Oh I get what you are saying.
By the way 76pts would have put him at 33rd in league for points our last full season of hockey. Tied with Sean Couturier, Alex Debrincat, Jake Guenztal, and Teuvo Teravainen.
Well all speculation about what his numbers could be in a regular season based off of last years numbers is a bit of a waste of time imo. Far too many things factor in and last season was a total anomaly. He needs to prove what he can do over a couple of full schedule seasons against all the teams before he starts demanding 10 mill a year if that is what he is doing.
If the Wild knuckle under and give it to him they are out of their minds. I think 9 million on a 55 game sample size is over zealous on the Wild’s part. There’s nothing to say how this kid is going to stack up against the rest of the league in a 82 game schedule. He has never played that long of a season before against the best talent in the world. He could score 60 or barely break 30. Who’s to say. Maybe he will prove to be injury prone and be the Wild’s Byron Buxton. Sure he’s the real deal. But how real we don’t know. That’s why I keep saying he needs to prove it. Fiala has to prove it year after year. BG seems to think you can’t give Fiala the big contract because he needs to be kept motivated. I doubt Fiala took that comment as a compliment. Why isn’t the same litmus test being applied to KK?
I hope Fiala lights the lamp 40 times this year and then tells BG bye-bye and prices himself right out of here which won’t take much especially if KK gets his 9 or 10 mill. In comparison Fiala has been treated like crap by this organization and he deserves better.
Just a guess, but they didn’t have any college kids in camp so its gotta be that.
after some digging I found out its due to NCAA rules around the team paying for Flights/meals and lodging, they can’t even give the NCAA any team swag unless the prospect pays for it…. stupid…
Well all speculation about what his numbers could be in a regular season based off of last years numbers is a bit of a waste of time imo. Far too many things factor in and last season was a total anomaly. He needs to prove what he can do over a couple of full schedule seasons against all the teams before he starts demanding 10 mill a year if that is what he is doing.
If the Wild knuckle under and give it to him they are out of their minds. I think 9 million on a 55 game sample size is over zealous on the Wild’s part. There’s nothing to say how this kid is going to stack up against the rest of the league in a 82 game schedule. He has never played that long of a season before against the best talent in the world. He could score 60 or not break 40. Who’s to say. Maybe he will prove to be injury prone and be the Wild’s Byron Buxton. Sure he’s the real deal. But how real we don’t know. That’s why I keep saying he needs to prove it. Fiala has to prove it year after year. BG seems to think you can’t give Fiala the big contract because he needs to be kept motivated. I doubt Fiala took that comment as a compliment. Why isn’t the same litmus test being applied to KK?
I hope Fiala lights the lamp 40 times this year and then tells BG bye-bye and prices himself right out of here which won’t take much especially if KK gets his 9 or 10 mill. In comparison Fiala has been treated like crap by this organization and he deserves better.
Kaprizov wants to prove it, on a 3 year deal though…
<div class=”d4p-bbt-quote-title”>Ripjiggen wrote:</div>
Sure they have points, but I don’t know that contract negotiations speak to the what if’s. What if McKinnon played with Kucherov and Kane as his wingers. What if this happened or that happened is kind of hard to justify. In any negotiation you have to kind of go with what’s in front of you…no? Oh and 76pts to answer your question.I’m just trying to look into the minds/argument of Kirill & his agent if they believe $9 aav isn’t enough (speculating)…
Unfortunately they kind of have to play the what-if game since they are negotiating a long term contract after only 1 shortened season. That’s half of what makes the kaprizov situation so difficult. The other half is the wild (rightfully so) not willing to entertain a bridge deal. Look at the other big unsigned RFAs and they all have 3 years of NHL experience to analyze plus still have the option to settle on a bridge deal. This is just such a unique contract negotiation and so far neither side seems willing to blink.
He needs to prove what he can do over a couple of full schedule seasons against all the teams before he starts demanding 10 mill a year if that is what he is doing…
…Sure he’s the real deal. But how real we don’t know. That’s why I keep saying he needs to prove it.
How exactly does he prove it if the Wild are unwilling to entertain any contract less than 5 years? The 55 game take always bugs me… Kaprizov is begging for the chance to “prove it” on a short term deal.
By the way 76pts would have put him at 33rd in league for points our last full season of hockey. Tied with Sean Couturier, Alex Debrincat, Jake Guenztal, and Teuvo Teravainen.
Where does his 40 goal pace rank?
Tied for 12th with Guenztel and Jeff Skinner.
Ugh quote function is not working.
Agree TSW on the unique contract situation.
You also beat me to the response about the prove it deal.
<div class=”d4p-bbt-quote-title”>Ice Cap wrote:</div>
He needs to prove what he can do over a couple of full schedule seasons against all the teams before he starts demanding 10 mill a year if that is what he is doing……Sure he’s the real deal. But how real we don’t know. That’s why I keep saying he needs to prove it.
How exactly does he prove it if the Wild are unwilling to entertain any contract less than 5 years? The 55 game take always bugs me… Kaprizov is begging for the chance to “prove it” on a short term deal.
I think the Wild organization feels he owes them at least 5 years after waiting that long for him to finally decide to come here. All those 5 years the Wild continued to support him by giving him sticks and other gear and being careful not to pressure him too much. Maybe the Wild have a point and maybe not. I think Russo commented that 5 years has been the compromise supposedly agreed upon. I think 5X9 for a guy with 55 games of actual NHL experience and with really no other options available is more than fair and BG has said as much.
Walking him directly to free agency is something the Wild will not do and rightfully so.
^^^I feel like I just re-listened to the Russo Lapanta podcast.
^^^I feel like I just re-listened to the Russo Lapanta podcast.
Well that would be all the info we have to go on. Don’t know that I ever heard either one of them say that the Wild feel he owes them 5 years that’s my speculation. 
I think the Wild organization feels he owes them at least 5 years after waiting that long for him to finally decide to come here. All those 5 years the Wild continued to support him by giving him sticks and other gear and being careful not to pressure him too much.
The Wild basically ignored him for several years and sending him sticks and a few shirts is laughable for a 1/2 billion dollar NHL franchise…They started to pay attention to him after he lit up the WJC tourney…
The pain points we’re dealing with are the EXACT reason why good Russian prospects (not playing junior in the US) are a wildcard to draft… and likely one of the reasons (I believe the others were his size and skating ability – lol) why he slipped to the 5th round of his draft….
The Wild want him locked up long term because they want him locked in at that set $8-$9 million aav when he might turn into a superstart and be worth $10-$12 million aav a few seasons from now….so why is Kirill the bad guy when he doesn’t want to do that and instead bet on his own success and bridge to a current aav in 3 years? That’s likely his agents argument for wanting a higher aav if term is stretched out to 4-5 years…I think Kirill’s age is also a factor in why he didn’t want a comparable Svechnikov type of deal 8 x $7.75 as his next (and likely final big contract) will be effected somewhat by his age vs the 3 years younger Svechnikov…
Lastly, Kirill is in his PRIME and GMBG’s really only option for providing him with a top center at least in the next 4 years (until the buyouts are over) is a 19 year old kid who just missed the last year of hockey due to a serious heart condition from covid. The other option is to use Fiala (and his future big contract) as ammo to try and trade for/acquire one, but that then puts more defensive focus on Kirill as the main/only weapon for other teams to target on.
So you can start to see some cracks in the Wild’s offer/plan to Kirill and a potential glimpse into he and his agents thinking for demanding more aav…
I think the Wild organization feels he owes them at least 5 years after waiting that long for him to finally decide to come here. All those 5 years the Wild continued to support him by giving him sticks and other gear and being careful not to pressure him too much. Maybe the Wild have a point and maybe not.
Lol Fletcher tried to trade Kaprizov to Vegas a month before he signed the 3 year contract with CSKA. The Wild didn’t do a dam thing for Kirill until he signed that contract and then all of the sudden it was like oh no poor Minnesota has this great player who’s trapped in Russia. The Wild paid zero attention to him until it was too late… once that contract was signed there was no getting out of it.
<div class=”d4p-bbt-quote-title”>Ice Cap wrote:</div>
I think the Wild organization feels he owes them at least 5 years after waiting that long for him to finally decide to come here. All those 5 years the Wild continued to support him by giving him sticks and other gear and being careful not to pressure him too much. Maybe the Wild have a point and maybe not.Lol Fletcher tried to trade Kaprizov to Vegas a month before he signed the 3 year contract with CSKA. The Wild didn’t do a dam thing for Kirill until he signed that contract and then all of the sudden it was like oh no poor Minnesota has this great player who’s trapped in Russia. The Wild paid zero attention to him until it was too late… once that contract was signed there was no getting out of it.
bingo! and I think there were ways to get him out of that KHL contract (directly paying the team $$$) as other top KHL players have done it before and the Wild chose NOT to do it early on and then he started to light up the KHL and then they cried about it….
bingo! and I think there were ways to get him out of that KHL contract (directly paying the team $$$) as other top KHL players have done it before and the Wild chose NOT to do it early on and then he started to light up the KHL and then they cried about it….
There was some talk about this, but I believe the KHL team has to be willing to allow and at the time CSKA was not willing to do it because they were contending for championships and Kirill was obviously a huge part of that.
Watching those two scrimmages had me very excited about the young talent. Yes, they are skating against kids that will likely never sniff the NHL, but the players we expect to dominate did exactly that. Boldy, Rossi and Addison were highlights and Beckman was very noticeable too. Wild fans will certainly not have to encourage him to shoot! Holy, he has no fear of firing the puck.
I know its a long shot, but what do you think the lines should be if Boldy and Rossi make the team out of camp?
Id put Boldy with Fiala and Ek I think, but if Rossi were to make it can you imagine those 3 skaters together? They flat out fly.
I don’t think the EK line (our second line) gets broken up.
I don’t think the EK line (our second line) gets broken up.
Russo is hinting at it with his lineup projections. Analytics wizards showed Ek’s advanced stats were the same on or off that line, but Greenway and Foligno had a drop off when not with Ek. I think they at least try to change it up to see what happens.
I’d try these lines (I’m assuming Kaprizov signs and Rossi doesn’t make the Wild’s opening night roster)
Kaprizov – Rask – Zuc
Boldy – Sturm – Fiala
Greenway – Ek – Foligno
Hartman – Goudrau – Bjugstad/Rau
Perhaps you switch Ek and Sturm around, but I like having an elite shutdown 3rd line…20 or so games into the season Rossi gets called up and either centers the 1st or 2nd line and Rask replaces Goudrau…
This team would be in so much better shape if they had another experienced 2C/3C center…I don’t think Sturm has the game to succeed as a 2C, but we have nobody else any better (again I don’t want to split up the 3rd line at all) If they resign Fiala next offseason, then we’ll be financially forced to wait for Khusnidinov to be ready and fill that gap…
<div class=”d4p-bbt-quote-title”>Ripjiggen wrote:</div>
I don’t think the EK line (our second line) gets broken up.Russo is hinting at it with his lineup projections. Analytics wizards showed Ek’s advanced stats were the same on or off that line, but Greenway and Foligno had a drop off when not with Ek. I think they at least try to change it up to see what happens.
That could be reason to keep them together though right?? They were one of the best lines in hockey last year, and not just defensively! So if they can do that with 2 average wingers and their best center, then why change that up, ya know.
Either way the lines they start the season with will get blown up about a week into the season.
That could be reason to keep them together though right?? They were one of the best lines in hockey last year, and not just defensively! So if they can do that with 2 average wingers and their best center, then why change that up, ya know.
Either way the lines they start the season with will get blown up about a week into the season.
It would certainly be an argument for that, but the one thing we know is that Ek’s play isnt carried by those two its vice versa. If one of the centers on this year’s team is more capable than what they had last year perhaps their games wouldnt suffer so much if he is somewhere else?
Conjecture or whatever, but you are right. The lineup night one will certainly change a lot and throw in an injury somewhere and that even forces more changes.
Let’s be honest. The Ek line was/is your second line. In terms of ice time and production.
If KK is pissed about not having a center just imagine what Fiala thinks and will bring up in negotiations.
Let’s be honest. The Ek line was/is your second line. In terms of ice time and production.
IMO, Ek is in the perfect spot between Foligno and Greenway. Ek is a grinder/sand paper/shutdown guy who leans on & wears down the opposing top players all game long (Nathan MacKinnon will absolutely hate him the next 8+ years) and gets the dirty goals 1-10 feet away from the goal, sure he makes an occasional nice move or pass but certainly not enough to warrant playing with your best skilled forwards. IF last year wasn’t an enigma (I have my doubts) then he likely has a 2nd line center ceiling and is finally finding his offensive game in the NHL. I think this is a best case scenario for him and the Wild and if so, it more than justifies his aav, but he still needs to greatly improve his faceoff percentage so he’s not spending 1/2 his shift chasing down the puck getting possession back. If Ek is moved to 2C, I think Sturm is a great replacement for him on the 3rd line and would actually add more size and speed to it…
New A’s should get handed out soon with training camp starting this week. Who gets em? I say Foligno is a lock and Brodin is my best guess on the other. Ek and dumba are the other two possibilities. I think Ek is a lead by example type and Spurgeon already fills that role. Dumba won’t because he’s on the trade block his entire career.
Foligno is a lock for a A I would assume. Brodin is pretty soft spoken just do my job type. I’ve heard Ek can be quite outspoken in the locker room at times so he may do better in the leadership role.
Foligno for sure. Brodin is an interesting one. Ek is certainly or least seems to be quiet. I would think they’d go after someone more vocal but that’s just my initial thought.
I was thinking Sturm would fill Eks shoes fairly well. I don’t know much about Gaudreau but is he an upgrade over Rask? I haven’t seen much of him.
Sturm should have a breakout year this year or at least a big step forward. It would be a welcomed addition to fill a big need. Gaudreau has 18 points in 103 NHL games. I think you want to see a bit more from a center. Is he a improvement over Rask? We can only hope.
Gaudreau is a career 4th line/fringe NHLer… he got some 3rd line time in Pittsburgh and played well. He was basically a cheap center Evason has a history with. I believe he has a good career faceoff % so that was a bonus especially for this team.
Sturm will be a UFA after this season, so hopefully he doesn’t do too well to price himself off the Wild… He could be a trade deadline piece if the Wild are sellers and his agent tells the Wild he wants an increased role and paycheck moving forward… Curious if GMBG gets ahead of it and extends Sturm early this season for a decent raise, maybe 3 x $1.25aav?
Khusnutdinov slotting back into the 1st line today after given a game off….
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