$37,000,000 later....

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Mar 1, 2002
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...the Minnesota Wild added 3 veteran fowards to their squad. GM Greg Dockus spent a lot of green, most likely overpaying some, for Martin Lapointe, Dallas Drake and Yanic Perreault, all getting 4 year deals. Lapointe scored the biggest payday, getting $13,600,000, Drake getting $12,100,000 and Perreault signing for $11,300,000.

"If we did overpay, we did so out of need. We badly needed some grit and veterans to go along with St Louis, Nagy, Sturm, Ribiero and our other skilled players. These guys know how to win, they will do the dirty work for us and that's something we really haven't had in the past. And that's been my responsibilty, so I addressed our needs. With Bergeron likely to join the team as well with possibly Lombardi too, we had to add someone who will show our kids what it takes. And Martin, and particularly Dallas play with their hearts on their sleeves. This is now a playoff team. Adding Lapoine, Drake, Perreault and Harmlik without giving up anyone on our roster really excites us in Minnesota."

In a related story, Wild ticket prices are expected to go up between 20-40% this year.
 
Mar 1, 2002
66,103
12,072
Minnesota fans want the playoffs. They also have the 2nd lowest ticket prices in the HFNHL. The reality of the HFNHL is that if you want to be successful, ticket prices must rise to equal the expense of signing the talent needed to win.

If the Wild can't make the playoffs this year, expect heads to roll.
 

Ohio Jones

Game on...
Feb 28, 2002
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Great White North
The West is definitely looking like it's going to be extremely competitive this season (as if lastyear's race wasn't exciting enough!). The top teams still appear to be the top teams - only the Kings and Red Wings appear likely candidates to slip a bit in the standings, and even then both still look on paper like playoff teams. Calgary will be in the hunt, assuming they can afford to match the offer sheets in front of Luongo and Kovalchuk. Columbus had a strong second half last year and took Detroit to seven games; they still look to be in the picture. And yes, Minnesota invested heavily to upgrade their talent base, so they look to be in the mix as well.

Someone's going to be very disappointed next March!
 
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