Monday update: Open ice
Posted on November 10th, 2008 – 2:42 PMBy Brian Stensaas
Lots of room to move around on the ice at Xcel Energy Center today. Coach Jacques Lemaire had planned to have the entire team participate in practice, but at the last second he decided to switch it up. The majority of the team just worked out - lifting weights and such. Only nine players - Pouliot, Mojzis, Kolanos, Boogaard, Bouchard, Gillies, Reitz, Weller and Harding - and the coaching staff actually took the ice.
Those on skates didn’t have too taxing of a day. Lots of shooting drills, and at the end it was a fun short-ice scrimmage setting up both goals on either end of one blue line. The coaches even got into the mix. Props to Mario Tremblay, who went as far as to put on a practice jersey and fit in well.
I’m told the second goalie on the ice, by the way, was a friend of Mike Ramsey. Backstrom did not put on the gear today; he was among those just working out. He was also seen checking out some new suit patterns from a sales rep stationed outside the Wild locker room.
As for injuries, well, we’re (not surprisingly) still in the dark. Did receive word from the team today that Gaborik (lower body injury), Nolan (lower body injury) and Burns (upper body injury) are all skating at times. There’s no timetable for Gaborik and Nolan; Burns is a possibility for Thursday’s game with Phoenix.
Lemaire today said he has no new information on these players, and frankly doesn’t want any. He doesn’t want to get stuck saying a certain player will be out for a set amount of time, only to have it not come true. That, he said, is what makes him mad. Only he didn’t use the word ”mad” exactly - I’ll let you guess on that one.
That’s it for now. Maybe some news will come out of tomorrow’s practice. Until then, BYE!
90 Responses to "Monday update: Open ice"
(Backstrom)was also seen checking out some new suit patterns from a sales rep stationed outside the Wild locker room
New contract is near so new suits are in the works 
- Iron Range Red pinstrips would look good on him.
That’s what I was thinking, 6GS.
That would work just fine, 6GS.
Isn’t Backstrom waiting for his new helmet to get fix? Did he even get any new digs this year? Harding always seem to get new suits but we don’t hear much about Backstrom getting anything new.
I am with Lemaire. The Wild has been so wrong so many times on when a player will get back that its better that they don’t say anything. It puts expectations and when its not met, people get upset.
Sorry I was thinking pads not regular suits.
How about a Foster update?
Yeah, I’d like to know if Foster has upped his skating amount from 3 days to 4 days or something.
Foster is out indefinitely with a lower body injury.
Sheesh…what do you people want??? 
Heehee. Eklund’s funny.
Here is the current list I am talking to people about. This list is put together based on several factors including the names I am hearing most mentioned around the NHL rumour mill.
25. Alexandre Radulov
Radulov? Really? The guy who ditched his NHL team to play in Russia?
Interesting that all the kids except Shep and Cluts were out there. Are they not considered in that group any more?
We never hear anything about Backs getting anything new ’cause he’s FINNISH. he doesn’t like to talk about what he wears. and he’ll probably not wear anything bold. He started blushing when Harding was saying what a good goalie he is. he’s shy.
[…] Russo’s Rants – […]
KiPA: Not even Eklund is that stupid. He can’t believe that any NHL team would incur the rath of the other 29 by signing Radulov? And, since the KHL basically runs the IIHF, wouldn’t that make Radulov a leagueless player? No Euro-league would take a flyer on him, either.
Stensaas: Brian, you aren’t working the Timber-chihuahuas also, are you? Now we know you need more hockey work. Oh, goodie, another NBA season is upon us. 1 win, 6 losses, and counting…
All the Russo/Shipley news that is fit to print - http://slapshot.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/11/10/the-morning-skate-nhls-new-injury-disclosure-policy-draws-heavy-criticism/
Any Russovillians a lawyer? I have a labor law question regarding a family member, and my cousin is not responding fast enough to suit me…
I think my track record speaks for itself.
I stayed at a Holiday Inn Express last night…
BG- goody on the presents! Maybe you can make it a month long celbration! Though the dog would think his/her presence is a gift, especially when you’re trying to do more than fuzzle the dog. There were some nice glossy photos at the Hockey Lodge (8×10s) of #10, #24, #15, #9, #8; maybe more. So that’s something new.
Nice. Thank you to both of you. Very helpful… made me giggle though. I needed that.
I got 271 episodes to your 195 Matlock!
I’m sorry to announce that Bambi’s mom, recently noted as having an upper body injury, has a fatal heart condition. Lead is bad for your internal organs.
I don’t believe you’re really sorry, BG…
so, has she been put on the “physically unable to perform” list, then?
Nope MsC, not sorry at all, Bambi’s mom is nummy. Nick I would say so considering she’s laying on a plastic covered table in the garage ready to be cut into steaks, roasts, and little bits to become burger.
I have not eaten deer meat because of Bambi.
Sounds like she should be on the Soon to be Consumed list - enjoy!
Bambi was the first movie I ever saw as a youngster. Went with the old boy. Cried like a baby when Bambi’s mother was shot. “Your mother can’t be with you anymore.” We’ve got 40 acres of prime deer hunting land in southwestern Wisconsin and Dad always wondered why I never got into it.
Me neither, Sunshine, until the hurricane and our friends had some venison sausage that needed to be eaten. Wasn’t bad. Didn’t prefer it to the non-Bambi stuff though. Really just a carrier for Salt Lick BBQ sauce.
Exciting Oilers/Rags game. Not. But I have the house to myself so I’m watching all the hockey I can.
NiNY:
>>so, has she been put on the “physically unable to perform” list, then?<<
More like “her contract has been bought out”.
Um…the Lightning does more spirals than PMB. No wonder they gave up 2 goals on 2 shots.
So much for Kolzig taking it to his old team, eh?
Stortini/Orr… not bad, not great.
kj: Blues Brothes on Cinemax right now.
Hockey Road Trip note; The St. Louis Blues have announced their 3rd annual “Free Food Game”, where all seats are, in effect, ‘all you can eat’ seats.
This years game is on Sunday, March 15th, and the opponent?
(Wait for it…)
…the Minnesota Wild !!
That’s right, Russoville…you can see ‘da boys’ at the home of the original NHL all-seats pig-out!!
(Plenty of good seats are still available)…
now THAT’S information the people need, WRT! Almost makes me want to go to St. Louis!
Wow, they have to give food away to get people to come to a Wild game?
it’s that goddam trap, I’m telling ‘ya, ms.c!
WRT…I’ll be there…
NiNY…I SAW that when I was perusing the dish looking for something to watch.
Sadly, I am not a Skinemax subscriber… 
how are YOU doing with YOUR mission from God? 
damn Rags…I’ve got a mythical bet on them tonight! Grease are awesome in the shootout…
It WASN’T MY FAAAAAAUUUUUULLLLT!!!!
I was gonna say, Nick, if they’d just fire Lemaire and Dump Dumpster Doug…
mythical bet?
zakly, ms.c!
kj: they’re just about to go up and pay off the Penguins’ taxes.
NiNY…maybe if I call DirecTV I can subscribe and catch it on the west coast feed.
Oh wait…I already have it TiVo’ed…
HEN-RIK! HEN-RIK! Heh.
f’in Naslund blows it for me.
kj: can you name the song that’s playing in the elevator as they’re going up to pay the taxes?
what are Blues Brothers, Ferris Bueller’s Day Off, The Fugitive and Adventures in Babysitting?
Only two games tonight? Poop. That means I’ll have to do the real stuff I need to do.
sorry, also The Negotiator
Now this here’s a story ’bout Dougie the Dumpper
He was a low down Dumpster diver
He was the lamest, aimless GM around
Cuz Dougie has a ‘plan’ to bring Russoville down
Hi de hi de hi de hi…
Ho de ho de ho de ho…
He de he de he de he…
classic, kj…well done.
*applauds*
NiNY…not without cheating.
But I know it was ‘elevatory’…
The only good move I have made is I added Deslauriers and actually played him tonite. But still can’t quite balance Kipper’s lousy games.
Girl From Ipanema
(I wouldn’t have known it if I wasn’t just watching it.)
I like the big car chase.
Nice.
Back to that same old place.
Sweet home Chicago.
We played lots of music from Blues Brothers in High School Pep Band. My band director was big into blues and funk. Our Jazz band won lots of awards thank to him.
Thanks, now I have Stand by your Man stuck in my head. The version from the movie not the original.
Bandgeek…did you go to JHS?
Nope, Mayo in Rochester.
No wonder I’m the dogs favorite person right now. I just found bits of Bambi’s mom under my finger nails. Ew.
Ew indeed. Can we call her Cruella or something so I don’t feel so bad for her and Bambi?
Sorry. Gross stories and bad humor help me get through the days just after the Mr brings home a deer. I made a pact with him that as long as I didn’t have to see a carcass or head I would help package the meat. If it gets set in front of me all cut up it’s just meat. Dark humor helps me get past the fact that it’s Bambi’s mom. That and the thought that I won’t have to buy red meat for a while, that stuffs expensive.
Mister Know it all Injury Report
I will chime in on the injury report stuff. I think that fans should know about most injuries and timeframes.
Injury reports have a time and place, but the Wild are handling this to the extreme of what the objective is it would appear
If your more then a casual Wild fan you probaly are interested in whats happening with your favorite player.
Its entertainment, and the buyer of tickets to upcoming games should have a right at a minimum to speculate whether the favorite player they may have will be in the line-up based on timeframes
Some fans of sports teams could be compared to that of a soap opera fan. Part of the fun is in the speculation and whats in the story. withholding information without justifiable cause is disrespectful by the Wild to its most passionate fans
I hope Mister Lynn did not really say most fans dont care if they know or not. That statement underminds the PEOPLE who have more then a casual interest in the Wild
Mister Know it all
You should be a fan of the team not of one player, isn’t that someone said is a true fan?
I don’t think its not that the fans don’t care. Its that they don’t obsesses over it like the media and some rabid fantasy hockey folks, who most likely have money at stake. We know they are injured. Like I have stated several times which was echoed by Lemaire, the Wild management have been soooo wrong about the timelines that its hard to believe anything they put out anyways.
On HFboards, there is usually one or two FH folks starting a new thread in the MN Wild section about the potential of a player or when they are expected back because they want to know if they should drop said player or keep them.
The injury policy is what it is. Its not significant enough to fight over. I would rather the media focus on dirty hits to the head and knees. Or how about the inconsistent punishment of some of these actions.
Or what the Wild not airing all the games on television. To me that is more important than the injury policy. Why isn’t Russo and Shipley pressing the Wild on that?
There are bigger problems in the league than the injury policy. I would like more attention on some of the things I brought up.
Or even why more games aren’t on HD? Fans complain more about this (other than increase ticket prices) than the injury policy. I see it here and on the Wild message board.
The media is using their bully pulpit to get the fans to be sympathetic to their plight of wanting more info. Buls—, I say. Save that bully pulpit for more important issues.
If Nordy is beaten by drunkin Wild fans do you think they would disclose his injuries?
*high five* Sunshine.
Heh, Lucky… good one.
Nice win, Ms. C.
Huh? What’d I win?
I noticed that Engblom cut off his mullet. I usually skip the Versus intermission interviews and happen to catch it tonight. I did a double take there. I almost didn’t recognize him.
This brings me to Nordy’s mullet. PLEASE CUT THE DARN MULLET OFF!
That mullet annoys me more than Nordy.
Oh FH? Yeah, somehow I’m not super excited about going 1 for 3 across all my teams. Damn goalies. But so far it seems that my experiment with auto-draft vs. manual draft is showing there’s not much advantage or disadvantage either way, assuming you’ve taken the time to weed out the known, long-term injuries and other malcontents.
Actually I meant in the football league.
I won? How the hell?
Steve Breaston had seven catches for 121 yards and 138 return yards for 19.67 points and the Arizona defense scored six points. You won 136.76-135.42.
A squeaker. Nice. Go Stevie! Man he was a good pick-up for a dude I’d never heard of and still wouldn’t have if he hadn’t been the best available when I wanted to dump Kevin Walter.
He’s Option 3 in Arizona’s offense…you have Anquan Boldin’s injury to thank for that. Arizona doesn’t tend to run the ball either so he should continue to be a good option, especially since he returns kicks.
about 12 hours late..
BG & other Russoville residents- hysterical about Bambi’s mom upper body injury and related bylines. Thanks for the twisted humor!
sprechen zie Blues, I heard on XM this morning that they are also doing a fan bailout deal where they call a section/row/seat number during a game (selected games?) and pay that person’s mortgage/rent (up to $4K per month) for up to four months.
That’s a pretty cool promo if you ask me.
okay, it’s on their Saturday games, of which they have 11 more this season.
Pretty cool.
That is really cool.
Here is my take on the whole injury policy thing. I think it goes back to the instigator rule. Here is why. The players that are going to target another players injuries are more than likely the same players that take all the cheap shots. The same players that will look for the shot to the knees. Playing another player hard is one thing, but shooting for someone’s head because they are coming back from a head injury is no better than gunning for someone knees. If they can get the players to show a bit of respect for each other, full discloser probably wouldn’t be a big deal. But since the instagators can run around and throw out whatever cheap shots they want (and get away with it), I can fully understand the fact that the gm’s doen’t want everyone to know exactly what is wrong. As a gm, I would want to protect my investments also.
Word, Russ. The instigator rule, as it stands, is more damaging than whatever the rule was trying to fix.
I’m hoping the weather doesn’t get to bad today, I’m supposed to go to Hockey Unplugged with my friend H. and her roommate A. She said I’d get a birthday present tonight. And the guys there tonight are MAB and Bella. We were hoping for a Finnish Sandwich of Mikko and Mittens, but a French Connection could be cool to.
My take on the instigator rule is that it causes way to many problems. Agitators are able to harass other players without fear of reprisal. This rule, in my opinion, causes more injuries and problems than it solves.
What is puzzling, is that GMs could have the instigator rule thrown out if they could get the votes. Not sure why they don’t.
food, albeit somber, is served above.
