He only played 33 games in MN, he was acquired from Colorado for a UFA 4th line center in Sturm. Jost played on every line on the team, including multiple games with Kaprizov. He was not a cheap contract, and he did not outperform a single one of the players on our team currently. That isn't to say that he is a useless player, but he was not at all a priority for this organization, he was pretty much given an off season to get his game together, came in, didn't make the most of it, and lost his spot to Sam Steel and called up AHLers that fit the team more.
I don't know why MN takes any heat for Jost, he was developed entirely by Colorado and only traded as a reclamation salary move. He came in, gave his best, with the organization supporting him too, and he just didn't perform in a meaningful way. Happy he found a new home, and has been able to turn his play around with Buffalo, but he wasn't suited to Colorado or MN styles of play, sometimes that is just how it goes. Rem Pitlick was also waived by the Wild last year (after Nashville developed him and then waived him) and brought positive play to MTL by playing more structured than the rest of their team. MN guys generally excel in that aspect as a requirement, its not surprising that a new environment can be motivating. Neither one were objectively good defensive players when they came to us, and showed improvement, but remaining flaws in their games that eventually led to their waivings.
Greenway is very different from Jost, as Greenway was actually one of our draft picks. I think most MN fans here will argue that previous years of Greenway have been good, and we hope he can return to that form. I am just not sure what your expectations are though, he has never been a high tier scorer, his playmaking is ok and he has room to improve that, but he needs to play with finishers if you expect any production. MN doesn't have many finishers, but we have lots of guys that can play physical and possession games, while bringing the same defensive skills that Greenway did, he should fit in better long term with Buffalo.
Greenway was unarguably bad this year for the Wild and hadn't shown any kind of additional potential in any of the playoff runs, there are only so many roster spots, and this is a team with expectations of winning, at least in management's eyes. It is easy to see why they moved on, and all the best to get the player in a better position in the long run, Guerin has had multiple quotes where he wants his trades to feel like all parties win. Marcus Johannson has come in and already looked significantly more impactful to this current team than Greenway had, the Wild feel that they are better for this season with the team that they have now.
