Calgary Flames 2, Wild 1; Gaborik’s status uncertain for Wednesday
Posted on December 29th, 2008 – 7:50 PMBy Michael Russo
I’ll be heading back to the Twin Cities in the morning. Remember, I’ll be on KSTP Tuesday night at 6 as opposed to the normal time slot of Wednesday.
I’ll probably be doing the show via telephone from the X, where I plan to take in the Schwan Cup and root on my Minnetonka Skippers, who knocked off top-ranked Hill-Murray tonight. Huge win.
First, I was five feet from Elisha Cuthbert after the game. Second, Wild played a strong game here tonight in Calgary, and it still wasn’t enough as Minnesota fell to 1-12-2 in its past 15 at my favorite arena in the West. The Wild has now lost six straight regulation road games since Nov. 29, one off the team record, and most disconcerting, is 0-8-1 in its past nine in the Western Conference.
If you didn’t know, the Wild plays in the West, meaning the Wild plays most its games against the West, meaning if the Wild doesn’t fix this glaring problem ASAP, the Star Tribune will not be digging into its travel budget for a Wild postseason. But I’ll be digging into my travel budget for a trip to, perhaps, Hawaii.
I found this to be a pretty entertaining hockey game tonight. Both teams skated well, went end to end, had chances. But the Wild is Fragile with a capital F, and since it’s virtually incapable of scoring, one error is enough to kill things, and that’s what happened tonight.
Stephane Veilleux scored his third goal in five games with 14 1/2 ticks left in the second to tie the score at 1-1. But with a chance to take the lead on a third-period power play after Adam Pardy married himself to Krys Kolanos all the way up the ice, the Wild instead surrendered its second shorthanded goal of the season and first since Nov. 1.
Dustin Boyd fired a bullet outside the zone that was meant to be a clear. But Brent Burns tried to knock it down with his stick. Instead, Burns deflected it just enough to turn into a perfect pass for Eric Nystrom. Nystrom skated in on a breakaway, faked a shot and beat Josh Harding for the shorthanded goal and winner midway through the third.
Harding, who I thought played great, fell on the knife after the game, saying close doesn’t cut it anymore and he didn’t make the big save when the Wild needed him to. Good for Harding for taking responsibility, but I thought he was a little hard on himself.
Again, the Wild was in that position because it just can’t score. Enough of the, “We just don’t get the bounces,” eh? I know Mikko Koivu hit the post. I know Antti Miettinen got robbed twice. But they just can’t score. Andrew Brunette couldn’t get the puck up on one chance. I mean, Benoit Pouliot gets a breakaway and the puck winds up behind him! That sums it all up.
If you score one goal again, one mishap like Burns’ loses games for you.
The Wild is thin — without Marian Gaborik, Owen Nolan, Marc-Andre Bergeron and now Kim Johnsson, who returned to the Cities this morning because of a serious family emergency. The Wild hopes he’ll be able to play Wednesday. He was missed tonight because the Wild dressed five defensemen, but essentially played four.
Erik Reitz played 8:36 and not a single shift in the third period.
The Wild tried to take the positives out of this game, saying if it plays with this same work ethic, it’ll win its share of games.
But you know what? That’s what it said after the game in Anaheim, too. It’s becoming trite.
The season’s entering the midway point, and the team is in danger of falling into an inescapable hole. If LA gets a point at home against Columbus tonight, the Wild will fall to 12th (the Kings are trailing 1-0 in the third).
That’s it from here.
By the way, asked if he expected Marian Gaborik to be back for Wednesday’s game against San Jose, Risebrough said, “It’s how he’s feeling. I’m not judging it as anything more than, ‘Lets call him at the end of each day and see where he’s at.’”
Gaborik has been held out the past two games because of a sore groin. He’s missed 29 games this season.
—————————————————————————
Russo high above the Saddledome ice.
Again, Wild is going with five D tonight. An NHL player I was talking to today reminded me that Craig Weller started his pro career as a defenseman, but he’s on a regular forward line in warmups, so that doesn’t appear to be happening. In fact, humorously, in warmups, Derek Boogaard is playing defense paired with Erik Reitz.
The chances of that happening in the game in 0.000000000000000000000000001 percent.
Incidentally, the context of that Lemaire “who wouldn’t be concerned” quote today was me asking if this stretch of games could potentially derail the season, and he was like, “Ah, yah!”
The quote that’s bothered me all day was Risebrough telling me that a GM looks at teams game to game rather than “collectively.” My jaw dropped when he said that. Risebrough has said often in the past that you look at things as a whole, and most GM’s I know would look at their product, take a stretch of games and say, to quote Brian Rolston’s favorite phrase, “It is what it is.”
In other words, sooner or later, you just know if a team simply isn’t good enough. I know the Wild is without Gaborik, Bergeron and Nolan, but at some point you have to look at the product on the ice and say it’s not comparable to its opponents.
I’ll probably blab about this more in my Sunday column.
Now watch the Wild win tonight, and all will be well 
I got a few emails from people wondering if Kim Johnsson was really traded or about to be traded. He really does have a family emergency, so we wish him all the best.
I will tell you this: Three scouts have already rushed to me, “What’s happened to Johnsson?”
For your displeasure, a friend sent me NHL records since Dec. 1. I didn’t fact-check it, but he’s a former sportswriter, so it must be correct
Records since Dec. 1
Boston 11-1-0 22
Chicago 10-0-1 21
Washington 10-3-0 20
Philly 8-3-2 18
Detroit 8-3-1 17
Devils 8-3-1 17
Phoenix 7-4-3 17
San Jose 7-1-3 17
Florida 7-2-2 16
Edmonton 7-3-1 15
Colorado 7-4-1 15
Calgary 6-2-3 15
Montreal 6-3-2 14
Buffalo 6-5-2 14
Nashville 6-5-1 13
Carolina 5-4-3 13
LA 5-6-3 13
Toronto 6-7-0 12
Pittsburgh 5-7-1 11
NYR 5-5-1 11
Tampa Bay 4-6-2 10
Atlanta 4-8-1 9
Columbus 4-6-1 9
Ottawa 4-7-1 9
St. Louis 4-9-1 9
WILD 3-8-1 7
NYI 1-10-2 3
316 Responses to "Calgary Flames 2, Wild 1; Gaborik’s status uncertain for Wednesday"
man, DR really makes himself appear inept/incompetant to be the GM of this club anymore. game to game!!! lmao
The chances of that happening in the game in 0.000000000000000000000000001 percent.
that chance occurs if the wild go down 5 rip.
G*, why not just try it? it can’t hurt. right?
way to go Wild !! Hedman is going to look good in Red.
Wild come from 2 back to tie in the 3rd, hockey Gods owe us in Calgary, then we lose in OT. Hockey Gods can’t matter THAT much.
I’m obviously joking BTW.
They just showed a picture of my Boogie with that beautiful “I’m gonna kick your a$$ smile.” You know the one I’m talking about right? The one he gets when guys start yapping at him.
By the way, the Mr just summed up todays (and yesterdays) posts in a few words, “the sky is falling, sinners repent, the end is near, we’re all gonna die…” you get the gist of it don’t you. It could be worse, we could be Leafs fans.
Poor Hards, thrown to the wolves so to speak.
That is BS, I’m Andersen on the Window guy through it all…
yikes, Koivu! Look for Koivu to get Phaneuf back.
I feel like early on here the puck likes us a little better… I know it’s early but hockey gods…??? You there?
yeah you don’t want Koivu taking too many like that with his head down.
I think Phaneuf is a little pizzed still about Clutter knocking him around a bit last time.
Hopefully Clutterbutt will continue to knock him around
Agreed.
That was a good chance by Shep.
Maybe they can win tonight because they might play with more fight with so many players out of the lineup.
Nice to see some early scoring chances. Now if we could only get the first goal…
I’ve found that in team sports, sometimes when all the odds are against you a team, they somehow win. You credit the hockey gods. Because it’s ridiculous if you consider common sense.
Come on Bouchard — that was a stupid move, right in front of Harding! Bourque almost got a shot off.
everyone must be passed out on jag
Understandable after last night
Ugh…Bertuzzi
Somebody want to tell this announcer that it’s ZIDLICKY and not ZIDLISKY! Unless the Wild secretly traded Johnsson for somebody named Zidlisky…
The Jag will do that. But the trolls aren’t even here…
Officially back in TX! Greetings all.
Lessons learned over the holiday…
1) MN is EFFIN Cold!
2) The Wild need me and the wife in the X to win.
3) Getting sick in MN is too easy.
4) Perkins is tasty.
5) As is Davani’s.
6) Coming home is awlays nice.
7) MN is EFFIN Cold!
Oh yeah, and screw the Flames.
NiNY was pouring then like water this afternoon
that is odd…but still nice that the trolls haven’t come out yet
On to the red wine tonight. Still reading legal stuff. Wild look a little better but still always give up first goal.
I have been told that the proper pronunciation is something on the order of Zhidlitsky. Honest.
F-ING POULIOT!
SotB - thats how NHL2k9 pronounce it. Its actually very distracting.
1-0. The games is totally out of reach.
WTF! This team needs to stop getting fancy… for F%$&’s sakes!
What the heck was Mittens doing? Just shoot the puck! Its not the best shot but just shoot it. Why do a spin move? It could have been stolen and off the other way it goes.
Why do a spin move?
Too much time on PMB’s line.
It just boggles the effing mind! If you aren’t going to shoot it, slide it to the back of the net to take off more time! Come on!
Not enough shooters. I’d like to see more accurate shooters but I will settle for some shooting of the pucks.
At least I don’t have an obnoxious Chicago fan sitting behind me.
Ok lets not give a goal up here at the end of the 2nd
well, thru almost 2 periods…10 times the effort of last night’s game. they still need to learn how to control the puck and then SHOOT the puck at the net!!!
That wasn’t Dickie Dunn….
I don’t get that excited.
SRV!!!!
Its a goal!
That was definitely a goal.
Thank you Veilleux!
Wow… look at that… you throw the puck AT the net and good things happen…
Hi Chicago. Lesson learned.
9:26 post was me and not DD.
I was just in the middle of the Bull Durham we need a rainout and time with the ice skaters quote and Bela puts one in.
Had trouble with assigning quotes. Mikko was Crash though.
Hockey Gods!
Sweet and we get a PP
Clutterbuck is no longer a novelty act. This guy is a top six forward on this team, no doubt. From here on out he’s C-Buck. If he slumps I reserve the right to call him Gutterslut, but until then this guy is a player.
Sheppard take notes. C-Buck is the player the Wild hopes you turn into.
Pouliot keep your bags packed. Your not long for this team.
Kolanos keep it up. It looks like your figuring it out.
Flutterpuck is not discriminating.
He hits all Flamers.
Would Phaneuf go after a sloppy rebound?
Just sayin…
I prefer Clutterbutt personally but C-Buck is good as well
ms.c…I hope you saw Poultine totally eff up a breakaway.
Whatta stiff.
Anyone know why we have a power play to begin the third? It’s on the score sheet as occurring at the same time as the goal, but I thought any penalties after play was reviewed and determined to be a goal were scratched.
“Any penalties signalled during the period of time between the apparent goal and the next stoppage of play shall be assessed in the normal manner, except when a minor penalty is to be assessed to the team scored upon, and is therefore nullified by the scoring of the goal.”
… not that I’m complaining.
Don’t know exactly what happened but there was a delay of game penalty
Burnsie - I know you read this blog. Man - hit the net… please
Thank you Hariding for keeping this tied
Monsieur Dan
Vers le haut vôtre.
Merci beaucoup
It was a delay of game penalty — puck over the glass according to the Game Summary.
Ok lets make something of this PP
Mister Know it all has a line for JL. I like for a line combination Belanger with Gaby, and Pouliot
Monsieur Dan
Vers le haut vôtre.
Merci beaucoup
+20
Yeah. Giordano shot it over the glass to end the play and that’s when the goal was reviewed. But why was the penalty still assessed, I guess is the question. Pretty much moot now.
Son of a…
For crying out loud…
I keep forgetting you guys are prolly watching the local feed. On the calgary feed they showed a replay.
And now there going to show multiple replays of the newest goal.
Damnit.
Burns! That was partly Skoula’s fault for being caught flat footed.
sunshine, it can’t be over the glass delay when the penalty occurred at same time as SRV goal. i thought it was bench minor for unsportsmanlike. my two cents.
Burns = Stupid Play
NETminder1, Calgaary feed showed the penalty as Delay of Game.
Is it too much to ask for our players to hit the net? Geez, Louise - this is exhausting to watch.
Netminder: that is what’s on the record. Figure it out then.
I should add that Burns gambled on that when he shouldn’t have. Its first and foremost Burns fault.
Skoula?! That was Burns. Skoula just had made a great pass that we didn’t convert. Why always blame Skoula? Sheesh.
I agree, woodcock - totally Burns.
At least we’re showing pretty consistent energy.
Great… so we’re gonna have a “moral victory” tonight?
You must not’ve seen my earlier posts - I’m TOTALLY glass half full.
I’m more concerned with DR’s optimism.
personally I’m tired of ‘moral victories’
Good Lord, do I hate Phaneuf. Thank goodness it was a high stick. Maybe the momentum will shift to us?
I wouldn’t blame Burns or Skoula for Calgary’s shorty. It was just one of those bad bounces that happens when you are in a funk-o-la like the Wild is clearly in now.
Agreed, Gun - the fans can be delirious. The GM should be a realist.
Guess that didn’t work.
That shorty was Burns. He gambled and it resulted in the GWG.
Skoula’s mistake was that he hesitated on that play.
2244 that was an intentional slap by Burns, then he just stood there and watched as the Flamer blew by him… that goal was Burns’ fault.
Ugh. This team is terrible. 
As soon as the other team scores 2, you know it’s over.
I’m tired of hearing “fired it wide of the goal” lets get something on net
“____________ fires it wide of the goal!” Maybe we need to practice shooting?
“He gambled and it resulted in the GWG.”
That’s odd I thought the game was still on… do you have a crystal ball?
Are we tired, or what?
Its a pretty good prediction.
I would like to be wrong though.
Here is all you need to know about the state of this roster right now: Less than two minutes left, and we have Kolanos, Sheppard, and Clutterbuck on the ice.
We desperately need a goal in the final seconds, so… let’s put Weller out there?
2 quick things - good pressure at the end of this game, and is that Elisha Cuthbert behind the Calgary bench?
Well, that happened. Luckily, the bandwagon could be on blocks and I’d still be on it. Although I am considering moving to a state with professional sports teams.
LOL
Great… so we’re gonna have a “moral victory” tonight?
it beats what we got yesterday. at least they showed up
This may be the worst team in the NHL right now. Offensively, at least.
[…] Russo’s Rants – […]
so… let’s put Weller out there?
need guys that go to the net
Welll… who else should be on the ice? Pouliot who falls down repeatedly and can’t even corral a puck?
I see no moral victory. Its just a loss.
I agree, sunshine - Weller actually had quite a few good takeaways.
Good effort, excellent pressure but we can never score more than 1. We fire wide, we can’t hit the net. Sigh. Actually Weller played pretty well as did Shep. Benny is lost tho.
Well, moral victory it is then. They sure looked a heck of a lot better than they did yesterday. Harding was good, Shep was awesome other than not scoring, Skooba was solid, C-Buck was good. If it wasn’t for that silly play by Burns this game would have still been going. Night everyone.
DR’s comments:
1. We lost because we were unexpectedly short 1 Defender tonight and our Defence was just “gassed”. (aka It wasn’t Burns’ fault - he was tired, leave him be)
2. We battled hard tonight. You can see the guys were working hard so this is really a “moral victory”. (aka ‘We lost, but at least it was close’)
3. This team is playoff ready we just need to get out of out “rut”. (aka we don’t have scorers because we can’t hit the net)
Good point, sunshine, but it certainly doesn’t speak well of the team if you can’t think of 6 guys you’d want out there in front of Weller.
I’d give real money if the Calgary Announcer stop calling Zidlicky “Zidlitz-skee”
KJ, yeah, I saw it. Pouliot out-Poulioted himself there.
WOO! Go WILD! When do we play again? I can’t wait!
Word… what WAS with Weller being out there?
Skoula is on a 2 game point streak and SRV is on a 3 goal game streak.
For two guys who don’t get lots of points, these are accomplishments.
Pouliot has made me sorry I ever defended him. Bastard.
sunshine, I’m impressed that you’re giving SRV some props. Unless, of course, you’re being snarky.
i wouldn’t say moral victory, but it was much improved from hawks game. and sunshine, sorry to have pi$$ed you off.
Once again, if it weren’t for the goalie, the Wild get crushed. Wild have now lost 10 of 13, outstanding !!
Also, putting the French figure skater on the point for the PP has been nothing but a failed experiment and needs canned asap.
Finally, Phaneuf has been terrible. Last 7 games, 0 points, -6…..Now 3 games in a row and no goal from Iginla v the Wild, Amazing.
Way to even out your criticism, Dan!! /snark
Sorry when I complain about SRV, its in connection with Shep who they don’t seem to have much sense of chemistry with each other. They don’t seem to make good passes or anything. Put him with a better center like Koivu and Belanger and you can see a difference in his play.
I don’t bash SRV by himself. He does what he is suppose to do. I have no complaints about him.
No worries, sunshine. To be fair, I wasn’t happy with his play until recently, either. He just didn’t seem HUNGRY enough. Now he’s starving.
If we were down to 5 D, why did Reitz only play 8 minutes? No wonder Burns and the others were tired.
>>I’d give real money if the Calgary Announcer stop calling Zidlicky “Zidlitz-skee”<<
I keep telling youse guys. That is almost correct except they are botching the front end. Zhid-litzky. It is not pronounced the way it is spelled.
>>Once again, if it weren’t for the goalie, the Wild get crushed.<<
Very astute. If it weren’t for a goalie, every team would get crushed.
This is getting hard to watch. “___ fires it wide of the goal.” really was the quote of the night again. I’m glad I only wasted money on tickets to 2 games this year. As long as the seats are full, why bother putting together a real team? Just keep slowly raising the prices and letting the good players walk away. Think Backstrom’s next? Gotta say Clutterbuck has been awesome though. Well, Sharks and Red Wings are up next. 2 goals in the next 2 games is my prediction.
Wish I’d been there to see Smug and Lynn in their orientation meetings with Leipold. Those had to be 2 major league snow jobs. If Leipold knew anything about hockey, he’d be able to see through that fluff by now.
Reitz is serviceable at 10 minutes. Most of it is on ES. He barely gets any PK or PP times.
He wasn’t much help to the other guys. It was all Burns (29 min), Skoula( 26 min), Schultz (25 min), and Zids (24 min).
Without digging through the whole thread, can someone tell me who covered the empty spot at D?
Odds on Pouliot being shipped by March 5th: 2:3
Now that that’s out of the way, I can move to some decent assessment.
Much better game, but it was a two-part effort: The 1st 10 minutes were good for starting a game on the road. Most of the guys were skating, working hard and not taking un-necessary chances. The fact it was still even at the midpoint was promising.
Then they fell apart. The last 10 minutes was awful. Standing around again, chasing. If you noticed, this was happening with certain players in the defensive zone. The numbers I kept seeing while Calgary pressed along the boards were, 51, 25, 18, 96 and 67.
The 2nd period was no better than the last 10 minutes of the 1st, until 2 mins left. Thought we were gonna go down 2, but the SRV tally was the boost we needed. Good way to close out the 2nd period.
The third started ok, then fell off rather quickly. It looked like the legs were just giving out, and just when the team gets a break, they give one up. Burnsie’s fault? Not really. Look, he knocked it down and just got enough of it to get caught. You could do that play 1000 times and not have that happen again. Either he gets enough of it and gets a pass back up ice, or he misses it and Harding stops it behind the net. Don’t blame Burns on that.
Harding played superb. Again, I wouldn’t mind seeing him in the #1 slot next year.
The “role players” played their tails off tonight. SRV, Clutts, Boogaard, and Weller. I’ll tell ya, Weller really impressed tonight, and I bet that’s why he was given minutes at the end. He was strong on the puck, and the body all night. Made a couple great moves to control the puck and set up Shep once, and Clutterbuck another time. Even Boogaard played very well in the Calgary zone. The centering feed he made was spot-on, Cal just fanned on it.
Belanger was not strong tonight, nor was Mittens or PMB. They got bumped off the puck pretty easy, and didn’t make much impact. Even PMB’s actual shot wasn’t that good.
However, on the 2nd of a back to back, on the road, it was better than expected, and you could see after that Nystrom goal the team really woke up and started pressing hard. Like they should be every game, all the time. And it showed. The problem is, you can’t play 25 minutes of good hockey against Calgary and expect to win. You need to play 60 minutes, and we still didn’t do that. Moral victory? No such thing. Good loss? Yeah.
————
I keep telling youse guys. That is almost correct except they are botching the front end. Zhid-litzky. It is not pronounced the way it is spelled.
The “c” in Czech and Slovak is pronouced like “tss”. That’s “tssssss”, not “tss-ahh”. The “Z” is a “Zh” sound.
So the above is pretty close to correct. Very good job. Thanks to a great friend in Slovak Republic for that one!
/waves
There were no healthy sratches — 13 forwards, 5 D, 2 G.
Gillies, Weller, Boogaard, Kolanos, and Pouliot played. (The musical chair folks. )
Oh… Kolanos. Played a good game. Didn’t want to not mention him, he did pretty good. He pressed, and got chances - made plays.
By contrast, Pouliot tried hard, really hard, but just came up empty. Maybe he was nervous or tired, or thinking about Ms. Cuthbert, but he just didn’t have it.
2007 - 2008 roster comparison:
Replace Rolston with Owen Nolan
Replace Demitra with Mietinnen
Replace Fedoruk with Weller
Replace Voros with Clutterbuck
Replace Radio with Gillies
Replace Nummelin with Bergeron
Replace Parrish with Brunette
Replace Carney with Reitz
Replace Hill with Zidlicky
How could anyone in their right mind (DR) possibly think this years club could hold a candle to last years? Of those moves listed, only 2 can be considered a legitimate upgrade: Brunette and Zidlicky.
DR deserves to lose his job. He has shortchanged the fans for too long. One of the great hockey towns in the league (which fills the stadium to the gills night after night) deserves better than a team full of minor-league talent. Weller, Kolanos, Gillies, Boogard, Reitz, Mietinnen, Pouliot…are you kidding me?
It’s like Groundhog Day…. Dowd, Neilson, Matt Johnson, Sekeras, Stevenson…
Keep Childress… FIRE RISEBROUGH
Hopefully they have an Aeros player waiting to practice with the Wild tomorrow.
Though, I don’t think John Scott is the guy I would like to see up here. I know he’s not physical but I would like to see Maxim Noreau get a chance.
Noreau can play forward if necessary and probably better than Pouliot at the moment.
Rob- The Vikings board needs you.
None of those “replacements” hurts except the first one. Demitra is a loser, I don;t care how well he is doing in Vancouver, he didn’t want to be here, and would have made things worse, not better.
Fridge would have been a scratch on this year’s team. C-Buck is ten times the player Voros ever was, and I am a big Voros fan. Radio was a bit player at best, no loss. Nummelin… come on, he sat all year last year. Parrish is replaceable, and I would should Nolan be healthy he more than fills the role. Carney is a loss, but Reitz is getting better, and Carney was old, and likely would have been hurt a lot. Replacing Hill with Zidlicky is a major improvement.
Mittens is not performing as he should. I do not know why, but he isn’t. That likely has something to do with the entire team slumping and not playing well.
The team is lacking centers. Despite what Hitcock said in Columbus, the center is the playmaker. Basic hockey 101. The Wild have Koivu and three guys who are not very good at it. I think if I put some real thought into I could find numbers and such to support that. For now, it will just have to fly out there as an opinion with no support, but I think you put two other plyable centers out there, and this team improves greatly.
Poor Pouliot couldn’t make a play if he had to. If we had any organizational depth at all, someone should be up and BP should be getting serious AHL minutes in Houston.
Stupid Risebrough has a couple “bullets” with which he can make some moves but seems to simply refuse, sit on his hands, and then makes a stupid remark like he did tonight. Unbelievable!
I can’t figure why this team covets #1 draft choices when they keep playing them in the NHL only to have them overmatched and often in Lemaire’s doghouse. The core of their development should be in the AHL, not costing the Wild regular chances at NHL wins.
Someone made the good point earlier in the thread: What exactly is the organizational plan right now? First two phases have worked well for the most part. Phase 3 is well underway but what it actually is isn’t apparent in the least.
I don’t see the failure now as being Lemaire’s fault. No one can coach talent that’s not there. Risebrough & the scouting & development staffs just haven’t given JL nearly enough talented players to work with. ‘Course, last year they did but let too many of ‘em play in the last year of their contracts. . . . Speaking of which, why in the world aren’t they approaching Backstrom about an extension?
I normally defend Risebrough and buy into his logic. But between the lack of foresight on extensions with Rolston (last year — not to mention the huge negative impact losing BR has had on PMB’s game) & Backstrom (this year), the unbelievable comment tonight, and the ever-so-tedious talent/injury/depth balance the team keeps facing each year, I’m wondering seriously if the dude deserves to keep his job. Stability is important. But the hockey side of the front office isn’t doing squat to boost anyone’s faith or their own credibility.
Buddha:
I agree on the centers. DR should have spent a million or less on Yelle or whichever center that was still available. They are an upgrade over Shep and Pouliot. Yes, I know that Shep has been playing a little bit better — maybe he was worried that Lemaire was going to bench him like Pouliot.
Even SRV played better with Belanger than when he did with Shep. When you can see the difference in your plumbers’ play because of the center, its obvious.
Why doesn’t Russo have his usual caveat that what a GM or owner say today changes in two week? Didn’t the Lightning owners give a vote of confidence to Melrose and 2-3 weeks later, he was out?
DR might be saying there is not an imminent deal or shake up like tomorrow but maybe in 2 weeks, something might change.
SotB- From the last thread… I am uncomfortable with the realities of life because I find it distasteful to discuss someone’s health in terms of how affects your viewing pleasure? BS.
I understand someone worrying about how a sick employee may affect their bsuiness. But this isn’t your business, and well, it’s none of your business. If CL wants to be worried about how it affects the team, good for him. You, as a fan, should be more concerned with the guy’s health than how it affects the hockey team.
I’ll discuss the realities of life with you for days and months, but this isn’t reality, it’s hockey. It’s a game, and a distraction from real life.
It’s like being concerned if Zack Braff got cancer and how it might affect the show’s last season, making it so you might not get to see quality Scrubs episodes. It’s tacky to bring out the concern about how it affects the talent on the team before the concern for him as a human being.
Guess it would really suck for you if he died, huh? I mean, that would distract the team to no end.
Stoned on the Breakaway says:
December 29th, 2008 at 11:11 pm
>>Once again, if it weren’t for the goalie, the Wild get crushed.<<
Very astute. If it weren’t for a goalie, every team would get crushed.
not really. Wild give up more scoring chances then just about anyone I’d imagine with shotty defense and terrible passing.
Buddha says:
December 30th, 2008 at 12:05 am
It’s like being concerned if Zack Braff got cancer and how it might affect the show’s last season, making it so you might not get to see quality Scrubs episodes. It’s tacky to bring out the concern about how it affects the talent on the team before the concern for him as a human being.
from what I read, the show goes on even without Braff.
I don’t know why DR says its how Gaborik feels… he was the one who made the decision to bench him for 4 days with no skating and 2 games. DR not Gaborik.
Why can’t he make another decision that Gaborik is good to go on Wednesday?
Good points, sunshine (your last two posts). About everything DR has said today is contradictory to things he’s said recently.
I sure just hope this is his version of bluffing. If so, he sure has many of us fuming at his response, which means we also are believing him.
Buddha:
I gotta tell you, you are a one legged man hopping into a butt kicking contest if you want to discuss this subject with me. Before you start frothing at the mouth, go back and read all of the posts on this subject.
People are so quick to believe that Johnsson’s family emergency means he’s being traded in the next two days. Or Gaborik being off the ice for 4 days, 2 games means he is being traded immediately.
Folks, Gaborik IS going to be traded — its only a matter of time. Maybe Johnsson or Backstrom, too. Whoever comes back will not be much help.
I kind of feel that DR has conceded the season and we might see a mini-wholesale in the coming weeks. That’s why he is in no rush to make an imminent trade or even pick up Jokinen on the waiver wires.
From Russo’s article, Smug is clearly comfortable laying this team’s failures at the altar of the injury bug. The plan appears to have been to stay in the hunt with Gaby until he was tradeable and then combine whatever we got for him with the available cap surplus for trade deadline moves that would carry the team into the playoffs. If it isn’t already too late for that, it soon will be. On the plus side, profits will be up this year. Might as well hold onto that cap surplus. It will be a lousy year, and the fans will be disgruntled, but they will make some moves that will stir up interest before next season. Fork a stick in ‘em. A good question now is whether Smug will even be able to get that annual summer meeting with Jock-U.
Russo says: >>I was five feet from Elisha Cuthbert after the game.<<
Another 4 and a half feet and we’d have a story for the newswire.
Well.. you have to admit that this team has not had one game where everybody on the original roster, excluding Foster, has been healthy. Gaborik and Nolan in, Zids out. Zids and Nolan in, Gaborik out. Gaborik and Zids in, Nolan out. Injuries have been a factor to this team.
However, DR’s FA pickups and rookies have been the other problem. They are what they were with their former teams. He believed that because the guys he picked up earned more points but less goals, they can fill in for Demitra and Rolston. At the end of the day, its goals that counts not assists or points. That’s where his thinking went wrong.
Fewer goals = fewer possible assists/points. Right on, sunshine.
There seems to be a significant disconnect between what DR is willing to wait out (young players’ development at the NHL level) and what JL is willing to be patient with (young players playing poorly to ineptly at the NHL level). If this is so, then at some point, something must give.
Ah… this team, it’s complicated, but I think the short answer is that they don’t have a lot of scoring depth and Gaborik has only played about 5 games. Nolan and to some degree Bergeron are missed as well. The question is can they keep their head above water until they can get a few guys back and resolve the Gaborik situation? If so, maybe all is not lost this season, but right now it’s looking like a wreck. They played better tonight, but at the same time there was a lot of times when it was still pretty bad. Terrible puck movement, losing the puck battles, etc. The GWG was a full team effort. Burns was just the last guy to blow it. It had been a pathetic power play up to that point. Twice they dumped the puck in and were nowhere near getting to it allowing Calgary and easy escape, the second time leading to Burns’ miscue. Story of December in a nutshell, really.
cmon now…. if your going to nitpick about who’s here now and who used to be here, at least pull up some stats and compare how guys are doing elsewhere this year before we poo poo anybody.
Apologies in advance if the formatting doesnt hold up. Late night tables html or no are not my thing.
Year Team GP G A Pts +/- PIM SOG
Rolston 2008-09 NJ 16 4 1 5 -3 12 45
Demitra 2008-09 VAN 27 11 9 20 1 4 60
Fedoruk 2008-09 PHO 37 4 2 6 -1 41 28
Voros 2008-09 NYR 38 8 6 14 -4 79 56
Radio Not playing that I’m aware of.
Nummelin Not playing that I’m aware of.
Parrish 2008-09 DAL 20 4 3 7 -2 6 23
Carney Listed with Chicago, no games played.
Hill Not playing that I’m aware of.
Past Wild:
Park 2008-09 NYI 36 7 9 16 -4 14 66
O’Sullivan 2008-09 LA 35 9 14 23 6 8 106
Dupuis 2008-09 Pit 32 8 3 11 1 12 53
Moore 2008-09 Tor 36 7 10 17 -1 29 67
Ward 2008-09 Nsh 33 5 5 10 2 21 46
White 2008-09 Atl 36 12 20 32 -3 10 71
Hall 2008-09 TB 32 3 1 4 -3 6 47
Smith In the phoenix system.
Foy In St Louis system.
Belle In the MTL system.
Kuba 2008-09 Ott 31 1 21 22 8 14 44
Tjarnqvist 2008-09 Col 11 2 1 3 3 6 10
Henry In MTL minors
Mitchell 2008-09 Van 37 1 9 10 6 41 41
Michalek 2008-09 Pho 37 2 11 13 1 10 36
**I’m keeping my fingers crossed that this works**
ok, that didnt *quite turn out as bad as I thought it would…. still looks bad though.
Whoops! forgot one (probably more than one but here’s one I remember)
Sutton 2008-09 NYI 23 2 8 10 3 40 19
Alright, last one, but I can’t forget an Irishman. Especially a former bearer of the “C”
O’Donnell 2008-09 LA 37 0 7 7 1 33 11
I can’t sleep, in case your wondering. 
Radio went to Spartak Moscow in the KHL. Carney officially retired. Nummelin is a stud with HC Lugano and Hill is with EHC Biel in Switzerland.
What a defensive pair we could have in Skouba and Kuba.
I’m ministering to the ill.
Sorry to hear that Stoned, I hope its nothing too serious!
Appreciate the sentiment. Think I’ll try and catch some zzzz’s. You oughta get some rest as well. Night.
night!
[…] Russo’s Rants – […]
Well I’m going otu of state for a while with no internet access. Maybe I’ll get back just in time for the draft. It will probably be the only thing to look forward at the end of this season, but only if Risebrough is collecting his check from another organization or not at all.
Since we are going to get smoked against the Sharks on Wed, we might as well try to get 100 SOG. Rule is, if you have the puck in the offensive zone, you shoot on net. Don’t care about blocked shots, don’t shoot wide and hope for a tip. Shoot at the net. If a “D” guy is in front of you, shoot it harder. All this fancy tip it in crap has to stop. With nobody in the front of the net, there is no one to tip it, so therefore you are just shooting wide.
I’d like to know how long Foster has been showing Burns how to shoot from the point. Good god. Burnsie couldn’t hit the sand if he fell off the camel right now.
Enough is enough already. For years we have listened to DR’s plan to “build from within”, to “get good and stay there”. Well DR?? Has the plan been reset again? You can’t win games in the NHL scoring 1-2 goals a night. You can’t win games when those 1-2 goals are being scored by the lunch pail guys you have on the 2nd & 3rd line (who should ONLY be playing on a 4th line).
What are those Wild Values again?
Team - yep, got one of those…
Preparation - DR’s lack of preparation this past off-season is showing itself in spades!
Passion - haven’t seen it in the past month short of Mikko & Cal
Honesty - right, time to be honest. DR should be fired for dropping the ball this past off-season. You let 60+ goals walk (regardless of what anyone thinks of Demo/Rolston) and replaced them with AHL players who can’t compete in this league. And the fact that you are content to let Jac spin in the wind with these stiffs shows you have no clue. At least Jac is finally calling DR out publicly by saying he doesn’t have any talent. It’s only a matter of time before JL resigns because the idiot in charge continues to make poor decisions.
And to say his hands are tied is simply crap. He’s CHOOSING to do nothing. He’s a chicken$hit GM afraid to make moves like the other big boys in the league.
Your team stinks, plain and simple and will continue to the rest of the year until you get off your lazy a$$ and make a trade or three.
Are we in the John Tavares sweepstakes yet? I’ve watched a little of the World Juniors and that kid can fill the net. At the rate the boys are going, that’s where we appear to be headed, but tampa and the isles still look to have the inside track.
Disappointing stat of the day: The Wild has scored 52 goals 5-on-5 through 35 games. I’m not sure where this ranks in the League, but I would be willing to bet 3 dollars cash that it is real close to the bottom.
Wild’n'NH: considering the Wild is good for about 100 goals in the season’s final 47 games, if the powerplay gets REALLY hot, I think there is no reason to believe that, with a little effort, the team can position itself for a run at Tavares. 
DB, I don’t think Burnsie could hit water if he fell out of a boat…
I just don’t remember IJ being that erratic from the point. Seems like every time he winds up, the glass high and wide of the net gets a new scuff mark.
The Wild have spent WAY to much time and money on Goalies and Defense. You can’t win in the NHL with 1-2 goals. Time to spend some of those resources tied up in defense to get some offense.
Three moves DR should make ASAP:
#1 - Resign Backstrom, 3 years, $4.1 million a season. You can use the Foster Charity money next season after we let him go/he retires.
#2 - Ottawa needs a puck moving defenseman and they suck as bad as we do. Trade Johnsson & Pouliot to Ottawa for Spezza. We take on an extra $500k in salary and finally have our 1st line center to replace Walz. Center’s would be Spezza, Koivu, Sheppard, Belanger. Reitz steps in for Johnsson on D.
#3 - Offer Gabby, Harding and a conidtional pick based on Gabby resigning to ATL for Kovlachuk and Armstrong. A first rounder if Gabby doesn’t resign with ATL, a 3rd rounder if he does. ATL is looking for a single solution to their goalie issues and Harding is that answer. We take on 600k more in salary.. but we finally have a team.
Lines “could” be:
Kolvachuk-Speeza-Nolan
Mittens-Koivu-Bruno
Armstrong-Sheppard-Butch
Clutterbuck-Belanger-Veilleux
While the rest of the GM’s are working the phones, DR is a sleep at the wheel. Do something or get out…
Trade all of that away to Atl and then find ourselves in the same situation next year with Kovi, that we are in now with Gaby. What makes you think a top-of-the-line offensive player like Kovi is going to sign long term with a team that scores 1 or 2 goals per night?
Because he’ll be playing in front of a full house, something he’s complained about with ATL. Not to mention that with Kolvachuk healthy and averaging a point a game basically… we’ll be averaging much more than 1-2 goals a game.
The best, and maybe the only, way that DR can get proven, top-end scoring players in Minny is going to have to be via a trade. He tried throwing a brinks truck at Hossa and lost. He apparently has offered Gaby a brinks truck and is now shopping him. It looks as though if the Wild is going to get truly top-end offensive talent on the roster, it is going to have to be via a trade or trades.
Perhaps this has been DR’s plan all along?
Finish dead last this year:
1) Don’t replace the goals you lost in the off season.
2) Say ‘we made great offers, but no one would sign here’.
3) Don’t re-sign your only dependable goal scorer and roll the dice that he can be traded for more draft picks.
4) Don’t resign one of the premier goaltenders in the league and roll the dice that he can be traded for more draft picks.
5) Lose to every team below you in the standings.
6) Say your hands are tied.
7) At the end of the year, package your 4 first rounders and draft Tavares.
One thing is for sure…if Lou Nanne were GM, there is no way he wouldn’t position himself to nab Tavares.
Oops…I forgot this…put it at 6.5:
“We’re in the situation we’re in because of all the injuries. It is what it is.”
I completely agree DB… and that’s why I threw out those proposed moves. We need to use the resources we have now to get some proven players to play with Koivu, Burns, Butch, Bruno, etc.
Having two good goalies is a luxary, a luxary we can’t afford because we aren’t scoring.
lol, I love it KJ!
2) Say ‘we made great offers, but no one would sign here’.
Followed immediately by the tired “this is where players want to be” speech
In seriousness, I believe a team led by Mikko and Burns will help attract players, I think JL is a mixed bag - some like the legend and his track record of making players better others are not big on the major focus on D and responsibility (but I think he will retire after this year anyway) and I think Doug Smugsborough is a huge negative as he failed to help a playoff team last year by adding a C, botched the Rolston situation and genberally has an unremarkable track record with free agents.
kj: Spot on regarding Ballgame’s thought process and the fact that he blames the injuries on where the team is. I’d have to check but I think other teams have had to work through injuries as well. The Great One was asked in an interview after the Isles beat the Grease for their 4th straight Cup, whether injuries the Grease had suffered played a role in the team’s loss in the finals: “Losers make excuses, winner’s make due”, was Gretzky’s remark and he couldn’t have been more accurate. Other players and coaches have used the quote or variations of it, but it obviously is not plastered on posteres throughout the walls of Wild HQ.
One thing is for sure…if Lou Nanne were GM, there is no way he wouldn’t position himself to nab Tavares.
louie would then go and draft the next brian lawton…
Yeh, but look at young Brian now, in charge of arguably the worst team in the League and on the inside track for Tavares.
Three moves DR should make ASAP:
all great ideas but, when is the last time trades like this happened in the NHL, espcially during the season?
would it really be as simple as a phone call to make this happen?
charge of arguably the worst team in the League
i thought we were the worst team in the league
Not yet, G*, but taking a gander at the Wild’s remaining schedule, it is not too far fetched to think they can’t get there. The Glen Mason-creampuff games are over for the Wild, at least for this season.
I wouldn’t disagree Green*, but if it were any other GM (like Burke) and the team was in this type of situation you know he’d find a way to get it done. Keep in mind, particularly in Ottawa they are just as desperate as we are to make a change.
“Mittens is not performing as he should. I do not know why, but he isn’t. That likely has something to do with the entire team slumping and not playing well.”
I’m beginning to understand why Dallas was willing to let him go. This guy is Belanger Light. His white hot start to the season is starting to look like a fluke.
not too far fetched to think they can’t get there
agree. it’s been professed here that the wild are the worst so i was confused.
but if it were any other GM (like Burke)
yes and no. I just can’t recall any blockbuster moves at this point in the season. they all happen offseason or at the deadline. perhaps it’s a trend that needs to be broken but I think it will only be broken if one side gets bent over, ballgame style.
I can’t recall one either, but with both Minny & Ottawa’s fans ready to storm the ice in frustration… the time to do something like that might be coming together for these two clubs.
Wild 11th in the West
Ottawa 12th in the East
Ottawa had much higher expectations than I think Wild fans did, so that is adding to the pressure. Ottawa will make a major move to get into the playoffs and hopefully we can be there to help them get a deal done that doesn’t screw us.
Puter: I’m not sure what everyone was expecting out of Mittens, but he was a 15-goal scorer with 14 minutes per game playing with better offensive talent around him in Dallas. Did Wild folks think he would all of a sudden be a 30-goal man getting 19 minutes a game playing here? He could be a nice role player for a team, but if he was being looked at as one of the top goal producers for the Wild for the season, the team is in trouble. He’s on pace for 18 right now, but I don’t think anyone would be too surpriosed if he finishes in the 15-18 goal range. A nice player if he is a compliment, but not if he is looked at as one of the “go to” guys.
Ottawa will make a major move to get into the playoffs
i’m with ya but unfortunately for us, yawnson and benny can’t be the answer for them.
looking at wild roster:
not for sale:
koivu
PMB (unpopular i know, but i don’t see the team making him available)
sheppard
gillies
maybe clutterbuck
burns
schultz
zidlicky, on fence
that leaves
gaborik (damaged goods)**
nolan (damaged goods)
brunette
mittens
belanger
benny*
boogaard
SRV**
weller
kolanos**
yawnson
skoula**
MAB**
foster (damaged goods)**
reitz*
backstrom (NTC)**
harding*
* - RFA
** - UFA
ok, what moves can be made to legitimately make this team noticably better? Given they way they’ve played, there isn’t much for us to deal with.
Deep, agreed on Mitten’s. He’s a placeholder. Every team’s got a few.
Darkknight, thanks for the stats. With the exception of Demitra the 2008 stats make DR look smart. I’m not saying he is but I can’t fault him for his off-season decisions to let the players go that he did. Rolston is getting OLD and he wanted 27 year old money. Can’t blame DR for letting him go. And DR couldn’t trade him mid-season because the Wild was looking like a contender last year.
O’sullivan is the only guy from the “past Wild” list that I wish we still had, but he had to go so that we could have the Demitra/Marianne “exploding Oscar” experiment. It was worth a try.
Year Team GP G A Pts +/- PIM SOG
Rolston 2008-09 NJ 16 4 1 5 -3 12 45
Demitra 2008-09 VAN 27 11 9 20 1 4 60
Fedoruk 2008-09 PHO 37 4 2 6 -1 41 28
Voros 2008-09 NYR 38 8 6 14 -4 79 56
Radio Not playing that I’m aware of.
Nummelin Not playing that I’m aware of.
Parrish 2008-09 DAL 20 4 3 7 -2 6 23
Carney Listed with Chicago, no games played.
Hill Not playing that I’m aware of.
Past Wild:
Park 2008-09 NYI 36 7 9 16 -4 14 66
O’Sullivan 2008-09 LA 35 9 14 23 6 8 106
Dupuis 2008-09 Pit 32 8 3 11 1 12 53
Moore 2008-09 Tor 36 7 10 17 -1 29 67
Ward 2008-09 Nsh 33 5 5 10 2 21 46
White 2008-09 Atl 36 12 20 32 -3 10 71
Hall 2008-09 TB 32 3 1 4 -3 6 47
Smith In the phoenix system.
Foy In St Louis system.
Belle In the MTL system.
Kuba 2008-09 Ott 31 1 21 22 8 14 44
Tjarnqvist 2008-09 Col 11 2 1 3 3 6 10
Henry In MTL minors
Mitchell 2008-09 Van 37 1 9 10 6 41 41
Michalek 2008-09 Pho 37 2 11 13 1 10 36
To obtaian a legit, NHL scorer, Ballgame may have to accept the fact that Butch, Shepp or Gillies may have to be involved in a trade. The UFA angle hasn’t worked well of late. I just hope folks are expecting Ballgame to offer up the likes of Kimmie J, Poo-Bah and Reitz and expect to get a 35+goal scorer, who is not a pending UFA, in return.
Also, you would also hope that obtaining a couple of 37+ year olds is not in the “master plan”. I believe somebody yesterday was kicking around the notion that the Wild go after Weight and/or Guerin? Ish.
G*, I agree with most of this except I would put Kolanos, Harding and Reitz on the not for sale list. I think these three have potential to be regular contributors. I also agree on your PMB assessment. Something will shake loose with this kid (whether it’s the right line combination or a sports psychologist) and he’ll be a solid contributor again.
Just seems Butch needs a legit “finisher” to be effective. Playing with Huggy, who had 3 30+ goal seasons with the Wild, Butch was at his best. Doesn’t seem like too much of a secret that Butch isn’t going into the corners or crashing the net. He is a slick stick handler but badly needs someone on the other end, which he doesn’t have right now. If that player isn’t going to be brought it, Butch’s production is gonna go way down, unless of course the hormone injections start to kick in and he grows 6 inches and adds 45 pounds of muscle.
I would say Kolanos and Reitz are on the for sale list since they aren’t exactly young.
I think folks need to realize that DR isn’t going to make a trade in the next week but he will make trades in the next 2 months — at the earliest 2/2. He might be willing to see what this team can do with both Nolan and Gaborik and hopefully give them a run.
The only guys that GMs will want in the next 2 months are:
Gaborik ( by 3/3, a GM will want him)
Backstrom (GMs will want him after 2/1)
Johnsson or Zidlicky(GMs desperate for a puck moving d-men. DR likely to move after ASG. He’s not going to trade away 2 puck-moving d-men because there’s none in Houston.)
SRV and Pouliot(a Dupuis-attachment to a big deal)
MAB (he’s out til the 2nd week of January. Someone might want him by 3/3)
Thats it. The other guys are not trade worthy because of their contracts or their play.
Wild played a great game yesterday, which should have gone into OT (if you take-away the Flames’ man-in-the-crease goal). And, Kolanos is showing great potential. The guy is going to be a major contributor, if the Wild are smart enough to hang on to him.
You people are too high on Reitz. What GM is going to give away picks for a #7-#8 defensemen who averages 10 minutes a game? They have plentiful of those guys in the AHL. We do too — Reitz could be Scott, Foster, Stoner, Mojzis, Noreau, or Falk.
Stop trying to give Kolanos away. He’s my BFF.
I have a hunch that the reason so many fa’s stear clear of minnesota is probably to do with what demitra said to russo after he became a nuck. Something like “it wasnt playing center,or the D responsability,or trap system etc. it’s the constant line change’s that I didnt like.”
I could totally see that being a hard thing to deal with. Anyone that works a job that requires you to gel and work together with someone to get it done smooth and fast and done well knows this.
Jacques I think should pick his best lines and let them work together unless some real shakeup needs to happen. Make them hang together in their free time. Send em to sheiks for some male bonding exercise’s.(smiley face)
Demitra also said that the Wild stifled offensive creativity. This past month, I totally agree with him.
“Send em to sheiks for some male bonding exercise’s.(smiley face)”
I assume you didn’t mean a gay smiley face because you were talking about a totty bar.
Wonder what a line of Franchise centering Demo and Gaby could have done for 70 games last year?
As far as JL goes, his frustration level is more than evident in his comments about the roster. If things don’t change dramatically, would be no surprise if he says “Thanks, but no thanks” to another season behind the bench.
“If things don’t change dramatically, would be no surprise if he says “Thanks, but no thanks” to another season behind the bench.”
This years team is starting to look like a carbon copy of all prior Wild teams, with the exception of last yrs team.
I love Jock like a grandfather but it’s time for new blood behind the bench. And not the drill sargeant that is Constantine. He sounds like the Bill Musselman of hockey coaches.
Going off of the “stifling the offensive creativity” theme, does anyone know off the top of their heads where the Wild’s 1.48 goals per game 5-on-5 ranks in the League? Just curious.
Puter: A change behind the bench may not be the worst thing in the world, but getting quality players on the roster has to be priority #1. Look at the Black Hawks. I have always thought that Quenneville was a stiff as a coach, but he looks like Toe Blake when he’s in charge of a roster loaded with talent.
i believe that backstrom has not been extended because if the wild show no signs of life, he will command a king clancy’s ransom at the deadline. As much as I like him, I think the wild would be foolish not to make that deal.
Not saying that Joel hasn’t had a little success in the past, but if you listen to some of the NHL “bo-bos”, you would think that he is the sole reason the Black Hawks are one of the top teams in the West. I would start with a couple of guys named Kane and Toews, etc., before I start heaping praise on JQ.
but it’s time for new blood behind the bench
i’m not disagreeing but pray tell who would you replace JL with? Melrose?
Pavel is among the whiniest players in the NHL. It looks like he is also a spin artist.
What he is really saying Sunshine is that he does not have the guts needed to play both ends of the ice.
The Wild do not stifle offensive creativity. They do demand a player have defensive responsibility.
That is not the same.
Tortorella is available.
I was and am I guess one that thought that the offseason moves were ok not stellar but… I wasn’t too sold on rolston and his one trick pony, demo just didnt seem to want to play and got hurt alot. And I like the addition of nolan and think his absence is hurting much more than hurty mcgroinstrain’s. Owen is just hurt more than I had hoped. Was he out this much last season?
And replacing the old D men with zids and MAB I think are real good choices especially with Reitz up here filling the hitting D’man role. I know its no secret but holy moly butch and pouliot need to pull themselves up by the bootstraps and Git r done!
For two years in a row now, the Hawks’ rookies have been just great. The Bruins traded Versteeg in 2007 along with a pick for Brandon Bochenski. Hawks win this trade hands down.
I like your comments maxpower. I feel much the same. Clearly PMB and BP are not going to be around long if they dont get scoring in a hurry
Ice:
Your dislike of Demitra is blinding you to the fact that this team DOES lack offensive creativity. They can’t even do what Bertuzzi did yesterday.
Sure he is whiny, but Demitra has consistently play the 2-way game in the past. He’s no Selke nominee but he does play a good 2-way game.
The only guys that GMs will want in the next 2 months are:
Fair enough. Lets talk about return potential.
Gaborik ( by 3/3, a GM will want him)
some combination of a high-ish pick, a Todd White-type and a 2nd or 3rd line player
Backstrom (GMs will want him after 2/1)
represents our best potential for a serviceable return.
Johnsson or Zidlicky(GMs desperate for a puck moving d-men. DR likely to move after ASG. He’s not going to trade away 2 puck-moving d-men because there’s none in Houston.)
maybe a mid-to-high pick or a 3rd liner or 3rd pair defenseman back
SRV and Pouliot(a Dupuis-attachment to a big deal)
You’d get more for Pouliot than for SRV, but the ceiling would be a 2nd line player or a 2nd round pick for Benny. For SRV, you’re talking about the proverbial BOP.
MAB (he’s out til the 2nd week of January. Someone might want him by 3/3)
Low pick.
For each of the above, discount something for Riser getting jobbed on the trade.
Given what I see as the return potential, trading any one of those guys (with the possible exception of SRV) is the same as running the white flag up the pole for this season.
White flag = failure. They are a team that is expected to make the playoffs.
Failure + personal considerations (+ potential retirement of JL??) = bye bye Dougie.
Versus the alternative of sitting on his hands (at least they’d stay warm) and letting the chips fall where they may - which, by all current indications would mean somewhere within shouting distance of the lottery.
In other words, Doug can’t win for trying.
Demo is just not durable for the season anymore. You need an 80 game guy with a point per game. Demo is not that anymore.
DB - I withdrew that statement.
Although, either one of them would be step up from Pouliot right now.
So, I need an HDMI cable, the twin audio cable (red and white), and the triple video cable (red, blue and green I think) all going from my HD cable box to my HD tv to get both audio and video?
Is that right?
IceMan: A centerman’s role in JL’s game plan does restrict that player’s ability to be “creative” because centers are “third man high”, for JL, meaning they are supposed to be the first forward back to help clog the middle. As for the difference between playing center and wing, as a second baseman to play third base and ask him if there is a difference. There is a difference between a wing and center in JL’s system. You may disagree with Demo because he made his views known, but don’t be suprised when Demo nets 25+ playing wing for the Nucks. Look at the goal production of Demo when playing wing. Between ‘97-’06 (minus lockout season) he had 251 goals in 615 games (33 per 82-game season). Playing a ton of center for JL last year he had 15 goals in 68 games. Back at wing this year he’s on pace for somewhere in the high 20s. There is a difference between centers and wings in JL’s system.
Deep Breath - We have 49 5-on-5 goals, which is 28th in the league. Only the Islanders (48) and Ottawa (44) have fewer.
Boston leads with 85, followed by Detroit with 75, just for comparison.
We’re 9th in the league in 5-on-4 goals, and we’re 28th in 4-on-4 goals with only one.
(The Maple Leafs don’t have a single 4-on-4 goal this year! Pittsburgh leads with 9.)
Is that right?
i think not if i understand you correctly
HDMI carries audio and video
G*: so, weird…okay, back to the drawing board.
“couple of guys named Kane and Toews”
That’s the great thing about hockey. A team really needs 2-3 great players to make a team a contender. The players are so well conditioned they can play every other shift most of the game (with some double shift here and there). As long as the supporting cast is at least serviceable (ie - Belanger, PMB, C-Buck, Sheppard in a year) there is always a competitive line on the ice. Koivu is one of those great players. A healthy Gaborik is another.
I guess what I’m saying is that even though this years team is another Wild Bubble team, the addition of one great player changes the 2009-2010 season immediately. that’s why I’m in favor of dealing Backstrom. Let’s take our chances with Harding. and if we can get a 20 goal scorer for Shim Yawnson make it happen.
I have to admit I don’t follow it close enough to know what the next up and coming coach is. I just don’t want them to bring in some re-tread coach.
Re: Skoula - Let’s not create his Hall of Fame bust just yet. Just because he no longer has to wear his drool cup this year, it doesn’t mean he can’t be criticized. I can’t stand watching this guy who looks like a beast, never put his shoulder on anybody…..And maybe it’s the dopey look he always has on his face.
I wonder what Lemaire is thinking now? After DR had to go talk him into returning and the things he said then compaired to his most recent “my hands are tied” comments or “uh oh spagetti o’s” I translate that to mean.
I think if Jacques was the coach for the hawks they would be serious cup contenders. But instead he’s the coach for a team that has a couple or few players that bring it every night. So I guess you could say I’m not so sure getting rid of Jacques is gonna do it it might but…
mabey a GM that can make things happen would be a start? You have a sold out arena in a hockey crazy area and one of the best coaches in the league one of the top goalies, and we couldnt land any fa’s last summer? and those players constantly turned us down for real crap hole cities in sometimes shakey hockey markets I mean I dont get it? is it jacques?
Look at nolan the guy was very greatfull the wild wanted him he gets to town grabs his 12 gauge and heads to the duck blind! I wish more fa’s were like him.
you would go one or the other.
HD can be carried over composite (RGB) cables or HDMI. and its predecessor DVI.
DVI and composite require separate audio cables.
I use HDMI to connect directv to my LCD. one cable is all i need.
I hooked up a buddies new tv and surround sound and the receivers no take HDMI in so one HDMI from DVR to stereo, one HDMI from stereo to TV. very cool.
okay, that’s what I thought initially. But when I went HDMI from cable box to TV, all I got was video (it was sweet, but it was only video nonetheless).
The diagram in the manual showed all three of those different cords that I mentioned above, but I thought that was a little weird/that the diagram in the manual was just confusing.
So does Direct TV charge you extra for the HDMI cable when they hook up your HD Receiver to your TV?
Oh no, “John Tavares Sweepstakes” has been brought to the Russoville Pub for discussion. Things really are bleak huh?
Have you seen this team’s last 14 games?
I think if a healthy Wild team was responsible for the last 14 games I would be jumping ship.
As long as they turn in effort like last night with a complete defense and healthy forwards they should be able to make a run for that 8th playoff spot.
Skoula’s game is not the big, flashy hit. But he does use his body as he did last night to get the puck away or to prevent a good shot. Look, I am not saying the guy is an All-Star D but he is a perfectly serviceable #4 D and plays a stay at home game, altho last night he actually created some chances.
“Look, I am not saying the guy is an All-Star D but he is a perfectly serviceable #4 D and plays a stay at home game”
Agree 100%. The frustrating part is he could really raise his game if he learned to play the physical part of the game.
Aaron: I appreciate the fact that the Wild played a fantastic game last night in a building they have always struggled in. That said, they finished with 23 shots on goal. Beyond weak. As far as the injuries, refer to the Gretzky quote “Losers make excuses, winners make due”.
anyone else catch the news that the vikes playoff game is struggling to sell out and they are threatening a blackout? 40% of the season tik holders havent bought tickets…
CL and DR be scared be very scared. I can say that for me and my friends and family weve been to 2 wild games so far this year and dont plan on going to any more due to cost and a crummy team…we went to 10 games last year. This year its much easier to take in the high school and college games due to cost and there is just more heart and soul thats all there is to it.
Viking season ticket holders were not required to purchase playoff tickets this year with their regular season packages like years past. Those 20k will get gobbled up.
They don’t want to see a one game and out….Look what the Eagles did to the Cowboys. Spanked them.
Gah! I hate when all three of my goalies are playing on the same night.
The onus is now on Craig Leipold.
We are all dedicated, loving fans but our devotion will not do anything about our current personnel. I would not blame Lemaire for any of these woes, frankly the guy has been a genuis with what he has had to work with.
The team has not drafted well, not traded well and has nothing in the farm system that they were supposed to be building. Look at the history of bad trades that were made and trades that should have happened but didnt. Look at the free-agent signings of the past two years and free agents we couldnt sign. That is ALL on management. PERIOD.
If Craig leipold knew anything about hockey and business, he would recognize how disasterous this team has been run and how it will affect his pocket book.
We are hockey mad in this state but we are also mad fickle. We already lost one team and Im not saying we are going to loose this team but people will stop caring and showing up for an expensive night out.
As an investor in this business, I demand that Doug Riseborough and his staff be fired for almost a decade long of incompetence before he runs this team/organization further into the ground.
Allrighty then.
Has Leipold had any comments regarding the teams play this month?
I haven’t heard from or seen him since he was greeting folks in the concourse many, many, many games ago. Hopefully he is taking note.
CL and his son accompanied the team to Calgary according to wild.com.
Thank you
Sunshine, last nights game was not on our cable last night. I cannot comment specifically on whether they showed offensive creativity or not last night.
But, they have had plenty of scoring chances in all the games I have watched. So, they do not exactly lack offensive creativity.
If they did not have scoring chances, then I would agree with you on that.
But, what they are lacking is the scoring touch.
Right now, when our guys rush their shots, then the puck is not in complete control and misses the net or the scoring spot.
If they do not rush the shot then the goalies can react and save it.
Maybe the players may lack the quickness needed.
But, it can also be simply a lack of confidence for all of these young guys. They are trying not to make a mistake, and make an extra pass, or wait too long before making the shot and the hole closes.
Sort of like Backstrom last year with his shoot out problems. It was mental, he was trying to outguess the shooter and guessing wrong.
Personally, I think the losing right now is that the young guys do not have confidence needed.
With Gabby, Nolan, and now MAB on the shelf, we have not been able to cover those losses.
If the new guys started to be successful then that would build and things would fall into place.
Until the Gabby situation is resolved, and it cannot be until he is healthy, we are really short-handed and sputtering.
A long time ago, JL said “we are not scoring 5 on 5, and that will be a problem”. So, he forsaw what this was going to lead to.
DB I guess I misunderstood the news I heard. we all know the game will sell out my point is the vikes got into the playoffs and they have to threaten blackout if the 20k dont go by whatever date. The NFL is much more popular than the NHL here and everywhere in the U.S.
CL and DR have got to be sweating seeing this…and all the booing at the game on sunday? If I were CL or DR and I was at that game uh,that would suck…I would be interested in seeing what the drop is profit wise at the X at the concessions and the lodge there has got to be one since every other business is seeing this.
If Craig leipold knew anything about hockey and business, he would recognize how disasterous this team has been run
understanding the current state of disarray…if this team has been run disasterously, then what would you call how say columbus, atlanta, florida, phoenix, toronto et al, have been run?
it’s not an excuse to say the team is fine and dandey but disastrous is a bit strong, IMHO.
Many of us right here in Russoville were asking “Where are the goals gonna come from” before the season even started and before Gaby shredded his weiner again.
and all the booing at the game on sunday?
wasn’t the first time the team heard boos nor will it be the last.
Kim & his wife are good people, I hope the best for them whatever the situation may be.
Of course the Wild will get scoring chances. That does not mean offensive creativity. The only line with creativity is Bruno-Gaborik-Koivu-Mittens.
Everybody else: Dump into the zone, (SRV, Clutterbuck, Weller, or Kolanos- the forechecker) chases. Gets the puck, cycle once to a Wild player behind the net. The forechecker goes to the one side of the half wall while the other forward is on the other side– just in case the puck squirts out to them. The behind-the-net Wild player centers to the front of the net. Nobody home and opponents get the puck up the ice. OR, the behind the net guy, passes it to the d-men at the point who passes it to one of the half-wall players, who shoots wide of the net. Opponent gets control of the puck and up the ice it goes.
Repeat again, again, and again between the two endings
Deep Breath, an ability to be creative is different from having defensive responsibility.
You can have creativity wherever you are on the ice. Playing high in the offensive zone might stifle scoring chances but it does not stifle creativity. You can still make creative plays.
Koivu and Belanger seem to work through the handicap. Dimetra did not because he did not want to. It was attitude.
Unless you are truly more gifted than all of your competition, a team needs to be responsible defensively. We are not in that category.
The team, the coaches, the administration and ownership, and all the rest of us are frustrated with the losses piling up.
But, last night, a 2-1 loss, a team is still only one great shot away from a tie.
Obviously, the team worked like hell or the Flames would have smoked them.
So, I do not fault them for putting defense first.
As an investor in this business, I demand that Doug Riseborough and his staff be fired for almost a decade long of incompetence before he runs this team/organization further into the ground.
As a DR detractor I wish it was that simple. The fact is DR is a middling GM who is not fan friendly but can take credit for the business success that is the Wild as that is also part of his job. At the end of this season, CL will have spent over a year working with DR and I hope he will re-evaluate DR at that time as not only will the roster probably have to be rebuilt, a new coach will likely be needed to replace a retiring JL. For me, DR has not done enough to earn the right to build what is going to be #8 and #9’s team.
Offense sells tickets, defense wins games, right?
Good point james, Kim we wish you the best of luck.
Koivu and Belanger seem to work through the handicap. Dimetra did not because he did not want to. It was attitude.
If DR didn’t know that Demo had an attitude before he traded for him than DR didn’t do his homework.
Ice: Please don’t use Reggie and creativity in the same sentence. You only hurt your own credibility. Demo was used improperly most of last year. He was already on the roster, so do you want a whiny, bad attitude Demo playing wing and scoring 25-30 goals? Or, do you want a whiny, bad-attitude Demo playing center and scoring 15-20 goals?
Being defensively responsible also doesn’t mean little to none offense either. There is a balance. Belanger, he has to play more defense because his offense can’t compare to Demitra’s. Koivu has learned to play it because he grew up in the system.
Its not that Demitra couldn’t play the third-man high. He just didn’t like playing it and it showed.
If you ask Burns if he would rather play forward or defense, he would say that he would rather play defense. Burns was more discrete. In the Day in the Life of with Schultz, Nick even said that Burns didn’t like it but he knows thats what is needed of him at that time.
Russo’s stats of team records since December 1 only feature 27 teams. Does Russo not know that there are 30 teams in the league. Where’s the Nucks on that list?
SGS: Spot on. It seems that on certain occassions, JL and Ballgame have not discussed which type of players JL would like to coach. Gave away a #1 and Sully to get Demo and then JL moves Demo away from his natural goal-scoring position. Ballgame wrote a decent sized check to Parrish, who promtly took up space in chateau bow-wow. Seems as though some better communication may be in order before another band of middle-of-the road UFAs are signed.
Really 2-1 was one really great shot from a tie? Well, since the game ended about 12 hours ago, I guess no more time for those great shots available for that tie.
Now its just a LOSS.
Now its just a LOSS.
Correction: Now its just ANOTHER LOSS
I hate to do it, because I don’t always agree with you sunshine, but…
+1
Although, I was pleased that I didn’t come across the dreaded “moral victory” phrase from anybody after night’s 23-shot effort.
Who cares about Demitra anymore…he’s a friggin ‘Nuk for cryin out loud!
Our next GM will be posing for pictures with a certain John Tavares in June.
I have forseen it.
I hope in his exit interview after retiring, JL tells CL how DR does not consult the coaches on the types of roleplayers they need to be successful.
As stated above:
A losing season + JL’s retirement = DR getting canned.
Hopefully Leipold, being the self proclaimed “hockey fan first” is just as frustrated as the paying fans, and takes care of business this off season.
I have forseen it.
way to blow that one up kj
way to blow that one up kj
Doesn’t matter…he’s another Brian Lawton anyway…
he’s another Brian Lawton anyway
tell me you forseen that so it counters your earlier forseeing
Our next GM will be posing for pictures with a certain John Tavares in June.
I have forseen it.
Our next GM is going to be Garth Snow?
Just out of curiousity, is anyone going to bring up that we play the Sharks tomorrow, or is everyone just trying to pretend like that is not going to happen?
How many boos will we hear tomorrow?
Hey, Wild vs. Sharks tomorrow. Best team in the league, btw. The Sharks, that is (in case there was any uncertainty).
Thanks Toivo. Just thought we should talk about the elephant in the room…
I think the Wild will be lucky to keep it within 5 goals tomorrow.
Triva: who recalls how last year’s NYE game was lost to the Sharks?
For a long time I have wondered whether the people here, who would fire DR (and just about any of the Wild management that might be responsible for the team languishing lately), are as competent in their own professions as they demand from Wild managment? In other words, do you hold yourselves to this same standard?
Deep, you need four centers don’t you? If Dimetra was a center before he got here wasn’t he?
Who really knows what is known about how players will react in a given situation until you put them there?
Right Sunshine, but up until the final click of the clock the team is still technically in the game!
This is long-term stuff. DR is far from perfect, and maybe he will never be as sharp as Scotty Bowman, but in my opinion he is far from incompetent.
I do. Fight hard to tie it in the third, then everyone’s favorite goat coughed up the puck for a gift GWG about 15 seconds after that. Game over!
A quick plug for the Don and Stencils. BUY THE NEWSPAPER. Hey- the feature piece on Bill Nyrop this past Sunady was worth the price. The collective we in Russoville need to support them, and in turn they inform us and sometimes heckle us.
Back to regular programming.
Hey, Wild vs. Sharks tomorrow. Best team in the league, btw. The Sharks, that is (in case there was any uncertainty).
Just in case anyone cares, the Canucks, who have had better December record than the Wild were absolutely slaughtered by the Sharks 5-0 last week. And that was when the Canucks were still 3rd in the Conference. It was the worst game for the Canucks all season.
The Sharks are an extremely talented team. They all seem to be about 8 feet tall and they can skate, score, possess the puck.
Just so you know what’s coming.
Good luck.
who recalls how last year’s NYE game was lost to the Sharks
didn’t skoula pull a pouliot to allow the winning goal?
Remember the NYE game well. Bite and scratch and Parrish nets the tyer only to have Skooba get all mixed up with his feet/stick/ice/puck right after the ensuing faceoff from the Parrish goal. Game-set-match.
WILD-4 SHAKRKS-3 IN SHOOTOUT.
(I used all caps because I am emphatic about the result. But, if the Wild get Ballgame-typed rolled 5-1, I will deny that I ever posted this)
So are the Wild just packing it in for the season. I don’t see how this current team is going to back their way into the playoffs. Might aswell shut it down and get a decent draft pick. Typical Minnesota team “we don’t feel there are any moves we can make that will benefit our team” That is beacuase it would require giving up somebody that is why it is called a trade.
Russoville’s collective memory is strong!
SGS: You don’t forget a Skooba moment during a Holiday game. It all just came together. Tough opponent, holiday game, ringing in the new year and Skooba forgetting to remain standing up.
wild will play much better against the sharks than the nucks did.
max - please tell me how. We wouldn’t even check Chicago, a much smaller team. San Jose is going to come in here and push us around like an 8 y/o little brother.
I am not a supporter of the Nuckleheads or the trolls, but at least they aren’t afraid to hit.
I am not a supporter of the Nuckleheads or the trolls, but at least they aren’t afraid to hit.
the Nux or their trolls, TheGun? 
The way the Sharks like to zing the pill around, and the way we’ve been struggling to clear our zone of late, we could see a record number of shots-against tomorrow.
As well as a record for fewest shots for. I expect a lot of puck posession from the toothy fish.
For the Fire JL crowd…. ain’t gonna’ happen! His resume’ and hockey pedigree dictate otherwise. When his time comes with this club, it will be because he walked away or they mutually decided in the off-season that it was time for a change. He is not going to get sent packing in a manner that leaves him or the club looking to save face in a situation that diminishes the respect he has earned over 40 plus years in the show.
DR? It is easy to criticize. I was skeptical about his lack of moves in the off-season too. But if I was him, I wouldn’t have given Rolston the money or years he got either. Demo? Didn’t earn his money last year, is on the downside of his career, and is as temperamental as his boyfriend Gabby. Parrish? Ditto, except for the temperamental part. In addition you have got guys like Shep, Pouliot, etc, that aren’t living up to their junior scoring numbers that got them here in the first place.
I do think the roster has many holes on it, and DR has got to be accountable for that. On the other hand, we aren’t privy to the phone calls and number crunching etc… that go into the possibility of making trades happen, it’s just not that easy. On top of that, the Wild have NOT consistently finished at the bottom of the league allowing them to stockpile top draft choices for 3-5 years like the Blackhawks, Penguins and so on…
And finally, you have got one weak-groined head case of a guy and his maniacal agent holding this team and DR hostage. I still don’t believe for one second and haven’t, that he has been hurt so badly that he couldn’t play over the past umpteen weeks. Why has he played at all lately? Because DR was probably close to a deal and the buyer wanted to see him in action. And then when the deal/deals fall apart because of the outrageous demands of team Gabby….. OOPS! My N*%S hurt again!
Am enjoying all of the trade/roster/team woes talk and speculation on here though—awesome!
Ice: I can appreciate the “Ballgame ain’t the Devil” argument, but the fact remains that this team has not addressed it’s glaring need for a center. How long has it been since Walz quit? Still dissappointing that the team went into the year expecting great leaps and bounds out of Shepp, when he was coming off a 19-pt campaign a year ago. Mikko is a clear #1, but Reggie is a 3rd-liner AT BEST, Shepp should be a #4 and Poo-Bah is going to be rendered useless as long as he is thrown out there with Boogie and Weller.
Frozen: In terms of drafting, the Wild has done well for the most part with the top picks. But, when it comes to sticking the shelves in the AHL, they have struggled. Only two players drafted after the second round by the Wild, Boogie and SRV, have made contributions to the Big Club. Although, it looks as though Clutterthroat may get added to that painfully short list. Added to the fact that the entire 2004 draft, and now it looks like the 2005 draft were complete busts (unless Poo-Bah shakes something loose real, real, quick) and you can understand why the cupboard may seem a little bear in terms of prospects in Houston. Prospects that could have been used in any possible trade scenarios.
Earlier against the Sharks, we didn’t get blown out of the water. They beat us 3-1.
Last year, we didn’t beat the Sharks either. I think we went 0-2-2.
we might not have gotten blown out of the water, but that doesn’t mean it’s safe to go back in the water…
For those who care, I didn’t inlcude Lubomir Sekeras in the list of post 2nd-round players that have contributed because he is obviously not on the roster. But, he is in the list of Boogie and SRV.
I wouldn’t have given Rolston the money or years he got either.
The asking price was a lot less in February when DR was too concerned about hurting Demo’s fellings to talk contract with Rolston but not concerned about Demo’s feeelings enough to keep Moore over Foy or trade for a center so Demo could play wing.
DB agreed, the Houston Aeros current situation is part of the problem not the solution. Perhaps DR needs to go to the Brian Lawton school of off-season sign-a-guy-a-day thinking… Hasn’t gotten the bolts much though eh?
I have been traveling the past few days… do you know if the club has any prospects playing for any country at the World Juniors? BTW, USA vs CAN tomorrow!!! Lets GO USA!!!
Fair enough, Deep. I cannot disagree with what you are seeing.
But, none of us have a crystal ball that can see whether Bennie or Shepp will eventually solve their problems.
Personally, I think it is a lack of confidence more than anything. When things are going poorly there is nothing at all to rebuild a frail confidence level with.
My coaching experience is not particularly significant, but I did discover that the teams/players perform lots better when they are confident.
When guys are confident they react quickly to opportunities instead of going through a decision making process in their brains, that take only a couple nanoseconds but effectively stuffs whatever the opportunity.
FWIW (which is probably not much), the Bolts had some scouts at the game last night:
They want more forwards that they can waive or send back to their home countries’ teams to avoid paying their contracts?
Ice: I’m not saying that Poo-Bah and Shepp won’t turn into fantastic NHL players. What is troublesome is that it appears that Wild brass expected monster things out these two in order for this team to have a shot at defending it’s NW crown. That is ridiculous considering Shepp had all of 19 points in a full season a year ago and that Poo-Bah has been all over the place in his short time with the team. I think they both can have good careers but too much was expected out of both coming into the season.
SGS… you are right about Rolston. That deal could have probably been made in mid season and he would still be here. Having said that, in observing him in the playoffs, I though that he just played a lot of “busy” hockey in that he was all over the ice, looked like he was really busting it, but not that effective.
Plus, within his stat totals from last year, do you know where he stands in categories like GWG’s, GTG’s and so forth? I think the Dev’s shelled out a lot more for him then he might be worth at this point of his career, but I do agree w/you, DR was slow to move on his situation.
And keeping a Vet like Demo could have helped this year provided he could stay on the ice (healthy) and the price wasn’t outrageous. Is Demo getting into that category of player at this point in his career that he thinks he should get a big contract every time around just because he has been in the league for a few years? He wasn’t worth the do-re-mi last year, but certainly the lack of veteran players on the club this year is glaring like the sun coming off of JL’s dome..
Ice: I agree about the confidence aspect, especially with Poo-Bah. Last night, he had a chance for a nice 2-on-1 with Butch and then later had that breakaway chance. Both times when he had the puck, he looked as nervous as a whore in church. Just seemed like he was way to anxious. I ’spose getting called out in the media doesn’t help but he is obviously gripping the stick REAL, REAL tight.
So, is Forsberg going to play again this year???
FrozenWeiner99 - Agree that the NJD way over paid for Rolston and I don’t think he was all world or anything but having him on the second line with PMB for 2 more years would be nice right about now.
We all hear different things and interpret them differently.
What I thought was the Wild were going with the young guys because they ones they targeted were demanding lots of $$$.
And, maybe the Wild, looking long-term did not want to tie up resources and so it was time to sink or swim with the young guys.
We started the year ok, maybe they will pick it back up.
I would not count them out of the playoffs, but they are not a lock by any means, and they may not make it either.
Only if the Avs can weisel themselves into playoff position.
I have been trying to post all morning but Deep Breath is consuming so much bandwidth, I can’t seem to get through. He must be at work today.
Smug has a long term plan built around the core of Schultz, Burns, PMB, Koivu and Gaborik. Without Gaby, there is a domino effect that can’t be easily corrected. I think he is also very hesitant to make any rash moves until they better understand the effects of the economy on the salary cap. It is entirely possible that there will be very good hockey players begging for jobs before this is all over. He just seems to have accepted that the Wild are unfortunately in a tough spot and if they don’t panic and weather the storm, there will be excellent opportunities in the coming seasons. The alternative is to mortgage the future for some short term satisfaction. Smug thinks he is going to outsmart everybody else. A big problem with that long term strategy is that with free agency and salary caps, it is hard to build and keep a competent core.
For a long time I have wondered whether the people here, who would fire DR (and just about any of the Wild management that might be responsible for the team languishing lately), are as competent in their own professions as they demand from Wild managment? In other words, do you hold yourselves to this same standard?
No, my employer does.
I agree with your sentiment about vets FW99, but Demo was nothing but a bad example. I didn’t see any leadership from him, no willingness to put the team before himself, and lackluster production. I’d take Nolan over Demo anytime provided he come back soon and for the rest of the season.
Boogie and Craig ‘the punching bag’ Weller will see alot of ice against the Sharks. If they each score two goals the Wild stay in it. If they don’t score the wild get the back hand bi$%h slap from the Sharks.
Ice: I hear your optimism and trust me, I am right there with you. But, I have also come to the sad realization that the roster is made up of a whole bunch of very mediocre offensive players and that the Wild has to try and win every game 2-1. The team was successful early because of 4 things:
1)Creampuff Schedule
2)All-world penalty kill
3)Top of the line power play
4)Backstrom was diety-like.
Now, the schedule is going to be sooo much more difficult than what the team has seen. The penalty kill is still one of the best and Backstrom is, I think, one of the top goalies in the League. The pp has cooled considerably over the past 6 weeks because teams have now started to defend much better the little pass to the middle from the half-wall that we see so often. With the powerplay dipping and the team getting about 1.35 goals per game 5-on-5, that will just continue to put too much pressure on Backstop and our blueliners to not make any mistakes. Once you start playing to not make mistakes, you start to make them. Team needs finishers. This is nothing new, just a cold glass of reality.
In a strategic marketing move designed to help Marek feel more at home and to promote proper pronunciation of his name, I am placing Stoned on the Breakaway on Injured Reserve and am calling up a new player from our minor league affiliate in Wahoo, NE. This is his first opportunity in the big show and we are hopeful he will be able to adapt to the faster, more physical game that he will experience in Russo’s Rants.
SGS… I’m with you, I wish he was still here too, if anything he brought stability to the club and a steadying influence on whatever younger players were on the team.
Russo, what’s going on with John Scott? Is he just in roster purgatory?
Uh, shoulda checked for food first… Food.
Keep up the great work Russo and keep telling it how it is dont agree with you 100% of the time but thats what make America great. In this case you hit the nail on the head or the biscuit in the basket (oh wait wild cant seem to do that)
Wasn’t there a tid bit the other day that Tampa Bay may be looking to unload Lecavalier
