Management Dean Evason - Fired!

[Wabit]

You might not have been here during that era. When he and his wife got divorced, she accused him of cheating, there was a lot of talk here about it. I didn't get too into it myself so I don't remember what was talked about or the conclusion anyone came to, but it was definitely a topic for a minute.

Sounds like it was before my time around here.

Marriages fail, couples break up, that's just life. As long as nothing like abuse happened I'm leaving that alone as none of my business.

 

[Wasted Talent]

Sounds like it was before my time around here.

Marriages fail, couples break up, that's just life. As long as nothing like abuse happened I'm leaving that alone as none of my business.

It was like a year or two ago, it's not that old news.

 

[Wabit]

It was like a year or two ago, it's not that old news.

Last year Koivu retired. The year before that he was barely a NHL player and MN was trying to trade him. That's what I remember about Koivu in the last 2 years.

 

[BagHead]

Not even two years ago. It appears news of it first started popping up in February of 2020. Mikko filed for divorce, then his wife made it public that he had been cheating on her for some time. I lost a bit of respect for Koivu at that time, but respect can be earned back. Everyone deserves a second chance because everyone makes mistakes. I hope he's learned his lesson.

 

[GuerinUp]

I’m not sure how far this team can really go without a top tier defence pair or that many AHL ers. . I do know that a two goal lead to anyone was almost insurmountable before. The team first attitude was absent when two aging players ran the team.

brodin and dumba have been a top pair for years, just have been stuck behind suter

 

[MuckOG]

Dude... Angry Koivu was the best. Kind of off topic, but I hope he ends up somewhere on management within the org...

He was seen watching training camp with the rest of the Wild's brass this season. Haven't heard what what role they want him to fill, or if they even want him at all.

 

[GuerinUp]

He was seen watching training camp with the rest of the Wild's brass this season. Haven't heard what what role they want him to fill, or if they even want him at all.

stick boy?

 

[63firebird]

brodin and dumba have been a top pair for years, just have been stuck behind suter

Totally agree. I said it wrong. My bad. Brodin is incredible player. Can’t say enough about what he does. Deceptively fast. Yes. So glad to see the new team approach finally instead of the Parise/Suter diva show.
What I meant is Merrill is not going to cut it. Third defensive pair needs to be better. When Kap and Fiala start scoring more that end should be good. Not sure about Addison or Spurgeon when the games get physical It seemed like Spurgeon was a great offensive threat but when things get tight in the Wild end he gets pushed around pretty easy.

 

[57special]

stick boy?

Face off, defense, and scowling coach. I can see JEE and Sturm lapping it up.

 

[57special]

Totally agree. I said it wrong. My bad. Brodin is incredible player. Can’t say enough about what he does. Deceptively fast. Yes. So glad to see the new team approach finally instead of the Parise/Suter diva show.
What I meant is Merrill is not going to cut it. Third defensive pair needs to be better. When Kap and Fiala start scoring more that end should be good. Not sure about Addison or Spurgeon when the games get physical It seemed like Spurgeon was a great offensive threat but when things get tight in the Wild end he gets pushed around pretty easy.

Merrill is f***ing awful...atrocious. I'd get his presence if he used his size in board battles or knocking people around in front of the net, but he doesn't do any of that. I also don't think that Goligoski is all that...he's ok, but he sure isn't fast, strong, or much of anything out there. Not bad, though.

 

[2Pair]

Merrill is f***ing awful...atrocious. I'd get his presence if he used his size in board battles or knocking people around in front of the net, but he doesn't do any of that. I also don't think that Goligoski is all that...he's ok, but he sure isn't fast, strong, or much of anything out there. Not bad, though.

Merrill has been better than Goligoski. He's been much better than you should reasonably expect from a defenseman making what Merrill is paid

 

[GuerinUp]

ya, i dont think merrill has been BAD (hes not skoula ), hes been just about as good as youd expect a bottom pair player to be. The only reason hes probably stood out a little is because kulikov has been so great so the contrast is larger.

 

[63firebird]

Merrill has been better than Goligoski. He's been much better than you should reasonably expect from a defenseman making what Merrill is paid

Really?
I think Goligoskis assignments have been a bit tougher than Merrill’s so it would appear that way.
I could be wrong.
I know it’s barely November but you can bet a team like the Islanders will be finishing their checks a lot more than last night later in the season.
Whatever Merrill or a bottom D is paid ,I’m sure it’s not much, but he’s going to have to be a lot more physical eventually. I guess you get what you pay for and if you have to live with huge buyouts we need to embrace these AHLers and economy D and hope for the best.

 

[2Pair]

Really?
I think Goligoskis assignments have been a bit tougher than Merrill’s so it would appear that way.
I could be wrong.
I know it’s barely November but you can bet a team like the Islanders will be finishing their checks a lot more than last night later in the season.
Whatever Merrill or a bottom D is paid ,I’m sure it’s not much, but he’s going to have to be a lot more physical eventually. I guess you get what you pay for and if you have to live with huge buyouts we need to embrace these AHLers and economy D and hope for the best.

Merrill and Kulikov have been getting more ice-time at 5 x 5 than Spurgeon and Goligoski. The coaches have also chased the tougher matchups with Brodin/Dumba a lot more than they ever did in past years.

 

[TaLoN]

I'm liking what Dean has done this year... but damn, that PP... Just get Dumba on the top unit please!

 

[16thOverallSaveUs]

Deano thinks Spurgeon is prime Erik Karlsson

 

[Webster]

Coach is doing well, and they're on top of the division. Beating a team like Tampa, and without Spurgeon and Zuccarello, shows they're a solid playoff team.
Fans should enjoy this

 

[AKL]

Spurgeon, and especially Zuccarello, just aren't very important pieces to this roster. You can't trade Spurgeon, but Zuccarello should be traded this summer to fit under the cap and get some extra picks for the draft. Not to mention he'll be 35 next season. He's just too old for this core where they're heading. The team doesn't miss a beat without him.

Even Kaprizov's production goes up without Zuccarello. 1.16 p/gp without him, only 1.08 p/gp with him.

 

[Webster]

Zuccarello is an important part of this team, not just on the ice, but also in the room. Certainly worth his contract. And he's one of those character guys who Guerin loves, so I'm pretty sure they have no plans to trade him.

 

[63firebird]

I see positive steps by Evason but it sure seems like a lot of puck luck going our way. 4 posts by Jersey. Bjugstad putting the puck in a tiny window yesterday. Hartman +16!
Can this be sustained?

 

[Bazeek]

I see positive steps by Evason but it sure seems like a lot of puck luck going our way. 4 posts by Jersey. Bjugstad putting the puck in a tiny window yesterday. Hartman +16!
Can this be sustained?

The flipside of this is that Fiala's shooting percentage is way low, Kaprizov had a sluggish start (albeit while still accumulating points), they've been playing through a few key injuries, the powerplay's been kind of a joke and goaltending hasn't been all that great either. If you put stock in the shot-quality metrics like xGF% there's nothing that looks all that unsustainable - they're controlling games pretty well and making their own luck. And most of the problems above are fixable.

Goaltending's still the one that worries me because they really live and die by Talbot, but it seems like he's been better recently, too. The big issue for the coaches right now is obviously the powerplay, but they've got the personnel for it.

 

[DeagleJenkins]

The flipside of this is that Fiala's shooting percentage is way low, Kaprizov had a sluggish start (albeit while still accumulating points), they've been playing through a few key injuries, the powerplay's been kind of a joke and goaltending hasn't been all that great either. If you put stock in the shot-quality metrics like xGF% there's nothing that looks all that unsustainable - they're controlling games pretty well and making their own luck. And most of the problems above are fixable.

Goaltending's still the one that worries me because they really live and die by Talbot, but it seems like he's been better recently, too. The big issue for the coaches right now is obviously the powerplay, but they've got the personnel for it.

is it woods mcclean or henderson running the pp? is Bob Woods the one that BB brought in as the PP coach in years past?

 

[TaLoN]

Any thoughts on Evason since the All Star break?

 

[Wabit]

Any thoughts on Evason since the All Star break?

No change in my opinion of his abilities. Then again, I've had a rather low opinion of him since the VAN Playin series a couple years ago.

 

[kfan22]

I think Bruno wins coach of the year this year but does Dean finish runner up??