Ohh sheesh
forgot about The beast Greenway
Greenway came a long way in a short period of time. Watching him when he first got here I though great another big guy that plays small, another Coyle.
He’s really learned quickly that his size, reach and strength are are above the NHL average and got the confidence to use it.
Spent a little time looking over the top prospects for this year’s draft and there does appear to be some depth at the center position which is absolutely a position of need for the Wild. I don’t want to give up on the playoffs because its so dang fun to watch. Regardless if the Wild are in them, I will watch the games, but it is more fun being part of the roller coaster of emotions.
Those top centers (Cozens, Turcotte, Zegras, Dach, Krebs) will all be gone by picks 7-8 so that’s where the Wild needs to be in the draft to get one of them. The Wild could get into the top 6 worst teams (they are only 5 points ahead of the #6 worst team right now) and then hope they have some luck in the lottery. I’ve given up hope at getting the top pick, but picks 3-5 are possible…
I’m a believer in Kaprizov, I’ve watched a ton of his teams games this year and the kid just has a knack for scoring goals and putting himself in offensive positions, he’s also beefed up a bit and doesn’t get pushed around (KHL is a very physical league vs other non NHL leagues)
He’s the best thing we can hope for in the next 2+ years as we don’t have any true scoring prospects in our prospect pool and likely won’t have the $ for a FA or ammunition to make a trade for a truly impactful forward.
Our top FA priority should be a long term solution for a setup guy to get our shooters the puck in scoring chances. Somebody like a Nicklas Backstrom (I know, easier said than done) but at least that type of player doesn’t get the big FA $$.
Projected cap space of $15MM next year with these players RFA: Donato, Ek, Fiala, Aberg. UFA: Fehr, Read, Hunt, Bitetto.
So, there will be holes to fill. For me, Donato, Ek, Fiala and Hunt are no brainer signings. Fehr, I think is valuable in a 4th line role and he was only $1MM this year.
I agree, it doesn’t seem like there is money there to go big for a FA without moving a sizeable contract like Zucker. If there is a player to move, I would bet its him since it almost happened already and he has the no move clause kicking in July I believe. He has a lot of upside but goes in these lulls so often. Perhaps they could get a prospect and a pick for him at the draft?
I think they are better off saving money the next 2 years, unless they can sign a good young player for 3+ years. See how Donato and fiala pan out. Then IF Krill comes over sign a stud.
I see Donato, Ek, Fiala and Hunt getting resigned to the typical 2-3 year deals, but I would try to sign Donato and Fiala more long term if possible (Coyle level deals would be ideal) The nice thing is that Donato & Hunts agents really don’t have alot of leverage because their experience is so low and you really can’t get more $$ on potential in NHL contracts. I see Fiala getting a Fenton approved sweethart deal that pays him in the $4-$5 million range. If Fehr is willing to sign another 1$ deal, do it, but I suspect he’ll look for a multi-year deal elsewhere.
I still wouldn’t give up on Zucker yet, he has 21 goals sofar in what most would regard as a terrible season, he should be able to get back to the 30+ goal level moving forward and at $5 million that’s a good deal…
Aberg and Bitteto were failed experiments that didn’t cost us much of anything, cut them loose..
I see Fiala getting a Fenton approved sweethart deal that pays him in the $4-$5 million range. I still wouldn’t give up on Zucker yet, he has 21 goals sofar in what most would regard as a terrible season, he should be able to get back to the 30+ goal level moving forward and at $5 million that’s a good deal…
Russo eluded to that exact same thing about Fiala. Didn’t say dollar amount, but speculated that Fenton may try a longer term deal so that it pays off in the end with lower cap hit should he develop into the player he thinks he will be. Its a gamble.
I like Zucker too. Until these new guys came here he was really the only real pure goal scorer we had. He is just so inconsistent. I guess, he is quietly piling goals similar to other years, but behind last year’s stats. It just seems he is hot or cold. Would be nice if he were more consistent or if he got hot in the playoffs where he has been a ghost.
I think they are better off saving money the next 2 years, unless they can sign a good young player for 3+ years. See how Donato and fiala pan out. Then IF Krill comes over sign a stud.
All on board with that take. 
I hate to see them build cap space and then lock into a another high dollar contract. I think it’s time to let the younger guys show what they can do.
I can’t see Kaprisov joining until the 2020-21 season, so that’s one we can kick down the road a whole year and the hope we’re talking about “when” and not “if” at this time next year. Realistically, though, it’s sounding more and more like he’s warming to the NHL, so it’s really hard to see a player of his caliber saying nyet to millions of dollars to stay in the KHL. Of course an injury could change everything…
Zucker isn’t overpaid even at the 20 something level and nobody is going to offer us anything better that has production that even matches his average. What we’re going to get offered for Zucker are “potential” playes like Fiala and draft picks (more potential).
We need more than potential. Fenton is a rookie GM and his potential talent-spotting abilities are still very much in doubt at this point. Before we deal a 20 goal plus guy like Zucker, we need to see that Fenton really knows what he’s doing because as of right now, I see him as 1 for 5. Not good.
It will be interesting to see what’s available at the Wild’s R1 draft pick. The problem I see for us is that almost every “best player available” pick that will be there for us in our current draft range is going to be a 17 or 18-year-old and therefore highly unlikely to be NHL ready for next season.
Fenton needs to take off the training wheels and prove he can make good free agency moves like a real GM. The bungling of Fletcher as far as handing out draft picks like candy have left the shelves bare, we need roster-ready, not “potential”.
Grouse
Realistically, though, it’s sounding more and more like he’s warming to the NHL, so it’s really hard to see a player of his caliber saying nyet to millions of dollars to stay in the KHL
Agreed.
Adding him could totally change this teams identity.
Zucker should stay unless there was a sweet deal with an apple for apple trade with a good pick or prospects.
Still gotta remember Dumba and MK are out of this line up. If we had those 2 players in this current lineup, there’d be at minimum a better chance at 10-20% more wins since they’ve been out and that could’ve been huge down the stretch.
Still gotta remember Dumba and MK are out of this line up. If we had those 2 players in this current lineup, there’d be at minimum a better chance at 10-20% more wins since they’ve been out and that could’ve been huge down the stretch.
I think had Dumba been with the club the whole year we would have at minimum 5 more wins. He was leading in scoring as a defenseman at the time and leading in goals on he PP I believe. Sure, those numbers may have slowed, but he would have made a huge difference. It also would have meant that we likely wouldn’t have gone after Hunt and or Bitetto. I would have been fine about not going after Bitetto, but I think Hunt has a lot of upside and really like it out there, just wish he was on PP#1 and not #2 (replace Suter). Losing Koivu has certainly hurt, then on top of that Ek went down. Ek was playing so well at the time too.
Sounds like he and Parise may be back for Friday’s game.
4 pts back of a playoff spot. THey are going to need everyone one of these last games, get these next 2 at minimum to have a shot, but it isn’t looking good.
We need more than potential. Fenton is a rookie GM and his potential talent-spotting abilities are still very much in doubt at this point. Before we deal a 20 goal plus guy like Zucker, we need to see that Fenton really knows what he’s doing because as of right now, I see him as 1 for 5. Not good
1 for 5?
Aberg + 650
Rask -1250
Donato -3200
Fiala -4886
Hendericks - 700
SAVINGS $9.385M
GMs rely heavily on the scouts for not only for drafting prospects, but for trades as well. I think it is clear by these numbers what Fenton is trying to do. He’s trying to get this team comfortably under the cap going forward so he has the ability to make moves, without hurting the team too much. I think he freed up cap space and in doing so I don’t think he’s made the team worse.
Granted that cap room is going to shrink with Fiala, Rask and Fiala being RFA this off season, but they are saving so much now that the savings after the RFA signings is still going to be substantial.
The league doesn’t give you extra points in the standings for freeing up cap space.
And as you say, we have a crop of RFAs that are going to be up for new contracts, most of which will involve a raise. Also, we likely will have to replace Aberg and Bitteto with roster-ready players at who knows what cost.
And I grant you, Fiala could turn into a positive, so there is room for Fenton’s track record to improve, but IMO he got taken to the cleaners because Nashville knew he had a man crush on Fiala so they clearly took advantage of him and got a bargain on a 1:1 deal on an unproved player.
Grouse
Fenton isn’t trying to get wins in the standings this year. His cleaning up the mess from the last GM so he can make this team his own. He moved players at the prime of their career for younger prospect type players who could be just as good in a few years as the players traded away are playing now. And he now has space moving forward to make the team his.
Fenton isn’t trying to get wins in the standings this year. His cleaning up the mess from the last GM so he can make this team his own. He moved players at the prime of their career for younger prospect type players who could be just as good in a few years as the players traded away are playing now. And he now has space moving forward to make the team his.
This is my feeling as well 100%. He took the risk of moving fan/local favorites at the roster flexibility he will now have to mold his team. No more Fletcher darlings lest we all forget how frustrated we have all been about Coyle, Nino and sometimes Granlund.
The Wild control the future with each of the RFA’s and that is a good thing. I would suspect that Donato gets a bridge-type 2 year prove it to me deal, but those are risky because if the player blows up and has 2 big years they are going to be an UFA and will hit the market for huge dollars. Signing them a bit longer term but forecasting their trajectory to improve is risky as well, but if they do take off you have a bargain and the end of the contract. It will be interesting to see which route Fenton takes.
Fenton isn’t trying to get wins in the standings this year. His cleaning up the mess from the last GM so he can make this team his own. He moved players at the prime of their career for younger prospect type players who could be just as good in a few years as the players traded away are playing now. And he now has space moving forward to make the team his.
Your on a roll Today
That explains the butter in my crack.
So what do you guys think about going after someone like Panarin in the off season? He is a high 20’s to 30 goal scorer and is currently at $6MM per year. I am sure he is going to want more, but I could see him signing a $7.5MM/year contract with the right club. Plus, it would be a great incentive to try to get Kaprizov over here sooner as he could be paired up with another Russian right away.
So what do you guys think about going after someone like Panarin in the off season? He is a high 20’s to 30 goal scorer and is currently at $6MM per year. I am sure he is going to want more, but I could see him signing a $7.5MM/year contract with the right club. Plus, it would be a great incentive to try to get Kaprizov over here sooner as he could be paired up with another Russian right away.
Interesting idea, but the rumor has it he and Bob are going to Florida. Honestly, I like Panarin, but I don’t know about spending that sort of money, the money he will get in the open market is going to help this team long term. We certainly may have money to do it and it would instantly make this team better, but I think we need to build with what we have no massive FA signing and hope we have a real good base to start the Kaprisov era in 2020.
I am hoping fenton is clearing cap space so he can buyout koivu.
If they buyout koivu now, he would be cleared off of the books in time to buyout suter and/or parise.
Koivu’s speed has gone and it certainley won’t get better after an acl tear.
I like Parise’s hustle but his game won’t last much longer.
Suter will really need to pick up his pace to show me that he should be kept around.
Until these three are gone I really don’t see this team going anywhere.
I think the will should be prudent this off-season, that means no Panera Bread. They certainly shouldn’t be signing guys hoping to offer incentive for a guy to come here. You want I guy who wants to come here regardless of the roster.
I am hoping fenton is clearing cap space so he can buyout koivu.
If they buyout koivu now, he would be cleared off of the books in time to buyout suter and/or parise.
Koivu’s speed has gone and it certainley won’t get better after an acl tear.
I like Parise’s hustle but his game won’t last much longer.
Suter will really need to pick up his pace to show me that he should be kept around.
Until these three are gone I really don’t see this team going anywhere.
Can’t believe I’m going to say this, it’d be nice to keep them around, but within the idea of a massive cut in minutes for all 3 and huge deflations in their contracts. Don’t see any interest or value to another team, so when their contracts are done here, their carrier’s are pretty much over, other than cute third line, low budget players. But they have become accustomed to being the top dogs with minutes and salaries, so that’s going to be a double slice of humble pie for all 3.
That explains the butter in my crack.
that’s disturbing
Plus, it would be a great incentive to try to get Kaprizov over here sooner as he could be paired up with another Russian right away.
Kaprizov won’t be coming any earlier than 2020 when his KHL contract runs out. The Wild can’t buy him out and it’s even questionable whether or not he could buy himself out, but even if he could since there is no buyout clause in his contract the team could decide not to play ball.
Were it not for his screwball former agent who seems to have been the one who talked him into this 3 year deal in the KHL, he’d probably already be here. Nothing we can do but wait for his contract to expire. The good news is that with foreign players the drafting team owns their rights forever, so Kaprisov either plays for the Wild or he doesn’t play in the NHL at all, ever.
I love it when guys talk about getting rid of our top goal scorer by buying him out. 
Another tendency of the TMSF, get the idea that a player is “no good” and then just keep wanting him gone no matter what the stats say. And of course the TMSF never says who, exactly, the Wild should get to replace the 25+ goal and 60+ point guy that they want bought out because, as we all know, he’s “in decline”.
As I’ve said before, the TMSF thinks that there are about 200, 30+ goal guys in the NHL every year and that in any given year, the Wild, for no reason, just pass on about 20 of them that could have been acquired as free agents.
Grouse
And of course the TMSF never says who, exactly, the Wild should get to replace the 25+ goal and 60+ point guy that they want bought out because, as we all know, he’s “in decline”.
The one with a bad back and $98 million?
Pretty obvious that the Wild Owner has instructed the Wild GM about what to do next.
They gave the roster from the past 7 seasons one more shot at it,and it didn’t work out. That roster was going nowhere with all the 25+ goal and 60+ point guys under contract. The key was they played all season as individuals and not as a team, there was no one that assumed any kind of leadership.
They have twin $98 guys who are getting long in the tooth, with that kind of cap strapping there was no other way for them to go other than dumping large salaries.
It surely will be an intriguing off season.
Have a pretty good gut feeling things are going to change next year with ice time and leadership roles.
But have also begrudgingly accepted till the triplets contracts run out, we are stuck with them.
Really hated to see MK get hurt, but it opened the door for others to step up. Have yet to see RS or ZP or anybody else do anything substantial in a leadership role. That spoke volumes to me as an ignorant, uniformed, casual hockey fan of 40 years. Hoping coaches and the owner/gm saw that as well and proceed past the idea of getting anything more out of the veterans than what they already got.
Hope is to keep moving forward and getting younger and faster, with some better role players and possibly some veterans with some leadership qualities brought in. Don’t expect to see a great team the next 3 or 4 years, but would like to see some movement towards getting past this current roster and plans for when the locked in vets are 3rd liners at best.
For those of you who want Koivu gone, can you please explain to me why we went from 2nd to 16th in the NHL on the PK since he has been out?
Koivu was never going to be a 40 goal scorer. He is a defensive center and is one of the best in the league. His defensive zone face-off numbers are always within the best in the league, which is huge on the kill (as our current numbers can attest to) and is almost always in the right position on the kill, which ensures that the other three guys don’t have to chase as much.
Should he be the Captain? I don’t know, but I don’t see anyone else who should be wearing the C either. I can see Kunin getting it in a couple of years, but he isn’t ready for it at this level yet.
For those of you who want Koivu gone, can you please explain to me why we went from 2nd to 16th in the NHL on the PK since he has been out?
Koivu was never going to be a 40 goal scorer. He is a defensive center and is one of the best in the league. His defensive zone face-off numbers are always within the best in the league, which is huge on the kill (as our current numbers can attest to) and is almost always in the right position on the kill, which ensures that the other three guys don’t have to chase as much.
Should he be the Captain? I don’t know, but I don’t see anyone else who should be wearing the C either. I can see Kunin getting it in a couple of years, but he isn’t ready for it at this level yet.
Been times I wondered why he’s kept the C so long, now it’s pretty obvious why. There’s no other vet that’s stepped up at all imo. As much as it sucked he got hurt, it helps moving forward imo.
I don’t mind keeping koivu around so much as I dislike the fact that his abilities all say 3rd or 4th line center, as has been said a top defensive center.
Yet for some reason he is always sent out on the #1 power play unit where he definitely does not belong.
Free up his money ($5mil) and sign someone else.
If you look at Matt Cullen’s #s and compare only even strength #s, the last year Cullen was here they were pretty even.
Koivu was a pretty good player, but I don’t see him keeping up with the speed of the game after a major knee injury
Having koivu, Zach and suter is a nice problem to have. Koivu should be relegated to the 3rd line though. Let Kunin and Ek battle for that #2 spot.
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forgot about The beast Greenway
