so this year that would be fine, but if its to 15 next year that isnt real good, but we wont know what it would be yet either. Only projecting how bad the team could be. I dont think teams like NJ and Ott will be drafting as high in 23, but I could be wrong.

Pretty much any player in the top 10 of next years draft would be the #1 pick in this years draft…it’s that good! and 6 of the projected top 10 are big centers…Mitchkov is the Wildcard, generational talent but has like 5 more years of KHL contract for the richest team that could match NHL money…

CaptainMusky wrote:

<div class=”d4p-bbt-quote-title”>tswoboda wrote:</div>
Comparing players from different generations is an exercise in futility

It is, but the game has changed so much over time. Do you think Gretzky would be as effective now vs the 80’s? I dont think hed have near as many points because the game is so much more defensive, but he would still be a very effective player. Orr I think would be about the same now as he was then IMO.

The Oilers wouldn’t be able to keep 1/2 of the players they had under the salary cap of today’s game…

CaptainMusky wrote:

It is, but the game has changed so much over time. Do you think Gretzky would be as effective now vs the 80’s? I dont think hed have near as many points because the game is so much more defensive, but he would still be a very effective player. Orr I think would be about the same now as he was then IMO.

LOL stop it. That stuff is all impossible to ever know – the game is different, the players are different, the equipment is different, blah blah blah… it’s just a silly discussion to have in my opinion. It’s what makes NBA fans/talking heads so insufferable – the last 15 years has been Jordan v. Lebron opinions every day.

I’m prepared to be very underwhelmed by the Fiala trade – any single top 10 pick or equivalent prospect and I’ll be very happy. Likely will be a package of mid/late-1st round pick and A/B-level prospects. Something similar to the Zucker trade is my guess.

tswoboda wrote:

I’m prepared to be very underwhelmed by the Fiala trade – any single top 10 pick or equivalent prospect and I’ll be very happy. Likely will be a package of mid/late-1st round pick and A/B-level prospects. Something similar to the Zucker trade is my guess.

Well every other GM knows that BG is negotiating from the side of very little leverage so I agree with you.

Jordan

tswoboda wrote:

It’s what makes NBA fans/talking heads so insufferable – the last 15 years has been Jordan v. Lebron opinions every day.

I dont much care about the NBA because I dont watch it enough, but I dont think technology has changed that game as much as the NHL. They still play with the same round ball. Only thing thats changed are shoes? Style of play, sure, but NHL literally everything is lightyears ahead of 10 or 15 years ago. Sticks, skates you name it.

GMBG is on with PA now on KFAN. Should be an interesting listen and I doubt PA pressures GMBG as much as Dan did.

Best case scenario is Paul Fenton gets the Sharks job and proceeds to give us Eklund, 2022 #11OA, unprotected 2023 1st, and literally anything else Billy G asks for. The man just wants his son Kevin back.

KP wrote:

GMBG is on with PA now on KFAN. Should be an interesting listen and I doubt PA pressures GMBG as much as Dan did.

Have you listened to the Straight From the Source from this week? If not, its must listen with BG.

tswoboda wrote:

Best case scenario is Paul Fenton gets the Sharks job and proceeds to give us Eklund, 2022 #11OA, unprotected 2023 1st, and literally anything else Billy G asks for. The man just wants his son Kevin back.

One can dream, but Fenton’s days as a GM are over.

CaptainMusky wrote:

Have you listened to the Straight From the Source from this week? If not, its must listen with BG.

I was about to listen to it and then heard GMBG was going to be on. Going to listen to it after he gets off air. PA is such a strange person and I think hes scared to ask questions about the team. They are just talking about music.

PA’s a terrible interviewer, my guess is he’ll bring up a ton of hockey cliches and laugh at himself alot…

JoeMX1825 wrote:

PA’s a terrible interviewer, my guess is he’ll bring up a ton of hockey cliches and laugh at himself alot…

Yeah, I used to like him, but I cannot even listen to him anymore. Whenever he has women on the shoe it gets super creepy.

JoeMX1825 wrote:

PA’s a terrible interviewer, my guess is he’ll bring up a ton of hockey cliches and laugh at himself alot…

He really is horrible. Most of the time he will interrupt his guest he is interviewing, I had a work call so I wasn’t able to listen to the whole interview so I’ll have to go back and listen how many time he interrupted GMBG.

tswoboda wrote:

Omg Mike Smith

I didnt see it until just now. LOL

Think Darcy is starting to feel the pressure??? I do….

JoeMX1825 wrote:

Think Darcy is starting to feel the pressure??? I do….

Yeah that goal by Bozak needed to be stopped. Other than that the Blues did the work. The got some good bounces in front of the net that Darcy couldn’t do much about.

Mackinnon’s coast to coaster was a thing of beauty and should have sealed the game. That was the kind of game that could swing this series to the Blues.

On another note is Ottowa signaling they are out on Fiala?

“Maybe this is the year that we move pick seven to get an impact player that can help us right away. We’re not going to get a guy that’s a pending (unrestricted free agent) in a year’s time; I don’t think that would be really smart for us to do. But if we can get a guy that we know we will have some control over for more than a few years, that’s something we’d definitely look at. -Pierre Dorian

Or it could be the start of negotiations. He also mentioned the need for a top four D man. Maybe a package deal with Fiala and Dumba? As long as you gotta throw the baby out may as well throw the bath water too!

I doubt Jersey will give up the #2 pick for Fiala. Somebody said earlier they are prepared to be underwhelmed by what the Wild get for Fiala and I agree. The Wild are not in a position to say what they will take for him they are in a position to take what they can get.

I think the Kings and BlueJackets are the sleeper teams that are going to be in on Fiala (Kings likely his choice) New Jersey and Ottawa will say the right things to not look desperate but they want him for sure. GMBG will give the Fiala camp permission to talk to teams he’s interested in a few weeks from now, thats when the real negotiations will begin, but ultimately Fiala will steer the ship as he could tell a team like Ottawa he has ZERO intention of signing long term with them.

Not much different from the McBain negotiations in terms of the process and the ONLY leverage GMBG had then was he could delay McBain’s eventual signing by 4 months and get ZERO compensation…. I think he’ll get fair compensation for Fiala…

I heard somebody suggest a Fiala + Talbot to New Jersey for the #2 and a mid-level prospect or Holtz and a mid-round pick (3rd) next year…. I’d do either trade in a heartbeat.