“The general manager kicked our butts,” forward Ryan Hartman said briefly about the Minnesota team meeting. Bill Guerin’s team has lost five games in a row, concedes an average of more than four goals per game and, of course, is still out of the Western Cup Eight. At the same time, there are many teams in the conference that have almost booked their playoff spot early on, which complicates Minnesota’s fight.
The clearest symptom of the crisis is the form of Kirill Kaprizov. No. 97, who brought life to the gray Minnesota hockey scene a couple of years ago, has been playing terribly to start this season, drawing criticism from the head coach and the media. “We need more from a lot of guys. There are guys whose play was terrible today. Are these the best like Kaprizov and Boldi? 100%,” said Dean Evason. “Kirill Kaprizov and Matt Boldy just aren’t good enough. It seems that in each game the stars of other teams shine, like in Sunday’s game against the Leafs, The Athletic journalists echoed.
Kirill Kaprizov
Photo: Noah K. Murray/AP/TASS
Last March, Kaprizov was injured after being hit by Winnipeg’s seven-foot defenseman Logan Stanley. Our striker had no complaints against the rival, calling it a moment of play, but he was out for a month. In the playoff series with Dallas, Kirill looked like a boiler and after the goal in the first meeting he did not score any more points. Even though Kaprizov has 15 points in 16 games, he also has a utility of “-8”: Kirill scored only one goal during this time with equal strength, even Achael’s Lettieri has more so far.
But Kaprizov also stood out for his skirmishes:
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“I hope Kaprizov gives him another beating.” The NHL star provoked Kirill again
It seems that the consequences of the injury, the exact nature of which we still do not know, continue to complicate Kaprizov’s life. So far, he does not look like the forward who caused a sensation in America, combining technique, speed, scoring instinct and desire to attack with fury every moment of the game. The Minnesota leader often misses more pucks than created opportunities, and he himself looks frankly heavy and does not always show the aggressiveness in attack that helped him become an NHL star.
However, Minnesota’s main problem isn’t even Kaprizov’s form. The Savages, with the exception of a couple of seasons, have never been among the best offenses in the NHL, relying on a strong defense. In the previous two seasons, the Wild ranked second in the league in expected goals allowed: Evason’s team relied on aggressive pressing, defensemen were always under the puck, and there were plenty of big, biting players on the lines lower. For a time, the team’s playing style was very precisely determined by the Jordan Greenway – Yoel Eriksson Ek – Marcus Foligno link, which disintegrated after the Greenway trade.
Minnesota’s actual defensive numbers were not always as good as expected due to issues with the goaltending team. However, last year the club traded Filip Gustavsson from Ottawa, sending Cam Talbot, who had started a contract dispute, in the opposite direction, and the Swede reached an elite level in the second half of last season, stopping 93.1% of the shots and winning. the fight against Marc-André Fleury. In the new season, the Swede immediately scored a goal in the match against Florida, but in the next match he missed seven goals and everything went wrong. Minnesota’s goaltending duo allowed 11.5 more goals than expected (i.e. xG) in a short period of time.
One of the reasons for this was the fact that the defensive corps of the “savages” in the summer sank slightly. Matt Dumba, who had given up in recent years, left for Arizona, team captain Jared Spurgeon missed the first games of the season (also due to injury), and because of this, the Minnesota defense was forced to rejuvenate, losing its former depth and level. True, the “Wilds” had practically no opportunities to strengthen in the summer, and the reason remains the same – the huge “tails” of the contracts purchased by Ryan Suter and Zach Parise.
Ryan Suter and Zach Parise
Photo: Jim Mone/AP/TASS
Of course, Minnesota’s current general manager didn’t write the two monster deals, but he chose the simplest and most damaging way for the team to get rid of them. At the 2020 trade deadline, the Wildcats were close to trading Parise to the Islanders for Andrew Ladd’s bad contract (slightly underweight and shorter), but the deal fell through. Perhaps both Parise and Suter (whom Dallas valued at $3.65 million after the contract buyout) could have been traded with retention and additional pay; Yes, it would have been expensive, but what’s the point of storing assets if you don’t have space under the roof to use them?
By purchasing two contracts, Minnesota saved a few pennies, but at the same time jeopardized future deals. Kevin Fiala had a great season and was a second line driver, he had to be transferred to Los Angeles because a new contract did not fit. Young Kalen Addison had a good debut season with the club, but had to be traded to San Jose at a terrible discount because Minnesota, again, would not be able to renew his contract in the summer.
In the summer, Guerin decided to bet on preserving the current core, extending the contracts of Foligno and Ryan Hartman and Mats Zuccarello, who played well with Kaprizov. These decisions caused mixed reactions: fans, as usual, called for radical rejuvenation, and journalists noted that the team did not have the resources to strengthen itself at all. In the summer, the club was only able to acquire Patrick Maroon, and even had to withdraw his small contract with a salary deduction. Minnesota never solved the problem at center back, which was mitigated by the advancement of young Marco Rossi.
The Norwegian forward recently surprised with an unusual statement:
“We are extremely bad at sports.” The crying of the soul of his colleague Kaprizov for the country’s problems
Because of their cap situation, trade options are limited, which means Minnesota has a classic opportunity to turn things around: fire their coach. Dean Evason joined the team in the winter of 2020, replacing Bruce Boudreau, and quietly became a veteran amid other teams’ advancements. However, the coach has not yet won a single playoff series and his harsh criticism of the leaders may also indicate that not everything is going so well within the team. In Minnesota, coaches are rarely fired: Since 2000, only five top coaches have worked at the club, not counting one who was initially temporary. either. The fifth season already seems like the moment in which the Club will be able to “cut back.”
Dean Evason
Photo: Gene J. Puskar/AP/TASS
However, changing coaches will not solve the main problem: even if Minnesota’s start had not been a failure, the ceiling of this squad is clear: reach the first round and relegate from there. This will continue for another year, and when the dominance of the two purchased contracts decreases, Kaprizov’s contract will enter its final year. Will his management convince him to wait for the growth of young players and the arrival of Yurov himself from Magnitogorsk? There are still doubts.
