Prospect Info: Kirill Kaprizov II: (LW) - CSKA Moscow - 135th Overall, 2015

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Bazeek

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Kaprizov is a good kid. After reading that interview, it appears he was expecting a just basic level of attentiveness, communication and consideration from the Wild, as anybody would from a prospective future employer. Players aren't pieces of meat.

The “I don't care who you are, get over here, shut up and show us what you can do” attitude won't get you very far in any line of business.
This misrepresents the Wild's actions in all this pretty badly.
 

Al Lagoon

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He was drafted in the fifth frickin round.

The Wild respected him by picking him - the other teams?

Yes, he couldn't make prospect camp because of pro schedule there.

Yes, the Russians kept him apart from Wild contact.

CF has no blame here.
 

2Pair

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If they were communicating through Kaprizov's registered NA agent and were being told that he'd come over when his current KHL contract expired, I don't see why they should have assumed that they were doing anything wrong. It sounds like the faulty assumption was that Mike Liut was a good channel for them to work through. For one reason or another, he wasn't.

At this point though, yeah, they can't afford to be passive about it.
I think that is fair to say, and it would help to explain the mistakes that Fletcher has made. Still doesn't excuse them though, and CF needs to get his shit together soon.
 

2Pair

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He was drafted in the fifth frickin round.

The Wild respected him by picking him - the other teams?

Yes, he couldn't make prospect camp because of pro schedule there.

Yes, the Russians kept him apart from Wild contact.

CF has no blame here.
what do you think Fletcher's job is?
 

Caser

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The issue here is also that we don't know how the communication was going on during those two years. I mean, all those talks about being blocked at the WJC - ok, I believe those, but what were they doing all the other time?
 

Zine

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He was drafted in the fifth frickin round.

The Wild respected him by picking him - the other teams?

Yes, he couldn't make prospect camp because of pro schedule there.

Yes, the Russians kept him apart from Wild contact.

CF has no blame here.

He was prevented from talking to the Wild during the WJC only. It was a team rule for everybody. And rightly so. The WJC is not the place to talk to future employers, it's the place to give 100% of yourself to winning gold.

Minnesota was free to contact him anytime outside of that.
 
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Bazeek

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He was prevented from talking to the Wild during the WJC only. It was a team rule for everybody. And rightly so. The WJC is not for talking to future employers, it's a time to give 100% of yourself to winning gold.

Minnesota was free to contact him anytime outside of that.
The crux of the problem seems to be that, as far as the Wild knew, they were in contact with him via his agent. In hindsight they were wrong, but it doesn't mean they were being dismissive of him.
 

Zine

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The crux of the problem seems to be that, as far as the Wild knew, they were in contact with him via his agent. In hindsight they were wrong, but it doesn't mean they were being dismissive of him.

I dunno. Did the Wild GM say he was in regular contact with Kaprizov's agent all these years, at least beyond the once a year invitation to prospect camp?:dunno:
 

Bazeek

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I dunno. Did the Wild GM say he was in regular contact with Kaprizov's agent all these years, at least beyond the once a year invitation to prospect camp?:dunno:
I don't think there's a direct quote about that specific point, but it's probably fair to assume that they've handled Kaprizov the same way they've handled their other blue-chip international prospects. Since they've typically had good relationships with those prospects, I can see why they'd assume it'd be okay to handle Kaprizov in the same way.

Again, it seems like the problem was the breakdown at the middle-man level rather than unreasonable expectations on Kaprizov's part or poor behavior on the Wild's part. It's a bad outcome that Fletcher now has to work to fix.
 

2Pair

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The crux of the problem seems to be that, as far as the Wild knew, they were in contact with him via his agent. In hindsight they were wrong, but it doesn't mean they were being dismissive of him.
This is probably the biggest part of the story, and most likely the part that we will never know how it went down.
 

Caser

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Googled a bit and found that Kaprizov told back in January 2017, that he finally started to get calls from the Wild and it wasn't like that before the WJC (Капризов: из «Миннесоты» не звонят каждый день, общались только после МЧМ -link for those, who can read Russian).

I wish someone (Russo or anyone) would ask Fletcher what is the current situation with Svetlakov (are there any contacts etc.) - it would shred some light on management's behaviour in situations like that.
 

Wild11MN

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Yeah the whole question mark here is the agent. How much contact was there with the agent, and is Kaprizov not considering that communication as contact with himself? We may never know the answer.
 

Bazeek

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Googled a bit and found that Kaprizov told back in January 2017, that he finally started to get calls from the Wild and it wasn't like that before the WJC (Капризов: из «Миннесоты» не звонят каждый день, общались только после МЧМ -link for those, who can read Russian).

I wish someone (Russo or anyone) would ask Fletcher what is the current situation with Svetlakov (are there any contacts etc.) - it would shred some light on management's behaviour in situations like that.
The only thing that's been reported is that they've hired their first Russian scout, potentially in the hopes of having more ways to establish communication with Russian prospects. Other than that it seems like Fletcher's been pretty tight-lipped on the matter for fear of something getting lost in translation. I don't particularly blame him for that.

I admit I'm curious about Svetlakov as well, though. He seems to be doing pretty well on his own merits.
 
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Wabit

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Where does everyone think Kaprizov would have been in the MN lineup next season?

When all of this was happening Parise was thought to be healthy. Granny and Nino were got their contracts. Coyle had a few years left on his contract. Zucker was going ot be due a new contract after this season. Foligno and Ennis were hanging around somewhere. JEE and Kunin were starting their first NA pro hockey year.

That is a lot of wings to be competing for ice time with. There really isn't much in the way of NHL roster spots open for at least a couple of years. There is a decent chance he would have started out in Iowa next season.

ELC contracts are pretty standard: $92k signing bonus + $70k AHL salary could have been the pay for the season. It's a decent amount of money, but he's getting 10x (not sure what his contract is, just a guess) that much in the KHL.

If he was a buddy of mine, my advice would have been to do exactly what he did. Make some money in the KHL, work on your skills, then go to the NHL in a few years.
 

2Pair

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Where does everyone think Kaprizov would have been in the MN lineup next season?

When all of this was happening Parise was thought to be healthy. Granny and Nino were got their contracts. Coyle had a few years left on his contract. Zucker was going ot be due a new contract after this season. Foligno and Ennis were hanging around somewhere. JEE and Kunin were starting their first NA pro hockey year.

That is a lot of wings to be competing for ice time with. There really isn't much in the way of NHL roster spots open for at least a couple of years. There is a decent chance he would have started out in Iowa next season.

ELC contracts are pretty standard: $92k signing bonus + $70k AHL salary could have been the pay for the season. It's a decent amount of money, but he's getting 10x (not sure what his contract is, just a guess) that much in the KHL.

If he was a buddy of mine, my advice would have been to do exactly what he did. Make some money in the KHL, work on your skills, then go to the NHL in a few years.
Not even sure if you're serious with some of these questions?

Kaprizov was making less than he would've made in the AHL before he signed his extension. From what I have heard, his new extension is worth slightly more than an ELC deal. Staying in Russia is costing him money, but not a serious amount. It seems possible if not likely at this point that Kaprizov was holding out on signing an extension in Russia, waiting to see what the Wild would do. They never showed up.
 

Bazeek

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Where does everyone think Kaprizov would have been in the MN lineup next season?

When all of this was happening Parise was thought to be healthy. Granny and Nino were got their contracts. Coyle had a few years left on his contract. Zucker was going ot be due a new contract after this season. Foligno and Ennis were hanging around somewhere. JEE and Kunin were starting their first NA pro hockey year.

That is a lot of wings to be competing for ice time with. There really isn't much in the way of NHL roster spots open for at least a couple of years. There is a decent chance he would have started out in Iowa next season.

ELC contracts are pretty standard: $92k signing bonus + $70k AHL salary could have been the pay for the season. It's a decent amount of money, but he's getting 10x (not sure what his contract is, just a guess) that much in the KHL.

If he was a buddy of mine, my advice would have been to do exactly what he did. Make some money in the KHL, work on your skills, then go to the NHL in a few years.
Fletcher had already stated that he'd have a spot on the Wild. Whether or not that was well-communicated to Kaprizov himself is up in the air along with everything else, but it doesn't sound like there was any question about it on the Wild's end.

Still, the point about competition is fair. With a healthy Parise and Coyle not playing center, this team has a lot of wings.
 

Fantomas

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Laughing my ass off at any suggestion that Kaprizov has been unreachable by the Wild, as if he's in North Korea or something.

The Minny media have been so very defensive about this too, defending their organization about everything. This team was blocked once by coaches from speaking to Kaprizov during a tournament and they're spinning this like there's a full blockade.
 
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Bazeek

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Laughing my ass off at any suggestion that Kaprizov has been unreachable by the Wild, as if he's in North Korea or something.

The Minny media have been so very defensive about this too, defending their organization about everything. This team was blocked once by coaches from speaking to Kaprizov during a tournament and they're spinning this like there's a full blockade.
By "Minny media" I assume you mean Russo? As far as I know all he's said about Kaprizov being "unreachable" was in regards to the WJC.
 

2Pair

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By "Minny media" I assume you mean Russo? As far as I know all he's said about Kaprizov being "unreachable" was in regards to the WJC.
Every time this story comes up, Russo is pretty quick to talk about how "shady" or "sketchy" things are from the Russian side of it.
 

Bazeek

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Every time this story comes up, Russo is pretty quick to talk about how "shady" or "sketchy" things are from the Russian side of it.
That's fair. I've gotten the feeling that he's frustrated by his own lack of sources when it comes to this story, but he has been pretty prickly about it.
 
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Wabit

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Every time this story comes up, Russo is pretty quick to talk about how "shady" or "sketchy" things are from the Russian side of it.

Russo doesn't like it when he's not in the know. He gets a lot of stuff from the horses mouth (Wild) when it comes to his facts. So he's kind of toeing the company line. I don't think he has any inside sources inside the KHL.
 
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BagHead

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Where does everyone think Kaprizov would have been in the MN lineup next season?

When all of this was happening Parise was thought to be healthy. Granny and Nino were got their contracts. Coyle had a few years left on his contract. Zucker was going ot be due a new contract after this season. Foligno and Ennis were hanging around somewhere. JEE and Kunin were starting their first NA pro hockey year.

That is a lot of wings to be competing for ice time with. There really isn't much in the way of NHL roster spots open for at least a couple of years. There is a decent chance he would have started out in Iowa next season.

ELC contracts are pretty standard: $92k signing bonus + $70k AHL salary could have been the pay for the season. It's a decent amount of money, but he's getting 10x (not sure what his contract is, just a guess) that much in the KHL.

If he was a buddy of mine, my advice would have been to do exactly what he did. Make some money in the KHL, work on your skills, then go to the NHL in a few years.

I guess that depends. Can he play RW? If so, 3rd line RW, unless he were to win a higher spot, which seems possible, but unlikely.
Option 1: Kaprizov at RW

Nino - Staal - Coyle
Zucker - Koivu - Granlund
Parise - JEE - Kaprizov

With Coyle at center and JEE as a 4th liner or in Iowa, you can have Kaprizov at his natural LW position:
Option 2: Coyle at C, Kaprizov at LW

Zucker - Staal - Nino
Kaprizov - Koivu - Granlund
Parise - Coyle - someone

Doing that would actually make the Wild a lot deeper of a team. So I guess I'd see him on a 2nd or 3rd line role, even with all of our wings. Winnik's and Stewart's contracts are up after this season, so they're out, with Kaprizov in. Bumps Ennis and Foligno to the 4th line. Maybe you buy Ennis out, maybe not, I don't really know.
 

Wabit

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That's about where I am with the lineup. JEE and Kunin throw a wrench into things. I don't see them starting out in Iowa next year, and the 4th line seems like a waste for either/both of them.
 

Ban Hammered

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Every time this story comes up, Russo is pretty quick to talk about how "shady" or "sketchy" things are from the Russian side of it.

And if he's right? People can be mad that he is not here....but anyone saying it's all the Wild's fault are just plain wrong. I'll say it till im blue...if he wanted to be here so bad...he'd be here. He'd find a way to make it happen if his dream was to play in the NHL so bad.
 
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2Pair

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And if he's right? People can be mad that he is not here....but anyone saying it's all the Wild's fault are just plain wrong. I'll say it till im blue...if he wanted to be here so bad...he'd be here. He'd find a way to make it happen if his dream was to play in the NHL so bad.
I don't really disagree with any of this, but still stand by the point that Fletcher certainly has not done enough on his end. And, in this situation I would expect a GM to be out in front of all of this moreso than a teenager from a foreign country.

To me, this seems like ripping on the hot chick for turning you down, before you've even asked her out. She may certainly end up being a bitch, but you still have to give her the chance to prove it.
 
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