Minnesota Wild General Discussion - 2023-24

[Wabit]

We lost spurgeon for 66 games and brodin for 20 and were in the basement pretty much all year, lots of reasons for that other than injuries but it was pretty apparent early on the playoffs were a long shot right out of the gate. Just to expect to make them because you expected it, that didn't really work out did it?

The goalie play was terrible, while the team d-zone stats were good.

I've said for year that Spurgeon is meaningless to the team. So him being out was a bonus to me because it opened up cap space to be cable to callup and acquire players. The stats (once again) back up this assertion. Brodin missing games isn't anything new either.

They had basically the same lineup as the 103p team from last year. Faber replaced Spurgeon, Bogo replaced Dumba, and Rossi replaced Steel as the main roster moves; these are all lateral or better moves. Kap missed 8 less games, Brodin missed 2 less, Boldy missed 6 more, JEE missed 1 more, Foligno missed 10 more, Hartman missed 15 less, and Zucc missed 9 more. The injuries are pretty much a wash to me for year to year. The team even scored 9g more this year.

last year/this year (goalie comparison this year) 5v5 stats:
CA: 3757/3765
FA: 2720/2651
SA: 1971/1817
SCA:1744/1633
HDCA: 677/622
HDGA: 75/74
GA:139/163 (MAF 64/Gus 91)
xGA: 159/144 (MAF 65/Gus 74)
HDsv%: 84.85%/81.22% (MAF .835%/Gus .800%)
sv%: 92.95%/91.03 (MAF .920/Gus .903)

The PP scored 8 more goals this year, it also gave up 8 more goals
The PK was much worse, for sure.

Spurgeon might have helped a bit to make the PK a bit better? But he's an 8.4 GA/60 for his career average (those stats are a little wonkey on hockey ref currently) and MN as a team was sitting at 9.29 GA/60 and 8.96 xGA/60 this year on the PK. In his 60 min PK ToI this year he was 10ga/60. BoGo and Faber were both 9.2 GA/60 as the main RD PKers. Mermis was terrible d-man outlier on the PK this year.

 

[north21]

10 teams allowed less goals then us in the west, as a whole the defense wasn't all that sound but the margins are pretty slim. The pk can easily explain a lack of experience on D even if some of the metrics look good. Either way we just were not good enough.

As a Habs fan, we're in a rebuild. Would you say you guys are as well?

Would you have any interest in moving the 14th pick for established good players, or do you want to build for the future more than get and immediate boost?

I see us trying to be competitive but a lot depends on some help from the youth. I don't see much reason to make a trade when our cap issues are gone in one year and we can try to improve the team without giving up assets.

 

[Dr Jan Itor]

ES scoring
Penalty kill
Goaltending

These 3 things kept us out of the playoffs.

 

[Wabit]

10 teams allowed less goals then us in the west, as a whole the defense wasn't all that sound but the margins are pretty slim. The pk can easily explain a lack of experience on D even if some of the metrics look good. Either way we just were not good enough.

MN was had the 4th lowest xGA leaguewide. Yet 20th in GA.
10th in xGF%,18th in GF%
+20 in xGF. yet -13 in GF on the season. That is a 33g (.4g/game swing) in the wrong direction.
They were 24th in sv%, 29th in HDSV%.
7th in HDCA, 18th in HDGA
This list keeps going any situation, any strength. It holds mostly true (outside of the PK) from this year to last year too.

The team defense was good, the goaltending was trash.
MN had a team .893 s% this year (all strengths), last year it was a .914% (3rd best in the league). On the 2434 shots against this year and that .021 difference in sv% is equal to 51g.

 

[north21]

Midds was on top pair for much of the season, most of our D were playing up a level from where they should be. Swap in some average goalies and I bet we get the same results, the team as a whole was not good for many reasons. You can throw up all the fancy stats in the world but Mermis, Goli, and Merril were on the ice way too much, it was never a recipe for winning games.

 

[Digitalbooya]

As a Habs fan, we're in a rebuild. Would you say you guys are as well?

Would you have any interest in moving the 14th pick for established good players, or do you want to build for the future more than get and immediate boost?

I think there could be interest in moving the 13th pick for a good top 6 player.

 

[26Mats]

I think there could be interest in moving the 13th pick for a good top 6 player.

What about a 60 point dman who is 30?

 

[Dr Jan Itor]

What about a 60 point dman who is 30?

Don't blame you for trying to sell high, but no thanks.

 

[26Mats]

Don't blame you for trying to sell high, but no thanks.

I don't think our management are going to move him. And it seems there isn't that much interest around the league.

Although I'm full rebuild guy, I am looking forward to seeing him on one pair and Hutson on another. I think it will be good to have two offensie guys one on each of our top pairs. I think it will be a fun year.

 

[Wabit]

Midds was on top pair for much of the season, most of our D were playing up a level from where they should be. Swap in some average goalies and I bet we get the same results, the team as a whole was not good for many reasons. You can throw up all the fancy stats in the world but Mermis, Goli, and Merril were on the ice way too much, it was never a recipe for winning games.

Yet they held up fine playing up in the lineup. Even the non-fancy stats show the goalies were a huge issue.

Middleton had ~47 secs more per game this year compared to last; that is about one extra shift per game. He was still less than 20 mins a night.
-He was usually somewhere in 17-21 mins a game range as the prior season.
-12 games of 23+ mins (only 1 of them was with Spurgeon), MN's record in those games was 9-1-2.
-11 games of less than 17 mins. MN's record in those games 2-8-2. (without looking too hard I'd guess some of these were due to back to backs).

Seriously 5v5:
Faber took Dumba's minutes
Bogo took Spurgeon's minutes
Brodin and Middleton played an extra ~45 secs each per game.

I do agree Middleton is a 3rd pair d-man, but he does have some ability to play up when needed. I'll even add that he and Spurgeon only work well with each other and nobody else on the team.

 

[Digitalbooya]

What about a 60 point dman who is 30?

Good player, but not the age I would trade a top 15 pick for.

 

[NHL1674]

Ya know what's funny? We get frustrated with our lack of depth and playoff failures. And yet, look at the big names that are on the Leafs' roster. And with the exception of last year, they are always destined for the woodchipper in the 1st round.

 

[57special]

Ya know what's funny? We get frustrated with our lack of depth and playoff failures. And yet, look at the big names that are on the Leafs' roster. And with the exception of last year, they are always destined for the woodchipper in the 1st round.

Also, no D, or goalie, though I suspect that if you switched BOS and TOR's goalies, one would all of a sudden improve, the other, decline.

 

[Wabit]

Also, no D, or goalie, though I suspect that if you switched BOS and TOR's goalies, one would all of a sudden improve, the other, decline.

The no goalie thing really hurts TOR.

They've also overcorrected for the "soft" Playoff teams of the early big 4 years to playing overly physical and lost "their game" along the way.

 

[north21]

Ya know what's funny? We get frustrated with our lack of depth and playoff failures. And yet, look at the big names that are on the Leafs' roster. And with the exception of last year, they are always destined for the woodchipper in the 1st round.

Most people are too busy drowning in their own sports sorrow to realize the things happen here happen to every franchise almost all of the time.

 

[f7ben]

Most people are too busy drowning in their own sports sorrow to realize the things happen here happen to every franchise almost all of the time.

Except that’s not even remotely close to true.

We have established records for sports futility that will never be challenged.

34 years and counting without any of the 4 major franchises making it to a championship. That is mind boggling

Twins losing 18 straight post season contests? The odds were so f***ing astronomical it could only happen here.

 

[Wabit]

Except that’s not even remotely close to true.

We have established records for sports futility that will never be challenged.

34 years and counting without any of the 4 major franchises making it to a championship. That is mind boggling

Twins losing 18 straight post season contests? The odds were so f***ing astronomical it could only happen here.

At least you still have men's college hockey to keep you warm at night. Those Duluth teams have been pretty spiffy.

 

[north21]

Except that’s not even remotely close to true.

We have established records for sports futility that will never be challenged.

34 years and counting without any of the 4 major franchises making it to a championship. That is mind boggling

Twins losing 18 straight post season contests? The odds were so f***ing astronomical it could only happen here.

I was mostly speaking about hockey but there are other cities in the same boat.

Funny I was thinking of you when I posted, does that dark cloud follow you around?

 

[f7ben]

At least you still have men's college hockey to keep you warm at night. Those Duluth teams have been pretty spiffy.

I did enjoy the dogs last championship although I’m not a college sports fan. I have no Alma Mater and find it silly to cheer for some team I have no significant connection to.

I was mostly speaking about hockey but there are other cities in the same boat.

Funny I was thinking of you when I posted, does that dark cloud follow you around?

I don’t believe there are other cities in the same boat. We are alone in our absolute sports futility. Vikings going to 4 SBs and losing every one? 1998 ring a bell? Gary Anderson didn’t miss. He couldn’t miss and yet the chip shot to go to the sb is a no go

 

[Wabit]

I did enjoy the dogs last championship although I’m not a college sports fan. I have no Alma Mater and find it silly to cheer for some team I have no significant connection to.

I've turned into a dramatic moment fan more than a hanging banner fan. Seeing Nino's G7 OT winner in R1, or Nyjer Morgan's 10th inning walkoff single in G5 of the NLDS are bigger/better memories to me than the Packers NFL or the Bucks NBA championships I've seen.

 

[north21]

I don’t believe there are other cities in the same boat. We are alone in our absolute sports futility. Vikings going to 4 SBs and losing every one? 1998 ring a bell? Gary Anderson didn’t miss. He couldn’t miss and yet the chip shot to go to the sb is a no go

Buffalo and San Diego 58 years, Vancouver 53. At least a half dozen others have longer droughts since 1991. Not saying we are not terrible but it's just sports, it's not worth complaining about every single day.

 

[f7ben]

Buffalo and San Diego 58 years, Vancouver 53. At least a half dozen others have longer droughts since 1991. Not saying we are not terrible but it's just sports, it's not worth complaining about every single day.

So not a single other 4 sports market. Gotcha

I've turned into a dramatic moment fan more than a hanging banner fan. Seeing Nino's G7 OT winner in R1, or Nyjer Morgan's 10th inning walkoff single in G5 of the NLDS are bigger/better memories to me than the Packers NFL or the Bucks NBA championships I've seen.

The Nino goal is probably my top wild highlight also.

 

[Wabit]

So not a single other 4 sports market. Gotcha


The Nino goal is probably my top wild highlight also.

MN wasn't a 4 sport market team either. Unless you want to count Dallas' '99 Cup...

 

[57special]

I did enjoy the dogs last championship although I’m not a college sports fan. I have no Alma Mater and find it silly to cheer for some team I have no significant connection to.


I don’t believe there are other cities in the same boat. We are alone in our absolute sports futility. Vikings going to 4 SBs and losing every one? 1998 ring a bell? Gary Anderson didn’t miss. He couldn’t miss and yet the chip shot to go to the sb is a no go

Ypu understand that the Leafs haven't won a Cup since 1967, right? And other franchises have never won?

 

[NHL1674]

So not a single other 4 sports market. Gotcha


The Nino goal is probably my top wild highlight also.

I shed a tear when Bruno ended Roy's career in Game 7 in 2003. Nobody thought that team with such a low payroll had a chance against the Avs. It was glorious. Second favorite moment was Park's Game 6 overtime goal against Roy. The atmosphere inside the building was beyond intense. My ears were ringing for hours after that game. It's still the loudest I've ever heard it in there....and that includes Gabby's 5 goal game, the night they won the division, and beating the Blues in round 1.

Good times.