Darcy Kuemper

[Qubax]

Thoughts on him as a prospect?

Obviously being behind Backstrom, Harding, Hackett is no easy task. But he seems like a great young goalie nonetheless...

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[JMcLeaf]

I haven't seen him play, but I know he was last years CHL goalie of the year, and has put up great numbers at every level so he's obviously doing something right. Wild fans must be pretty pumped to have him and Hackett.

 

[Haite]

I haven't seen him play, but I know he was last years CHL goalie of the year, and has put up great numbers at every level so he's obviously doing something right. Wild fans must be pretty pumped to have him and Hackett.

And Johan Gustafsson too. I, for one, am very excited.

 

[Torts]

with the volatility that comes with the position, im sure he has a chance if he were impress at the ECHL/AHL level and have good training camps.

Nothing is better than a couple developing years in the minors for goalies in my opinion.

 

[R S]

He needs major seasoning. Very inconsistent tendy. When he's on, he's amazing though.

 

[inthewings]

Bumping this, as the kid continues to perform.

He's now won 3 consecutive starts (taken the starting job from Hackett?) and now has a 0.929 SV% with 3 shutouts in 13 games.

 

[tyratoku]

Bumping this, as the kid continues to perform.

He's now won 3 consecutive starts (taken the starting job from Hackett?) and now has a 0.929 SV% with 3 shutouts in 13 games.

It's also good to note that the first of those 3 consecutive starts was a game that broke something like a 5-6 game losing streak, if not more. I can't really remember

Not sure if he's taken the starting job from Hackett yet, but Matt hasn't been doing all that hot this season. I'd imagine that if Darcy keeps his play up, he might just nab it.

 

[ThatGuy22]

It's also good to note that the first of those 3 consecutive starts was a game that broke something like a 5-6 game losing streak, if not more. I can't really remember

Not sure if he's taken the starting job from Hackett yet, but Matt hasn't been doing all that hot this season. I'd imagine that if Darcy keeps his play up, he might just nab it.

He's been my favored goalie between him and Hackett since last year. Only advantage Hackett has is that he arrived in the AHL a year sooner and was the presumptive starter.

 

[JMcLeaf]

1st NHL start tonight

 

[inthewings]

1st NHL start tonight

It's crazy that he seems to have actually passed Hackett on the depth chart. Really looking forward to seeing how he does.

 

[Bourdon]

It's crazy that he seems to have actually passed Hackett on the depth chart. Really looking forward to seeing how he does.

Well, it's tough to equate better numbers to a better future outlook. There's a lot that goes into evaluating goaltending talent. The AHL is a lot less structured, and bigger goaltenders have historically had more success at that level and subsequently had trouble translating their game. Things like technique, agility, hockey vision, rebound control, mental strength, etc. are very important to a goaltender's success at the NHL level.

I would like to see what Kuemper's strengths and weaknesses are before I'd make a snap judgment like that. From the looks of it, Hackett hasn't had the best season so far, but neither did Holtby last year in the AHL. I personally was impressed with how good Hackett was in his stint with the Wild last year...explosive lateral movement, plays tight to the body and leaves few holes, very calm demeanor, but rebound control could have been better.

 

[tomgilbertfan]

Hack seems to be struggling this year, and Kuemper has seized his opportunity to be the starter in Houston the last few weeks.
I don't know which one has a better shot at being the starter in the future in MN, all i know is I love that we have those two battling it out in the AHL, with Gustafsson in Sweden.

 

[SidGenoMario]

I played either hockey or lacrosse with him

 

[Victorious Secret]

It's crazy that he seems to have actually passed Hackett on the depth chart. Really looking forward to seeing how he does.

STATS

Hard not to when he has a .938 save percentage. He has been unreal the last month.

 

[IHaveNoCreativity]

He worked hard for this, from the ECHL to the NHL.

 

[Dampland]

He worked hard for this, from the ECHL to the NHL.

He was only sent to the ECHL last year, because Wild management wanted both Hackett and Kuemper to play a lot of games, so only option was sending one of them to ECHL team.

 

[funky]

was awesome in his NHL debut. 2 goals against, 1 he had no chance on. 28 saves against the Cunucks is a great day for any goaltender.

 

[Circulartheory]

Luckily he wasn't tested too much so good way to break Kuemper into the NHL: against a strong team in front of a big crowd without too many dangerous shots.

 

[Street Hawk]

Thoughts on him as a prospect?

Obviously being behind Backstrom, Harding, Hackett is no easy task. But he seems like a great young goalie nonetheless...

Backstrom is a UFA at season's end with a $6 million cap hit. May or may not return.

Harding, wasn't he diagnosed with MS last year? Best of luck to him on his battle.

If he was in the CHL last year, he's still got another year or 2 in the AHL to develop his game. Time will tell whether Backstrom is still in the picture or not.