2016-17 Wild Season Thread (Draft Review, Trade Block, News, Prospect Rankings)

[Circulartheory]

After a cinderalla run into the Stanley Cup finals, the Minnesota Wild decided to spend big money on free agents to shore up the problems on their depth. Giving big contracts to Antoine Vermette and Curtis Glencross, the Wild went from being one of the most efficient and effective teams in terms of payroll/point to THE WORST.

Continuing the retool (not rebuild), the Wild won big in the draft lottery falling into 2nd overall.

But with a team with Sonny Milano, Jake Debrusk, Christian Fischer, Jayce Hawryluk, Viktor Arvidsson and Kevin Labanc manning the wings, GM Chan desperately wanted to fix their holes down in center and defense.

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1st Round - Trade
Dylan Strome, Vladimir Namestnikov, #50 pick, #78 pick = #2 pick, #66 pick, #156 pick

"It was hard to give up on Laine who looks to be a franchise goal scorer. But in this deal, we receive Dylan Strome, another potential franchise player but in an area that we desperately needed to fix - at center. Strome is a cerebral playmaking centerman who plays like a Joe Thornton and who will be part of a promising NHL Coyotes team with Max Domi and Anthony Duclair."

"In addition, we bring in a young NHL with potential (Namestnikov) who can immediately jump into the lineup and help this season. He is a versatile forward who can play both center and wing, both PP and PK, and still has potential to be a 2nd line centerman with Stamkos leaving Tampa Bay. To sweeten the deal, we move up in the draft twice."

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2nd Round, 50th Overall
LD Libor Hajek (WHL) 6'1.5" 185lbs

"A smooth and calm defensive defenseman, we were surprised to see Hajek last till 50 as we had him safely in our top 30. He isn't a flashy player but he is projected to be a very well-built and strong defenseman who can skate, covers his man well, and makes it difficult to play against in the defensive zone. He has some skill offensively with efficient passes and shots but his bread and butter is in the defensive zone "

Projection: #3-4 Defensive Defenseman.
Comparison: Karl Alzner, Marc Methot, Kevin Klein

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3rd Round, 78th Overall
LD Matthew Cairns (OJHL) 6'2.0" 202lbs

"Cairns was a defenseman that shot up our rankings from his combine results. 1st in pro agility left, 3rd in pro agility right, 12th in VO2Max, 11th in Peak Power Output, 6th in Lefthand Grip, 3rd in Righthand Grip. Combine these results to a 6-2 202lbs body as well as with great hockey sense, huge selection of shots, offensive acumen and we feel we had a potential gem."

Projection: #3-4 Two-Way Defenseman.
Comparison: Ryan McDonagh

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[MatthewFlames]

All around great day - you build around centers and you were lucky that Jeff had 4 great young prospects in that position and could afford to give one up.

Personally, Hajek was one of my favorites - very surprised to see him there at 50, I think he will go higher in the NHL. Cairns is another very good looking Dman, hidden a bit by being in the OJHL. Very good day for the Wild.

And

 

[Ohio Jones]

It was a ballsy move for sure, and in the long run likely the smart play.

 

[Circulartheory]

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4th Round, 95th Overall
G Karel Vejmelka (Czech) 6'3.0" 203lbs

"Perhaps another Nashville Predator goalie steal, Vejmelka is an unique goalie with size, mobility, and a right handed glove. He had some great numbers in the pro leagues in Czech Republic and adds another big sized goalie to our system with Merzlikins, Werner, and McAdams."

Projection: #1B Goalie
Comparison: ?

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7th Round, 199th Overall
RD Jake Ryczek (USHL) 5'10.0" 181lbs

"Slightly surprised he lasted this long in both the HFNHL and NHL draft. While undersized, he was 3rd in the USHL in points-per-game for USHL defenseman and is a good skating right handed defenseman. While he has work to do in the strength and defensive department, we love his puck moving ability".

Projection: #4/5 Offensive defenseman
Comparison: Torey Krug

 

[Circulartheory]

Pre-season Wild Top 20 Prospect Rankings



2016-17 Pre-season Wild Top 20 Prospect Rankings

The Minnesota Wild is starting to boast one of the more impressive prospect pools in the HFNHL without the use of high draft picks, the highest being #15 in 2012.

However, with a poor year in the 2015-16, the Wild finally had the luxury of selecting a high end talent but opted to acquire Dylan Strome, now the teams top prospect, in order to move up in the draft while acquire NHL talent in Vladislav Namestnikov.

Strengths:
- High end talent at wings
- Depth and diversity on defense
- Depth in goal

Weaknesses:
- Lack of sure-fire bluechip goalies
- Lack of sure-fire top pairing defensemen

#|Name|Pos
1|Dylan Strome|C
2|Sonny Milano|LW
3|Jake DeBrusk|LW
4|Christian Fischer|RW
5|Jayce Hawryluk|RW
6|Joe Hicketts|D
7|Kevin Labanc|RW
8|Libor Hajek|D
9|Joakim Ryan|D
10|Matthew Cairns|D
11|Elvis Merzlikins|G
12|Devon Toews|D
13|Dan O'Regan|RW
14|Karel Vejmelka|G
15|Dysin Mayo|D
16|Matt Spencer|D
17|Michael Downing|D
18|Anthony Cirelli|C
19|Marcus Pettersson|D
20|Gustav Bouramann|D

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1. Dylan Strome C
"The key piece in the Patrik Laine trade, Strome is a franchise centerman the Wild hope to develop behind Kopitar. In a system full of talented wingers, Strome will be the glue that holds the core together."

2. Sonny Milano
"Considered somewhat undersized during his draft year, Milano has bulked up to a 6-0 200lbs forward with quick hands and a drive to be an NHLer. He has a solid year in the AHL and will be looking to improve upon that with more minutes. An solid audition in the NHL is not far off."

3. Jake DeBrusk
"While DeBrusk has a less impressive year than the rest of the prospects on this list, it still does not takeaway from his potential as a versatile goalscorer who can play in all positions, situations, and has the character to become a solid complimentary NHL goal-scorer. He has a good chance of becoming a fulltime AHLer next year."

4. Christian Fischer RW
"Fischer is a train on skates. Big, strong, and loves to drive the net. Questions was whether he could translate that in tougher competitions. Well, in his first year in the OHL, he was top 10 in scoring with an impressive 40 goals. He will graduate into the AHL after only one post-draft year."

5. Jayce Hawryluk RW
"The top WHL goalscorer, Hawryluk was acquired from the Boedker/Perron package. He plays a high energy and hard checking game. Even if his goalscoring potential does not become highend, he'll have a future as an energetic check with goalscoring ability."

6. Joe Hicketts
"The second key piece in the Boedker/Perron trade, Hicketts was the WHL defenseman of the year and looks to be a Spurgeon-like defenseman, just bulkier."

7. Kevin Labanc RW
"An overager in the HFNHL draft, Labanc was selected in the 4th round and has not looked back. He was the OHL scoring leader and will become pro this season."

8. Libor Hajek D
"Surprised still available at 50; a smooth skating defensive-minded defenseman"

9. Joakim Ryan D
"An underrated puckmoving defenseman. Put up good points as a young AHL defenseman."

10. Matthew Cairns
"Top performer at the NHL combine, OJHL Top Prospect."

11. Elvis Merzlikins G
"Top goalie in the men's Swiss league (NLA). Big and mobile. Questions when he will come over to North America."

12. Devon Toews D
"Underrated puckmoving defenseman. Top defenseman on an impressive Quinnipiac college team."

13. Dan O'Regan
"Proved he could produce without Jack Eichel. Shifty undersized forward going to the AHL."

14. Karel Vejmelka
"Big, righty, mobile. Great numbers in the Czech leagues."

15. Dysin Mayo D
"Quiet jack-of-all-trades type of defenseman. Leader for the Edmonton Oil Kings."

16. Matt Spencer D
"Reliable, good-sized defensive defenseman."

17. Michael Downing D
"Physical, defensive defenseman."

18. Anthony Cirelli C
"Character all-round centerman"

19. Marcus Pettersson D
"High upside two-way defenseman. Desperately needs to bulk up."

20. Gustav Bouramann D
"Puckmoving defenseman."

 

[Ohio Jones]

Will be interesting to compare Strome to Dubois, see which becomes the better NHL centre. My money's on Strome.

 

[Circulartheory]

Will be interesting to compare Strome to Dubois, see which becomes the better NHL centre. My money's on Strome.

I was actually considering moving down to grab Dubois and grabbing a few extra picks during the draft. But getting Namestnikov really won me over (added to Strome).

 

[Canuck09]

I was actually considering moving down to grab Dubois and grabbing a few extra picks during the draft. But getting Namestnikov really won me over (added to Strome).

You're welcome.

It will be a very interesting season for Namestnikov. He clearly showed he belonged and could play up the lineup last season but is in an awkward spot on that deep Tampa team as it relates to the expansion draft. Does he end up exposed and potentially in a clear top 6 role for Vegas or does he play so well for Tampa he forces them to expose someone else? I'm thinking he's exposed, and hopefully for his sake, selected so he can get a shot at some real minutes.

 

[Circulartheory]

The Wild are actively add a youngish #4 defenseman (<26 years old).

 

[Circulartheory]

On a trip to discover the unseen Asian hockey talent, the screen of my iPhone fell off so if you need to contact me, send me an e-mail.

I'm looking for a 26 or younger #4 defenseman. May not trade for the best player but for the best value. Depends.

On that note: Android or iPhone?

 

[Circulartheory]

2016-17 Season Wild Preview

The Minnesota Wild made significant strides in adding a new flux of young talent to the depth charts. Dylan Strome, Sonny Milano, Jake DeBrusk, Christian Fischer, Viktor Arvidsson, and Kevin Labanc are top six offensive forwards who are so close to making an impact. However, they still need another year or two to blossom, meaning this is another year where GM Chan needed to fill in the gaps left by David Perron, Mikkel Boedker, and Zach Bogosian with bargain acquisitions under a tight budget.

But tanking is not an option.

So once again, the Wild look to compensate their lack of star power with depth scoring and grittiness. Since last years trade deadline, the new players give the Wild tons of line options, lines that will be tested out during preseason - Brandon Pirri, Vladislav Namestnikov, Shawn Matthias, Mikhail Grabovski, Shayne Gostisbehere, Brenden Dillon, Tom Gilbert.

Final lines MIGHT look like:

Brandon Pirri - Anze Kopitar - Mikail Granlund
Benoit Pouliot - Vladislav Namestnikov - Brian Gionta
Shawn Matthias - Antoine Vermette - Mikhail Grabovski
Tommy Wingels - Luke Glendening - Patrick Kaleta

Jonas Brodin - Shayne Gostisbehere
Brenden Dillon - Nate Schmidt
Adam Pardy - Tom Gilbert

Jaroslav Halak
Scott Darling

 

[Circulartheory]

The Wild is in a constant state of retooling and moving pieces around. So there are several things we are looking to do:

Brandon Pirri for a middle-aged two-way forward

Pirri is doing well in the NHL and his SC rating was supposed to be a nice fit with Kopitar-Granlund. He hasn't clicked HFNHL statwise as of yet but with Shawn Mattias putting up shots on the 3rd line, we want to try Mattias on the 1st line but can't rely on Pirri on a 3rd line with Grabovski. They don't pair well together.

So we are looking to make a lateral-ish move with a team willing to try Pirri as a complimentary scoring forward. Also has a good contract. Basically just shifting priorities.

A Wild winger prospect for a good defenseman prospect/young NHL player

With Arvidsson, Labanc, Kase, and Vermin doing well in their respective roles in the NHL and Milano and Debrusk doing well in the AHL, we may want to move one of them to fix other holes like on our defense.

Not in any state to move anyone immediately and could just wait it out, but just some ideas of what I'm currently thinking.