Will the Wild make the Playoffs?

[kfan22]

I hope not. This team is not good enough for playoff hockey.

Neither were the 91 North Stars who were 2 games away from a Cup

 

[57special]

Neither were the 91 North Stars who were 2 games away from a Cup

YUP. Once you get in, who knows? All it takes is a hot goalie and a bit of inspiration. With the possibility of Hedman being out for the season, I don't see a dominant team out there. I mean, Vegas?

I've really not liked how the Wild have been playing this year in general, but it's not outside the realm of possibility that they could make some noise in the playoffs with just the players they have.

 

[BigT2002]

YUP. Once you get in, who knows? All it takes is a hot goalie and a bit of inspiration. With the possibility of Hedman being out for the season, I don't see a dominant team out there. I mean, Vegas?

I've really not liked how the Wild have been playing this year in general, but it's not outside the realm of possibility that they could make some noise in the playoffs with just the players they have.

They've gotta stay healthy for that though. And some of their big names need to start doing more than going through the motions. Playoffs are a different story every year...they have to find that extra gear. They sure as hell didn't find it last year.

 

[DANOZ28]

Neither were the 91 North Stars who were 2 games away from a Cup

well they had a little talent on that team. Minnesota North Stars 1990-91 roster and scoring statistics at hockeydb.com

 

[Saga of the Elk]

well they had a little talent on that team. Minnesota North Stars 1990-91 roster and scoring statistics at hockeydb.com

Absolutely a ton of talent with first-rounders galore. It's growing hazy in my memory but I think Game 6 was closer to the true disparity between the teams. But the thing that really stands out is they had two guys (McRae and Churla) with 90 PIMs just in the playoffs, plus Mark Tinordi with 78, and on down the line. Jon Casey had 12? Just for comparison, Malkin led last year's champs with 53, almost twice the next guy's total. Different eras for sure.

 

[Dr Jan Itor]

They've gotta stay healthy for that though. And some of their big names need to start doing more than going through the motions. Playoffs are a different story every year...they have to find that extra gear. They sure as hell didn't find it last year.

A lack of finish can be a great equalizer. Blues were outplayed in 4 of the 5 games, IIRC.

 

[Saga of the Elk]

A lack of finish can be a great equalizer. Blues were outplayed in 4 of the 5 games, IIRC.

The GM thinks they didn't get to the net. Poor quality shots will never beat an NHL goalie on his game. The Wild are outskilled often, they were outwilled last spring. Marcus Foligno has to be a Conn Smythe candidate to change that script.

 

[Al Lagoon]

It has been good to see Granlund and Niederrieter picking corners. Wild must lead the league in shots into the crest of the goalie.

 

[NonsenseElimination]

YUP. Once you get in, who knows? All it takes is a hot goalie and a bit of inspiration. With the possibility of Hedman being out for the season, I don't see a dominant team out there. I mean, Vegas?

I've really not liked how the Wild have been playing this year in general, but it's not outside the realm of possibility that they could make some noise in the playoffs with just the players they have.

Well people have been saying this the past 3 or 4 years the Wild were in the playoffs. They never have a hot goalie and rarely play with much inspiration (once they are down 2 or 3 games, maybe). This "leadership" core of Suter, Parise, and Koivu will never win more than one series in the playoffs.

 

[57special]

Would you rather not make the playoffs?

 

[Dr Jan Itor]

This team isn’t going to make the playoffs. To many locker room cliques and to inconsistent in efforts. Would like to see Dahlin in a Mild uniform next year. We need new ownership and GM. The issues with this club run deep.

I'd be interested in hearing about the specifics of these "cliques".

 

[IronRanger218er]

Koviu should give the C to Praise! Praise is a born leader in any industry. Koviu is passive not a captain! The assistant captains should belong to Niño and Spuge. We need a new GM to start a rebuild process that will take years cause of Praise and Suters contracts! The last true all-star Minnesota drafted was Mike Modano. Gabby came in a very distant 2nd!

 

[Dr Jan Itor]

I don't know who "Praise" is.

 

[2Pair]

Koviu should give the C to Praise! Praise is a born leader in any industry. Koviu is passive not a captain! The assistant captains should belong to Niño and Spuge. We need a new GM to start a rebuild process that will take years cause of Praise and Suters contracts! The last true all-star Minnesota drafted was Mike Modano. Gabby came in a very distant 2nd!

How is Parise a leader?

 

[BagHead]

To start, the word "core" is problematic, since every team that wins adds and subtracts pieces to make it happen. But putting aside the decades of history that include only six teams, the more recent history of the Red Wings comes to mind. They built a team around Steve Yzerman, went to the playoffs from 1991 on and didn't win the Cup until 1997.

I mean this group of Wild players is a shadow of the 1997 Red Wings but there are some similarities. Totally agree on your skepticism though: even if they qualify (should but not guaranteed) they're not likely to get out of the West, much less beat a Washington or Tampa Bay, the pipeline sucks relative to the rest of the league, and they'll be a cap team again with the same "core" next season which limits improvements. Not only is the group of Koivu, Suter, Parise, Staal, Dubnyk getting old and sometimes looking it, Nino, Coyle, Zucker and Granlund are peaking.

Fletch is a creative guy, but I think he's comfortable with another kick at the can with this basic group. We'll see if he gets the chance.

I feel like comfortable or not,it'll look like he's comfortable because it's hard to make a move with such little cap space. And make no mistake, it's on him for how he decided to spend that money, but putting that aside for a moment, how many moves are there out there that are improvements/player swaps that make sense in both skill level and cap hit? I won't pretend I know what it's like to be a GM, but I have to imagine he's not just sitting on his hands all the time. He may not want to be inactive, but there just may be no deals available at the moment. I think it's a real shame that our "veterans" and "kids" were so far apart in age. I'd love to see what such a group could do if the age gap were even just a year or two smaller.

Koivu has looked old almost all year....Parise for the past 3.

I don't mean to contradict you here, because I've observed something similar, but putting the eye test aside, have you read Derek Peterson's latest article at The Athletic? Koivu is putting up numbers similar to or better than last season's, but the Zucker-Koivu-Granlund line has just been maligned and in a rut all season. Seems like 2/3 of it is clicking at a time, but it needs all of them working their magic at the same time to put up numbers like they did last year. I don't know, it's an interesting read, given that it goes against my eye test, partially.

 

[57special]

I actually was contradicting myself from an observation I had a couple of weeks ago, namely, that Koivu looks pretty similar to last year, but just isn't scoring. Someone, i think it was Walz, commented that it's a very fine line between failure and success for the vast majority of players in the NHL. A guy like Crosby, with his vast amount of talent, can slip a bit and still be very effective. A guy like Walz (or say, Ennis)loses a step and he is an AHL'er. I think Koivu might've gotten a tad slower, causing him to reach a bit more, and not get to shooting spots quick enough. That, together with the new emphasis on calling hooking and slashing penalties that are often the result of slow feet have had Mikko take more penalties.

Maybe both things I said are right. Koivu looks similar to last year, but he does look old this year....but guess what, he looked old last year! But he still produced. This year he isn't.

Part of me wishes that the Wild didn't re-up him, allowing the team to move on, but another part realizes that while Koivu has his flaws, he is still a good player, and likely better than anyone else we are likely to get, once you add in intangibles. I get as frustrated as anyone else with the team's inability to get over the hump in the playoffs, but getting rid of Koivu without a replacement strikes me as impulsive and wrong headed. He is a decent 2C as is, with lower 1C ability on his good days. I think his team mates appreciate him, and I think he will be a great mentor/example for EK, as he has been for Grandstrom.

As long as BB understands the limitations of his game(declining speed)and adjusts his TOI accordingly (little or no 3v3, having quicker players such as Zucker and Granlund on his line)then he should be an asset to the team even into his waning years. What's the worst that can happen? Ek surpasses him as a C, and MK becomes a kick ass 3C? Not the worst.

The Parise situation, on the other hand...yikes. Don't see any way to polish that turd. Hopefully we can get another two years or so of top 6 play out of him. If he can do something in this year's playoffs (unlike last year's) it'd be great.

 

[Nharris31]

Well people have been saying this the past 3 or 4 years the Wild were in the playoffs. They never have a hot goalie and rarely play with much inspiration (once they are down 2 or 3 games, maybe). This "leadership" core of Suter, Parise, and Koivu will never win more than one series in the playoffs.

How long did it take the Sharks to get to the Cup Final? How long did it take the Blues to make WCF? When was the last time the Capitals made the ECF?

 

[NonsenseElimination]

How long did it take the Sharks to get to the Cup Final? How long did it take the Blues to make WCF? When was the last time the Capitals made the ECF?

There's a quantitative difference between a team led by Pavelski, Thornton, and Burns and a team led by Koivu, Suter, and Parise. The former types of guys are built for the playoffs.

 

[Dr Jan Itor]

There's a quantitative difference between a team led by Pavelski, Thornton, and Burns and a team led by Koivu, Suter, and Parise. The former types of guys are built for the playoffs.

Do you remember the narrative on Thornton for his entire career up until their run?

 

[Nharris31]

There's a quantitative difference between a team led by Pavelski, Thornton, and Burns and a team led by Koivu, Suter, and Parise. The former types of guys are built for the playoffs.

Yet the same results no cups for any of them.

 

[2Pair]

There's a quantitative difference between a team led by Pavelski, Thornton, and Burns and a team led by Koivu, Suter, and Parise. The former types of guys are built for the playoffs.

Not sure if you're serious? Pavelski and Burns are built for the PP, nothing more.

 

[Wabit]

5 teams have owned the Cup for the last decade. Those 5 teams (Bos, Chi, Det, LA, and Pit) have 13 combined Finals appearances over the last 10 years.

I'll take making the Playoffs and having a punchers chance, over a year of bad/tanking hockey in the race to the bottom for an 18% chance to pick 1st oa.

 

[NonsenseElimination]

Not sure if you're serious? Pavelski and Burns are built for the PP, nothing more.

Why would I not be serious? I know you're a Koivu apologist but no rational person would take him over Pavelski. Pavelski has 40 less games played in his career but he has 20 more career points. He is a career +105 compared to Koivu's +59. Actually all the stats favor Pavelski except assists.

 

[2Pair]

Why would I not be serious? I know you're a Koivu apologist but no rational person would take him over Pavelski. Pavelski has 40 less games played in his career but he has 20 more career points. He is a career +105 compared to Koivu's +59. Actually all the stats favor Pavelski except assists.

Now run the same numbers for Pavelski and Vanek and then ask yourself what those numbers have to with "being built for the playoffs." After you're done doing that, maybe ask yourself why you're comparing a winger that is terrible defensively to one of the best defensive centers in the world. Then ask yourself why you would use points to make that comparison.

 

[NonsenseElimination]

Now run the same numbers for Pavelski and Vanek and then ask yourself what those numbers have to with "being built for the playoffs." After you're done doing that, maybe ask yourself why you're comparing a winger that is terrible defensively to one of the best defensive centers in the world. Then ask yourself why you would use points to make that comparison.

I'm comparing the captains contributions to their respective teams. Make it Thornton if you demand a center. Amusing that one of the "best defensive centers in the world" has a lower +/- than that "terrible" defensive winger.