Gaborik surgery potentially on the horizon
Posted on January 1st, 2009 – 2:09 PMBy Michael Russo
Yesterday afternoon, I received an email from an always iron-clad source telling me that Marian Gaborik went to Colorado to see a specialist over the break. I wrote that in today’s paper because I got it confirmed from a secondary source.
What I didn’t write today is that the source also said it was recommended Gaborik have season-ending surgery. If you read last night’s blog, I alluded to this, but I felt I couldn’t write it because I couldn’t get it confirmed 100 percent from assistant GM Tom Lynn.
I’ve been digging at this all day and felt I was getting close enough to this being the truth that I got in touch with Lynn again.
This time, Lynn confirmed to me that over the next two days, the Wild is examining all of its Gaborik options. The most likely, it appears, is for Gaborik to have surgery on what Lynn described as a “hip deficiency” that’s been causing Gaborik groin pain all year.
Last May, Gaborik had surgery on his right hip to repair a torn labrum. This is to his left hip, Lynn said, and he reiterated it’s a deficiency that involves a lot of things, including his labrum.
If Gaborik has surgery, he can begin skating in a matter of weeks, Lynn said, but he’d be out until at or near the end of the season.
This is catastrophic, and I’m not talking about what this does to the team this season.
The Wild likely would have an untradeable asset, one that would likely walk at the end of the season. From Gaborik’s perspective, there is no chance he’d command anything close to around the $8 million a year the Wild offered him at the start of the season.
I’ve had calls into Gaborik all day. He hasn’t called me back yet. Nor has his agent.
I talked to Doug Risebrough this morning, and the reason I got real suspicious to pursue this story? When I asked if he was worried Gaborik wouldn’t play again this season, Risebrough basically said yes. When I told him I had heard it was recommended Gaborik have season-ending surgery, he said, “I’m not commenting.”
Like I said, Lynn is saying it wouldn’t necessarily be season-ending surgery, but pretty much so.
The big question now: Does Marian Gaborik ever wear a Wild sweater again?
—————————————————————————————————
Here is Episode 4 of Wild fans asking players questions as put together by Shari Gross — featured in there is Brent Burns, Mikko Koivu, Nick Schultz, Niklas Backstrom and the Boogeyman.
My personal favorite parts: The Boogeyman, with a grin, saying his favorite old-school players were Bob Probert, Kelly Chase and Tony Twist. Koivu saying his favorite was Mark Recchi, because earlier this season I talked to Recchi for a story about Koivu and he told some cool stories about a 12-year-old Koivu coming to Montreal visiting Saku. Recchi and Saku were road roomies. Here’s the story I’m referring to.
And finally Backstrom saying his favorite was Esa Tikkanen. I covered Tikkanen in Florida in ‘97-98. The Panthers used to practice at a place called Gold Coast Ice Arena in Pompano Beach. After practice one day, I needed to interview John Vanbiesbrouck, and this awful Finnish music was blaring out of the speakers in the locker room.
So I walked over to the stereo and lowered it so I could actually hear Beezer, and from across the room, Tikkanen started screaming at me in his legendary, Tikkanese — part English, part Finnish. Guess what I did?
Cowered like my mother’s toy poodle, Winston. Hey, I was 23. He was a legend (and a little loco).
Now if Tikkanen tried that now, … oh boy, … would I …. OK, I’d probably still turtle like I was Michael Russo and he was Boogaard’s fist.
Speaking of Boogaard, see him break Jody Shelley’s helmet with a punch last night?
As for practice, Gaborik skated before practice but not during. Assistant GM Tom Lynn said he was hoping Gaborik was going to practice Wednesday, was hoping he was going to practice today.
“I guess it’s a plan of hope right now,” Lynn said.
I’m telling you, this is not good.
Defenseman Marek Zidlicky didn’t practice today because he’s sick, Lynn said. He believes it’ll be a “one-day thing.”
I talked to Marc-Andre Bergeron, whom I believe has a knee injury. He’s been skating on his own, but he said he still aches when he starts, stops, turns and pivots.
No captain announced today, although I assume the ‘C’ is going back to Mikko Koivu. Maybe we’ll find out tomorrow.
By the way, the Sharks didn’t make it home last night. It stayed in the Twin Cities because of fog in the Bay Area.
Happy New Year!
171 Responses to "Gaborik surgery potentially on the horizon"
Why was gaby ever captain?
If it goes to mikko why not let him wear it for the rest of the season? this revolving crap is kinda silly…I vote for Nolan nothing against mikko but if we’re changing it monthly…
max:
Gaby was Captain for the way he was playing in January and February. That was a no brainer.
sunshine, that is true about gabby, but too bad he offers nothing when it comes to leadership. he can’t even nut up and play hurt(i.e. olden nolan). he’s sure making himself out to be a pansie.
What was he doing in the 4 games that he played? He was playing hurt and against the Isles and Blues, it was more obvious then against the Flames and Hurricanes. Could he have played hurt yesterday again… sure, maybe. But if it was true that he was in Colorado a few days ago, then something else might be up. Remember, he had his hip surgery in Colorado.
Look, I am not looking for leadership from Gaborik. I am just looking for goals and play some decent defense. If you haven’t seen him be a leader in 8 years, don’t expect to see it now. He is what he is — a goal scorer and game breaker when he is healthy.
Happy New Year to all!
Looks like the Red Wings will be tough on Saturday the way they are taking care of the Hawks.
I’ve always commented on here that the Captain issue really doesn’t matter that much and I’m a bit puzzeled why so may fans makes it a big deal.
I’ve been a big critic of Gaby on this blog but when I see him play I realize what an asset he can be if he just could stay healthy.
Sunshine - He was a game breaker at 75% when he played in those last games.
Because its easier to worry about the captain issue than to worry about why no elite scorers want to play for the Wild or why we don’t have good talent like other teams.
LOL - thanks for setting me straight, Sunshine. 
I guess I thought that the C went to good leaders on and off the ice was all I wanted to point out…going out and trying to get the most goals sounds like a no brainer to me.
You are right maxpower but you still can be an effective leader with out the C that’s all.
[…] Russo’s Rants – […]
IMO the whole ‘C’ to Gabby deal last spring was the beginning of the Wild pandering and capitulating to him in a weak pathetic attempt to get him to re-sign here and stay. Sure Gabby was the best and most productive player the better part of the season, but he is not a leader as SS alluded to. He had also already, by that point, made his ill timed comments about the possiblility of playing somewhere else in the future.
I’m trying to figure out why he hates being here so much though, and it is more evident then ever. He and Salcer have bent this club over in every contract negotiation up to this point.
I am also tiring of the rotating ‘C’ deal here too, the inability or unwillingness of the club to name a permanent Captain is becoming indicative of the seemingly lack of direction of this club right now. And if I remember right les Habitants always had permanent Captains. Whats up with that Diamond Doug and Jacques????
If Gabby does have surgery maybe they could give him a heart also. And some balls. Later you big puss.
Michael: The bigger question:
Do Wild fans really CARE if Gaborik will ever wear a Wild sweater again?
I, for one, really don’t. I am tired of his petulance, and his non-playing. If he really is hurt, why wasn’t this taken care of sooner? By the way Gaborik and Ron Salcer (his agent, remember him?) have played this ‘contract drive’ season, neither he nor the Wild will benefit.
If he really doesn’t want to be here, so be it. As Larry Brooks of the NEW YORK POST said earlier this fall about Gaborik and his contract demands:
“Good luck to you, young man. Enjoy your time in Russia.”
See ya on the road, Gaby…
WRT, thank you for that post! best thing i’ve read on here all day!
This discussion about the C is much ado about nothing. Who cares. What I care about is the Gaby situation which really hurts us. Not only won’t we get anything for him but he won’t even play for us. When he does play, he does spark the team. Without we just aren’t quite the same. Thank goodness for Nolan tho.
Doesn’t it seem like the best thing for both sides is a 1-year extension at this point? The Wild need to be able to get something back for him, but now they need time to do so. He needs to re-establish market value and would like to get paid beyond this season. While 1-year isn’t that much (for him, it’s an eternity for us) it’s better than nothing which is what he’d get on the open market now.
He’s got to come waaaaaay down in dollars though. Maybe a 1-year for, like $2M and then he’s that much more tradeable?? Would he even consider that? Would the PA let him come down in dollars that far from his current deal??
This sucks.
It’s a lost season for Gabby! The Wild will end up getting nothing in return for him; he’ll sign with another team as a free agent after the season. That though, in essence, will “free up” the 7 million Chinchillas he was making this year. Problem is, I don’t think the Wild will spend it in free agency next year. And if they did, they would probably sign some 35 year old former scoring icon who is now over-the-hill. Is McHale giving advice to Dougy?! One final thought, How bad is the Wild’s minor league system?!!!! The front office gets a D- for a grade. And that is being kind because I wanted to start the New Year off on a more compasionate note. GEEEZ!
This is about the worst news that could have come.
The thing I keep thinking about though, is how fortunate the wild are that they are not on the hook for 8 mil over the next 10 for this guy. He may never play a full season again for us or anyone. The Gaby bubble (though significantly smaller than it once was) has officially popped.
I really doubt that Gaby would sign a deal with us. More likely he will sign a short-term contract with someone else as he tries to prove that the surgery solved the problem.
Its Mikkos team. If the revolving captaincy ever stops, He’ll be the one standing when the dust snow settles. If it does continue, I hope that Nolan gets a month, especially if he continues to play hurt and lead by example.
The one thing that we should consider is that without gabby or the assets we could have received for him, we are very likely on a straight path for a top ten pick (do we own this years?). I guess that’s not nothing in return for losing gabby.
I wish that he’d sign with us.
Just one comment, Mr. Doug please sign Backs, now!
“The Wild likely would have an untradeable asset, one that would likely walk at the end of the season.”
This has gone from bad to worse to catastrophic. WTF Doug? I realize the injury is very bad luck, but your job is to determine if you can re-sign the player and if not get him traded and get something of value in return. Once again it’s looking likely that a Wild player (best in team history) will walk and we’ll see nothing in return. I guess there’s a chance that Marianne re-signs for a year at a lower price, but he showed enough in his 6 games that there will be more than a few teams willing to overpay for his services during the off-season. I gotta beleive that the relationship with Mangina is so sour that he’d rather play for someone else next year even if the dollars are the same as the Wild is offering. I can’t see Mangina playing for $2M next year. Someone will pay him $6M next year because he’ll be good as new, just like he was before his hacky sack injury. this is getting stranger and stranger and shi##ier and shi%%ier for the fans every day.
Wow! Surgery. Damn.
I mean…..
Damn.
And if they did, they would probably sign some 35 year old former scoring icon who is now over-the-hill.
at least they’d be doing something different.
Doesn’t it seem like the best thing for both sides is a 1-year extension at this point?
the only way that happens is if DR offers him something like $6m for next year now. I think salcer would have no choice but to accept because I don’t see that offer being made next year. Then again, why wouldn’t #10 take a $2m deal with some team in the exciting east so he can go offense only and pile on stats to then really cash in in 2010?
The good thing is i think this puts the #10 drama to bed.
oh and blame DR all you want, i know it’s coming, for not moving him last year or before this season but there was no indication this was going to happen then. zero. it’s called a seriously bad break.
on a side note, what do y’all think the black hawks have for picks and prospects? I could easily see them in the market for Backstrom at the deadline. Goalie is the missing link I think. That and figuring out the Red Wings.
jesus christ. This just killed the franchise. It would be so much easier if he just resigned for a few years.
Oh well. Let the wait for the kids to grow up begin.
Doug has to be held accountable for this. This should be the last F up he’s allowed to make. Leipold better be paying attention because this is the state of hockey, but it’s not the state of sheep who follow blindly. the honeymoon is over and the fans demand an NHL team, not an expansion team. If Marianne walks and we get nothing in return, we’re looking at 3-5 years of expansion team hockey. Greaaaat! Yes the sky is beginning to fall.
Then again, why wouldn’t #10 take a $2m deal with some team in the exciting east so he can go offense only and pile on stats to then really cash in in 2010?
yeah, that makes sense too.
on a side note, what do y’all think the black hawks have for picks and prospects? I could easily see them in the market for Backstrom at the deadline. Goalie is the missing link I think. That and figuring out the Red Wings.
they would have to find a taker for at least one of their expensive goalies, but it would be a good fit I agree.
This should be the last F up
how did he F this up? just curious. is it because he didn’t look into your crystal ball and see that #10 was going to end up having potentially season ending surgery after the 1st of the year? I mean if you knew this, why the hell didn’t you tell him back in september?
they would have to find a taker for at least one of their expensive goalies
or find someone to take havlat
Man… rough crowd here. MaryAnn probably doesn’t want to sign here b/c of these comments.
is it because he didn’t look into your crystal ball and see that #10 was going to end up having potentially season ending surgery after the 1st of the year? I mean if you knew this, why the hell didn’t you tell him back in september?
I think many people were saying that it was too risky *not* to trade Gaborik before the season started.
I’m not surprised this is happening, are you?
What I *really* can’t understand is why Risebrough isn’t locking up Backstrom in a contract or even TRYING to do that. That is a bigger problem with me, because that is something the GM *does* have control over.
Or do you guys think Risebrough is just waiting for the end of the season to trade him for another useless asset?
I’m not saying that DR should have known that this injury was coming. I’m saying that it’s his job to not put the team in a position for this to happen. Gabby is a world class talent with a long injury history. As soon as he realized that Gabby wasn’t going to re-sign (it’s the GM’s job to figure this out) he should have dealt Gabby and gotten value in return. Now we’re looking at the likely possibility of Gabby going somewhere else and the Wild with a bunch of Antti Lakksonen’s on the 2nd and 3rd line. There’s a market for Gabby so the delusion that he’ll sign with the Wild for $2M is outlandish. Teams will line up to pay him huge dollars in the offseason. I’m pissed right now.
he should have dealt Gabby and gotten value in return
but, and this is the big unknown, if that value was a 5th round draft pic, do you call that value? We’ve been round and round this ad infinitum. Until I know he was offered a prospect, a #1 pick, a #2 pick, then i cannot completely blame DR for keeping him.
Or do you guys think Risebrough is just waiting for the end of the season to trade him for another useless asset?
if the wild go into the tank, like 90% of people here now believe, and end up sellers at the deadline, backstrom will fetch a very high price. there will be a team in the playoffs that would love to have a goaltender that could steal games and will pay handsomely for it.
I’m not surprised this is happening, are you?
A little but, yes. I did not expect #10 to need surgery. I didn’t expect but knew it was possible, that he would be out with injury.
What the heck is it with the black cloud hanging over this town? Just once, can’t we find a guy who wants to be here, plays hard, plays hurt and doesn’t whine all the time about style of play, etc… Oh wait we’ve got him in Jared Allen. There’s no way Gabby is going to get 80 million from anyone if he has this surgery. He’d be wise to fire his agent and get Daunte to represent him then resign with the Wild for a song.
“if that value was a 5th round draft pic, do you call that value? We’ve been round and round this ad infinitum. Until I know he was offered a prospect, a #1 pick, a #2 pick, then i cannot completely blame DR for keeping him.”
If we were willing to pay him $8M, AND HE TURNED IT DOWN, it’s safe to say we would have gotten more than a 5th in trade.
it’s safe to say we would have gotten more than a 5th in trade.
really? how is that? how do we know this? What would motivate a team to offer any value for him at the beginning of the season? especially since we shouldn’t sign him since he was sure to get injured. it’s been said many times that the league is a deadline league. That tells me that the value being offered on oct 1 was not value. The opportunity was last years deadline, draft day, before the signing period.
I think the problem is that in the beginning of the season, most teams have filled their roster and want to see what they can do before making trades. Set roster also equals cap filled either by the league setting or internal caps.
Some teams were just not in the market to take on Gaborik’s contract because they are in rebuilding mode.
The Wild will get nothing but they will get rid of Gaborik and have more cap space to really overpay for that 1 player that can bring other good players to the team.
In the long run, Gaborik might actually come ahead if he goes the surgery route. He would have sufficient time to recover before the season starts. He also would not get his big money for 1 or 2 years if he signed a much smaller contract with an East team, but, he could go after the Cup and wait out any new CBA talks and the recession. In addition, he would not feel the pressure to be the go-to guy
I am, at this point, more concerned about DR not signing Backs. I do not see how anyone could have foreseen this level of disaster with Gaby and, like G*, without knowing what DR was offered for Gaby I have no idea whether he should have traded him. We would have been calling for his head if we were dissatisfied with what he got and wondered why he didn’t wait for the deadline. But, Backs–sign him. Quit wasting time.
I hope Salcer and Marian take a long, hard look at what they have done. I am upset that DR didn’t trade Gabby before he even touched the ice this season, but man, their greed has really effed up this whole situation. Where’s Buddha? Karma’s a mean SOB eh?
*honor*
I beieve that if MG had any personal honor, he would sign a one year deal with the wild giving himself the opportunity to prove he is “cured” and giving the wild the opportunity trade for real value.
I agree: the GM should have examined worse case scenarios and acted accordingly. This would have meant a trade before the season started…the moment MG did not sign or indicate he would sign. (yes, i know, hindsight is perfect).
What has Salcer and Gaborik done? They did the team a favor for turning down the contract. We don’t know what his health outlook will be after he undergoes surgery. They still have his rights until July 1st. If they evaluate him and see that he is much better, they can offer him a shorter contract before July 1st or do a Rolston where you trade his rights to another team — at least a 3rd round pick.
I hope Salcer and Marian take a long, hard look at what they have done
obviously if Salcer knew what apparantly we all knew, that #10 would be injured all year and need surgery, he would have taken the wild’s $80million offer.
it’s safe to say we would have gotten more than a 5th in trade
we couldn’t move that gretzky like goal scorer, mark parrish, and bought him out. he was only $2mil and is a goal scorer. but we should have been able to get good value for #10 and his $6mil? I just don’t think it was there.
He doesn’t need to “honor” any one year contract like that with Wild.
He can do that with any team for much less with better players. Imagine him taking Satan (1 yr $3.5 million) or Fedtenko’s (1 yr $2 million) money to play next to Crosby or Malkin for one year. He could put up more goals and points assuming he stays healthy.
of course he does not need to honor any such contract…but by doing so, it would show character
cripes, fire risebrough now now now! everyone with half a brain was saying gabby needed to be traded before the season since it didn’t look like a deal was gonna be done…DR waited like he always does…then gabby gets hurt right away, oops!…the absolute best we could have hoped for was off loading him in a mediocre deal at the trade deadline but now he might be done for the season? ouch! now watch him wait on backs until backs can smell big free agency money and bails on us. *fire risebrough* how can any of you still defend this guy. seriously.
He can show character with a much better and high profile team at a much reduced price.
If he has to go that route, he is not going to be doing it with the Wild. They don’t have enough talent to help him.
Doug needs go after some of those free agent Red Wings after the end of the season. Franzen, Zetterberg, Hossa would all look good playing for the Wild.
Kim Johnsson needs to go after this season also. He is a good d-man, but his production does not merit his contract.
“we couldn’t move that gretzky like goal scorer, mark parrish, and bought him out. he was only $2mil and is a goal scorer. but we should have been able to get good value for #10 and his $6mil?”
It was clear that Parrish’s ‘goal scorer’ days were behind him. Sort like Brunette’s goal scoring days are starting to look.
Are you comparing Gaborik entering the prime of his career to a 45 yr old Parrish who was a healthy scratch many games at the end of last season? This isn’t an apples to apples comparison, more like a honey crisp apple compared to a month old pear (even if you account for the different contract dollars).
I guess the one silver lining is that we don’t have a pile of money tied up with Marianne for the next ten years.
6:00pm is not the real Pewterschmidt, but I can’t disagree with anything this imposter wrote.
Zero chance Gaby plays for us after this year. It wouldn’t surprise me if he signs a one year deal somewhere though to see how the cap works and also because teams will be somewhat leery and also so he can show he is healthy enough to demand more and a longer deal. After all whatever we think he is a premier offensive player. I suspect that something in the $4M range might be available altho whoever signs him will have doctors all over him trying to figure it out.
that 6pm was me pewteschmidt, don’t know why it posted with your name dude…
I’m getting sooo bored with the Gabby stuff. It is a soap opera that seemingly never ends.
re; the possibility of trading gabby last year, with the team on a run to the NW title and playoffs why would DR trade his one bonafide scorer with a playoff run on the line?
Then, Gabby’s hip problems had to be developing before the playoff began based on the way he looked in the Av’s series. Then he has surgery, making him temporarily untradeable.
Then…. he comes back from Europe for camp and spends most of camp lying around in the bushes w/Salcer trying to get something done w/DR, and he must not have been OK then because he did nothing at camp or in the preseason.
Then he plays 2 games and he is gone….
I am not defending DR but I am trying to figure out, (not for the benefit of all of the DR bashers on here) how he was supposed to make a deal for this guy with all of the tangibles and intangibles this guy has presented over the last 10 months?? And considering all of the minutiae a GM has to go through to trade a guy that is in good shape physically.
I am also trying to figure out where all of this nonsensical talk of the “wide open” offensive style of the East comes from when all 30 teams in the show basically play the same style of play?? And this style is pretty much a hybrid, developed over the past 15 years off of the model created by Mr. JL back in the 93-94-95 era….
I like the 1 year extension idea, it would be “honorable”, but Gabby and Salcer are not about honor, they are about green, hard, cold cash. Lots and lots of it. They are not realistic enough to consider an extension or doing something out of honor.
Gabby…. hope to see you in the KHL, if you ever get well enough to play again.
Amen FW
Why can’t the Wild ever have a man in front of the net to get the pass from Bruno who works his rearend off behind the net. Other teams plant one guy in front of the goal and score of tips and redirected pucks all the time. The dump and chase is getting old. Last night Bruno should have had at least two goals, Ref’s took one and he topped the pipe on another. Alot of people say let Gabby go see ya later. I was at the X the night he came back, those weren’t boos I heard when he stepped in for his first shift or on the goal he scored. Until the fans turn at the X DR will keep trying to bring him back. Maybe it’s time for Lemarie to open up to the new style of hockey. I love Lemarie but something has got to change.
FW:
Gaborik’s hip problem was there for most of the year. He said that he felt painful pinches at the beginning of last season but thought he could play through it for most of the year and he did.
The Pio is quoting Lynn as saying that the surgery on his left hip has left Gaborik pain free in his left groin muscles. However, his right side is what’s bothering him.
Gaborik could play at 75-80% for the rest of the season. The question is will that satisfy him and will that benefit him in the long run? Walz left the game when he couldn’t play at his 100% best.
Ideally, I would like Gaborik to play at 75% for the next two months. If the Wild are completely out of the playoff picture, he should go and have his surgery and rehab it for the whole summer. Trade his rights at the deadline or earlier for a pick.
OK, Gabby leaves and we have $$$$ that we would have spent (wasted) on him. We take thos $$$$ and sign someone else to replace him…kinda like a trade. Who’s out there?
Bucket16… the dump & chase has returned because of the new rules. You can now D&C without getting killed, maimed, hooked, interferred with etc…
I see some teams use it w/benefit if they have the guys who can “crash & retrieve”.
And I think most Wild fans still have some respect for Gabby, I am irritated with him right now, but I do realize his contributions to the club in its short existence and I thank him for those. I do think though that he and his agent have handled his impending free agency with a total disregard for Pub Relations. When most folks have little to no info about a situation close to them and their emotions, they will usually insert their own, usually negative info or suspicions.
Even with the new league rules about injury info in place, if Gabby, Salcer and DR would be a little more up front w/the fan base here, a lot of the “tension” that Russo writes about would probably dissolve in short time. And with no info? I’m usually pretty patient, but even I am tiring of this whole sordid mess….
Knowing DR, he will get the wrong people to come here with all those extra dollars.
Can the Wild just cut Gaborik now, save some money and sign someone on waivers like Shanahan or do they still need to pay this puss for the rest of the year regardless?
SS, Happy New Year… you are right about the info re; Gabby current injury status. Personally I would hate to see him play at 75% or less, too much potential for something even more disastrous to happen, you could take a real beating out there without an ability to avoid or absorb major physical contact.
This presents a whole new challenge to DR and I’m not sure what he can do. I would have to give it some more thought. Once in awhile a unique player will do something to “help” in a scenario like this. It is probably wishful thinking, but it would be nice to think that Gabby, Salcer and DR could come to some kind of gentlemens agreement that helps out both parties until a longer term solution is available. Would G & S do that? I don’t see it in them, but I could be wrong, it would be nice, and would be an excellent PR move by team Gabby, even if he is on his way out….
Gaby and Salcer don’t care about public relations because he has no intention of signing here. So when he signs somewhere else the fans there will not care one whit about his PR here. It is just business. But Salcer may have overplayed his hand given the recent news.
And like I stated before. Maybe Gaby was traded, but part of the deal was that he plays 5-10 games to prove that he is healthy (since he missed most of the pre-season). Maybe it was a done deal that he was gone. We are missing the important inside info to come to any conclusion on if DR screwed up or not. If I was a GM and I thought that Gaby might still be hurt, I would want to see him play a few games before pulling the trigger. Since I am looking at a 80+mil payout, I want to make sure I am buying a solid player, not the broken player we currently have.
Ah, more drama. Yay.
Here’s what I think: Nick’s notion of just putting a 1 year extension together and basically getting a “do over” for both parties is smart. They’re professionals and can put this latest tension behind them.
Injuries to athletes suck. Chronic injuries suck the worst. I understand the wish to assign blame SOMEWHERE, but it’s not productive. This is just the reality that the team has to deal with. And I kinda wonder, with this knowledge probably circulated among the team yesterday or earlier, that they realized they have play and find a way to win without expecting him back.
And I think you better get used to Kolanos up there. I think this cements his spot on the team.
Deathgrip: I believe he is still Wild property as he’s still listed as “in the system” but is “on loan” to Rochester. Though I can’t imagine the Wild will re-sign him.
FrozenWeiner99- I agree with you, had all parties been more up front with all this from the start instead of the Hush-Hush lower body injury that was reported to the fans things may have been different. However I’m sure DR was hoping Gabby could come back and play and be all right and then trade him why else bring him back for 4 games and then sit him. Also the D&C does work for some teams but just not the Wild, I remember the 06-07 Playoffs against Anh. we dumped and could never get to the puck because of their size and speed. We need to at least try something different.
They can put Gaborik on long-term IR like Foster and have his cap be open. However, the Wild will have to pay him since its already out there that he might need season-ending surgery.
Once Gaborik decides to have his surgery, he’s done with the Wild from the team’s POV and from his. He needs to rebuild his health reputation. Moreover, he’s not going to pad his stats on a team that even Lemaire says doesn’t have a lot of talent. The Wild don’t want to go through another injury season. They will cut their losses and spend that extra $6-8 million in getting another scorer.
Its done. Gaborik’s days with the Wild are over.
Oh here we go with the moderation beast again. Trying a second time:
Ah, more drama. Yay.
Here’s what I think: Nick’s notion of just putting a 1 year extension together and basically getting a “do over” for both parties is smart. They’re professionals and can put this latest tension behind them.
Injuries to athletes stink. Chronic injuries stink the worst. I understand the wish to assign blame SOMEWHERE, but it’s not productive. This is just the reality that the team has to deal with. And I kinda wonder, with this knowledge probably circulated among the team yesterday or earlier, that they realized they have play and find a way to win without expecting him back.
And I think you better get used to Kolanos up there. I think this cements his spot on the team.
Deathgrip: I believe Emmerson is still Wild property as he’s still listed as “in the system” but is “on loan” to Rochester. Though I can’t imagine the Wild will re-sign him.
or find someone to take havlat
What, and go with three goalies?
You guys are bothered by the fact that they didn’t say he had a groin injury and missed 30 games? Its not like we didn’t guess that it was that problem. That’s just like the captain issue — a small issue that people like to blow up into a bigger issue.
Don’t sweat the small stuff, folks!
I am more bothered by the fact that they didn’t realize that the groin injury was the result of his hip problem sooner. He could have had surgery in early November and could be rehabbing now.
Well, I have stuff to say on this but the moderation is hanging on something totally harmless that I’m trying to say.
Basically along the lines of yes to the one year extension. Time to deal with reality and quit wasting energy pointing fingers. Gaby’s bum hip isn’t anybody’s fault. Get over the hate. Don’t worry. Be happy.
Deathgrip: I believe Emmerson is still Wild property as he’s still listed as “in the system” but is “on loan” to Rochester. Though I can’t imagine the Wild will re-sign him.
KiPA:
Yeah! What’s up with your Pens lately?
sunshine: They suck. Like I’ve been saying for weeks.
Woodcock… you are correct. But if I was Gabby I would not want to depart from here in a cloud of negativity. Sure it’s business, but I wouldn’t want to be one of those guys who when the time comes to look back on the career, the “body of work”, had this one major, negative bump in the road, I would want to be smiling.
If he and the club can’t get together on a “business deal” thats one thing, I believe that most fans would understand that. But no one has been handling this in a positive businesslike fashion thus far. I think DR tried it that way and then he ran in to the unrealistic expectations and over infalted sense of worth that team Gabby has about him.
AUGH!!!! I hate the moderation on here! Whoever get the moderation requests is laughing at me right now.
Nick: I agree
Whiners about weiners: I do not agree.
Person who asked about Emmerson: Yes, still Wild property.
SLOT. So there.
re: Risebrough’s no comment…
Saturday Night Live did a skit in 1979 where President Carter visited a nuclear plant as it was melting down and was irradiated. He became the “Amazing Colossal President”.
The press conference went like this…
Reporter: “Is it true the President is over 100 feet tall?”
Spokesman: “No! Absolutely Not! Completely Untrue!”
Reporter: “Is it true the President is over 90 feet tall?”
Spokesman: “No comment.”
Even Malkin has been sucking! I have been catching a few of their games online because I wanted to see why Malkin wasn’t getting me any FH points.
Boy, they don’t look good at all.
I don’t know how much more I can take, sorry Vikings Fans I had to live through the Farve Saga from April thru August now this. I lost a lot of intrest in football because of that I hope this dosen’ ruin hockey for me too.
Yeah, I don’t know what it is. Not sure if they’re getting burned out on Therrien, or not liking how sucky their teammates are, or what.
Some fans will point to all the injuries but that’s a crock. The only injury that’s debilitating is Gonchar.
Welllll….looks like Risebrough really screwed the pooch on this one. As soon as Gaborik decline their offer, he should have been traded. And quite frankly this should have been wrapped up last year. Risebroughs incompetency is going to cost the Wild dearly…..again. Perhaps he can trade his for Chris Simon.
Great win last night. They needed it so badly.
Who wore the “C” when Johnsson went home for Calgary?
One thing to consider in the Gabby situation is the risk a team can get easily hung with a big contract with a sudden injury. They still are stuck with the contract and with the CBA cannot really afford to replace the player.
Until we get a new head coach the wild will never be a high scoring team due to an out dated system. I hope Gabby can land on a team that will use his offensive talents more instead of forcing him to have to focus on defense 1st.
Havlat is back on his game, is healthy and will re-sign w/the Hawks for a more realistic contract IMO, based on his overall last 3 years w/them.
Khabibulin will not get traded either, I don’t see anyone taking on his contract, there are a very limited number of teams that could absorb it right now. (and the Hawks should have started him over Huet today, they would have won) I think he may very well end up staying w/the Hawks as well for a more reasonable deal. (IMO)
Well let’s just dump/trade the overpaid losers we have and start over.
the Hawks should have started him over Huet today, they would have won)
Khabibulin lost 4-0 to the Red Wings on Tuesday.
Kevin! Hi.
Hi. Won’t be staying long, just heard the Gaborik news.
“Khabibulin lost 4-0 to the Red Wings on Tuesday”
He was hung out to dry on 2 of the goals, and his boys failed to finish on 6 solid scoring chances.
Huet gave up 3 softies today IMO, and that cost his boys at least a chance at a victory. 2 five hole goals in one game???? Yikes….
Misery loves company, eh? 
Not really, was just curious to see how many people were prepping Risebrough for the chopping block.
We all have 20/20 hindsight. If I only had that vision I could have avoided the meltdown of my retirement funds.
Based on NHL stats avail @ 600PM CT;
The “Wide Open” Eastern Conference 15 clubs; 1618 Goals For
The “Not so open”, only JL style defensive play-unoffensive Western Conf 15 teams; 1612 Goals For
FW99, Urban legend, eh?
I think NiNY hit it on the head…. sort of. The best thing for both parties at this time is a 1-year extension. I would also agree at reduced money but there is no way the PA would allow anything less than about $4 million a year. At that price, I’d take the chance because I think I can get something for him. Hell, if we are going to waste $1 million a year on the Foster Charity to get nothing but some “goodwill”… why not work a deal with Gaborik to get him back so we can get something for him.
Unless he’s done for good… NiNY this is the best option I have heard.
And to DR… you can “no comment” your way out of your screw-ups. They always come to the surface no matter how hard you try. You should have set that August 1st deadline with Slacer and when it passed traded him before the season starts.
To CL… if we get nothing for Gaborik, you better be looking for a new GM by the end of the season so we can have a new guy in place for the draft. What has taken place was no fluke…. we all (including DR) knew what COULD and eventually DID happen!!!
AND…. if this doesn’t smack DR in the face to make a move then he should be fired tomorrow.
There is SOME value on this team left. Time to make the big move to move Sheppard, Johnsson and a 4th rounder to Ottawa for Spezza.
Anything.. something!!
This is bad for the Wild from financial perspective. But otherwise, who cares? Gaborik is the most overrated player in the NHL. The Wild have three or four players who play better and get paid less.
Sheppard, Johnsson and a 4th rounder to Ottawa for Spezza
Wow.
On that note, see y’all later.
can they waive him to ditch salary?
They cant trade him, so wouldn’t this be a way to clear cap space?
Hey KiPA -
Ottawa is as desperate as we are.. they are looking for a puck moving defenseman AND Spezza is odd man out based on his hefty price tag. It’s not that unreasonable.
If the Wild put Gabby on LTIR, they could go over the cap to sign someone or bring someone in to replace him. I don’t believe that is limited to just farm club call-ups.
Not to mention, if DR wants to give us fans a little faith that his isn’t completely clueless… he should be on the phone with Backstrom and locking him into a long term deal, just to show he still cares.
[…] Russo’s Rants – […]
This really is a shame. When Gabby was at his best he electrified the X. Is was great watching him play and to this fan he was the most exciting Wild player. Really really a shame he has the injury bug. But with our luck Gabby will move on to another team and become a prolific scorer.
actually, now that the Gaby situation is done, there’s absolutely no excuse for DR not to be on the phone to Bachmans to send a butt-load of flowers over to Backs and then to Nik’s agent to see if that bridge is still intact.
When you are on the hook for $7M and the guy doesn’t play for the whole season, is there insurance in place to cover the loss?
They make is sound like these deficiencies in the hip have been there all along or maybe I misread it. You would think with the way his groins have been studied, any congenital deficiencies would have been identified long ago.
Wait til DB gets a hold of this. He just won’t be able to let it go.
MsC: Anybody who posts “Where’s my Hot Pocket” is going to end up on the moderators watch list.
SotB: yeah, the stuff about this latest trip to Vail revealing the same exact issue in the left hip that they fixed in the right hip was a little disconcerting. Like, why not check ‘em both out the first time? Unless the procedure takes a year of his life or something like that…
For all the frustration on all parties, I am not sure there was that much that could have been done. We’re dealing with a health issue and those are unpredictable. As much as it sucks for the Wild, imagine how Gaby must feel wondering whether he is ever going to make it back and to what extent. It is hard to call him a pansy when he has been nursing an injury all along that now requires surgery.
When I said earlier that Salcer and Gabby should look at what they’ve done I was referring to them turning down a reasonable (and with hindsight ridiculously generous) offer so they could get big money in free agency.
Is this logical of me considering they did perhaps save us from paying him big money to suck? No. It isn’t logical at any level. I’m just pissed. And if I thought that #10 gave a rip about this club I might not be.
I hope he goes to the East and sets single season individual records while leading his team to the bottom of the league for the rest of his days.
/End rant
Didn’t Matt Birk sit out most of a season for a labrum repair? Hard to make comparisons between such similar physical specimens, though.
I heard spending 10 hours a day during the off season in the F-1 simulator has got to really tighten up those hip/groin muscles!
If they really want to send a clear message to Gabby, give his brother ‘the Euro scout’ his walking papers now!
Fair enough, Stoned.
DR is culpable in this because it’s his job. He should have known at the draft that Gho$t would never re-sign with the Wild.
Even with the off-season hip surgery, he would have had some value.
It is disappointing that it turned out this way. It sounds like surgery is inevitible. Either that or Gho$t has to show a pair that have previously been absent in his career.
WRT…you said it best.
Ahhh, I see the hindsight crew has been at it all day! Sorry, recovering from last night, and my several newly-sustained injuries at the hand of my daughter’s stick this afternoon.
There’s some good points here. However there is such an atmosphere of armchair GM’ing here, you have to weed out the posts that are just basically angry fans expressing their outrage.
Misplaced outrage, IMHO.
Why is it everyone wants to assign some blame? Is someone to blame? Should someone be held accountable because your expectations weren’t met? Or because you have the luxury of 20-20 hindsight?
I grow tired of reading “Gaby’s just greedy”, or “Salcer’s caused this”, or Risebrough needs to go”, or “Leipold has to make changes”. If you’re out looking for a scapegoat, I have only one thing to say: Cry some more.
SotB is right, DB is gonna read this and go off again on Risebrough. If Gaborik doesn’t play again this season, then he doesn’t. It’s not his fault, nor Salcers, nor DR’s, nor anyone elses. It’s an injury, and they happen, and sometimes they’re unexpected.
So you know I’m not just blowing smoke, here’s why: Gaborik had surgery back in the summer, which was for a supposedly unrelated problem that had bothered him last year. He’d worked out well last year, not missing many games. So, if anyone has some idea that Risebrough should be fired for not trading him before the start of the season, I’m glad you’re not running the team. That would be irresponsible. Gaborik was supposed to be improved this year, free from injury again. To blame anyone for his groin issue is ridiculous. There is no “out” for this scenario. The guy has an injury, and it needs to be taken care of.
Second, what we get out of it is irrelevant, and totally unrelated to letting Demitra walk, and not signing Rolston in time. The Wild own Gaborik until June 30. If Gaborik can’t prove he’s healthy and can skate before July 1, he’ll get nothing. Offers for 2-3M/yr from a few teams, and if he takes them, fine. He isn’t worth anything to the Wild, or anyone else. He’s not an investment you can always be guaranteed a value for. His stock rises and falls, and that can’t be pinned on him, his agent, or his team.
I’m beginning to think KiPA has the right idea: Stay away from these Negative Nancy’s for a while. That’s all some of you have been lately.
Thank you, MuN. The point about assigning blame is one I was trying to make in my post that kept getting eaten by moderation.
I prefer to look on the bright side of this, we have 8 mil to play with…
We should trade kimmy for a young forward/center, and build up….make a play for bowmeester (LOVE THAT GUY!) in the off season, trade zidlicky for another forward/center (heck trade them both and pouliot and a 2nd rounder for horton and bowmeester and a prospect, but only if you lock up j.b.
I would like to see them sign up backstrom longterm, unless they really feel as though Harding is ready (certainly cheaper, but a bit of an unknown)
as for gabby, good ridance to bad groins/hips. He was a great player, but was too selfish in his time here (complaining about the teams style of play constantly, the contract holdouts, and stand stills, and ridiculous contract demands)
Saw burnsie in my best buy today, he was rocking out to eye of the tiger, and was in a general jovial mood, so I guess that is a good sign…
I would like another koivu on this team next year too….saku is a free agent….hopefully the chance to play with his brother will lower his cost so we can get both him and j.b.
MUN: You miss one point and i get tired of being lectured by you, and apparently by “ms conduct”. As you well know, DR met with MG in Slovakia in august. It should have been very clear at that point as to whether or not MG would sign. Hip or no hip. Presumably, for some reason, DR came away from that meeting thinking MG would sign. DR set a deadline of season opener. DR made an offer, so we hear. It was refused. The trade should have been made there…period.
Now, onto another topic.
MuN…a good post and blame isn’t always easy to assess. Ultimately, because of his job, DR is accountable for personnel on the Wild. He may be a victim of circumstance, but, it comes with the same territory as drafting a star in the 5th round.
My fear is that as usual, DR will do nothing and get nothing for Gho$t. It may be no one’s fault - but the team gets another HUGE hole to fill.
At times it seems as though he is paralyzed by his past. The bad deals in his past have made him reluctant to make moves. Other GMs will fill holes. DR asks JL to plug ‘em. It is inexcusable that he hasn’t addressed the need at C and potentially ruining a young player like Sheppard with unreal expectations. As many long time Russotans can attest to, I have been critical of DR since the lockout.
Russo’s article pointed out the inconsistancies of ‘the plan’ better than I can. The cold hard facts are inescapeable, and a very good effort (and win) against the Sharkies doesn’t change the reality of the state of the team.
I do have to admit…my attitude toward Owen Nolan has changed. Man, that guy has guts. His physical skills may be past their prime, but his will and character are definitely prime-time.
I think a lot people had pretty strong suspicions long before that trip to Slovakia even that Gaborik wasn’t going to sign an extension with the Wild. Go back to the all star game, people. Russo wrote what Gaby said then and added some of his perceptions that he sounded like a guy who wanted to try the greener grass somewhere else. As usual, he was spot on.
And now we have the worst-case scenario. I’ll leave it at that.
C99:
MUN: You miss one point and i get tired of being lectured by you, and apparently by “ms conduct”. As you well know, DR met with MG in Slovakia in august. It should have been very clear at that point as to whether or not MG would sign. Hip or no hip. Presumably, for some reason, DR came away from that meeting thinking MG would sign. DR set a deadline of season opener. DR made an offer, so we hear. It was refused. The trade should have been made there…period.
1. I’m not lecturing you, but pointing out that your argument is rather one-sided, and without merit because you don’t consider all of the facts.
2. When you can show a trade was offered, and passed on by DR at that time, then you have a credible argument.
3. If there were no takers, there can be no trade. If no trade, no blame.
—–
KJ, you’re so right; DR is accountable as the GM for all personnel moves. He may have botched some draft picks, and some trades. He may have gotten some good ones. Totally understand the fear that he’ll do nothing and get nothing for the guy. He doesn’t go out and make splashy deals. We all know that, he’s as conservative a GM as they come.
But the hole is there regardless. Even with a player, and a pick for the guy, it’s still not an instant return, and you always risk the fact the return we’d get for Gaborik - even at huge value - might bomb, or wash out. Who would have thought Parrish wouldn’t succeed here? Who would have thought Benny wouldn’t rise higher than he has? With every pick, or player, it’s a risk that might or might not turn out. That’s why I don’t get all to worked up over what he does get - because you never know what you’ll have anyway for a while.
We still don’t know the give and take between DR and JL.. Who knows? Maybe JL told DR he has what he needs? If the coach thinks his squad needs something, he should tell the GM what he needs. Maybe both of them don’t think there’s a need for another center, or at least the need isn’t as bad as we might see it?
That’s my only point is that many times it’s correct to be critical, and call out the management and/or coaches and players. Russo called them out on the current situation. I say good job he did so. The fans are angry, and he’s telling it like it is. I’m just saying that for the sake of argument here, we don’t sound like some of the clueless fans who just whine day in and day out about how bad things are - just to do so.
Toivo that’s for you too! I agree, it might be worse case, but there might be nothing that could have been done.
MuN…my point is that it isn’t an occurrance or 2…it’s a pattern with DR.
But, my criticism doesn’t fix the situation.
DR has put himself and the franchise in this position…he’ll need to extricate himself or CL will do it for him.
I dunno, KJ.. I think if you looked at a lot of GM’s around the league, you could make the same sort of argument.
I agree, he’s no Ken Holland, but there’s not many that go out and make huge plays. Then again, we never really get to judge the fruits of the labors of other GM’s.
I think they all have ups and downs. There’s a few clear winners out there, but by and large I think they’re all doing what they think is best, even if it doesn’t work out sometimes.
But I agree that he’ll have to do something about the current position. However I’d think it goes in stages: Player changes, then coaching changes, then management changes.
However, if he does nothing, how can he be judged on whether he did everything he could have, even if there was nothing to be done?
My name is Michael and I am from up north. I like to write the longest blog posts ever.
I think the Wild need a little Spezza in there soup! Get it done DR or get out of town.
RUSSO - Has there been any word from Leopold on this Gabby situation. Just curious…
Michael- one vote in agreement for #10 not wearing a Wild sweater. But, we still have you and Brian!
Happy new year to Russoville.
I mean, I guess the question is whether or not this last month of this season is enough to undermine how the team has performed since CL took over - which was late March, IIRC??
We’re talking about a body of time in which they ascended to the division title, played in the playoffs, started out house afire this season, and has been going through an (admittedly horrendous, deflating, manhood robbing) ugly streak for the majority of the last month. But does December render moot March, April, May, June, July, August, September, October and November - to Craig Leipold ??
I think DR can STILL - and remember I’m now in the camp that’s ready for a regime change in hockey ops - go to CL and ask for more time. CL does not appear to be a meddling owner - and wasn’t in Nashville as far as we can tell. One might say that CL OWNS such a reputation. (Sorry, couldn’t resist.) Sure he wants his new toy to kick butt, but how many potential GMs are burning up his Blackberry right now emailing him their CVs? Probably not too many.
I’m just not sure we should be expecting a change at GM just because we may or may not want it/think it’s warranted.
What, and go with three goalies?
waive bulin. it’s the last year of his deal and the end of the season. maybe someone will pick him back up thru reentry and you are only on hook for half for the last month. to me it doesn’t matter if you want backstrom’s services.
As much as I didn’t think #10 wanted to resign here, he has been quoted in the papers as wanting to get a deal done here many times this summer. Blaming DR for not knowing he wouldn’t sign, because that is a GM’s job, is a stretch.
If #10 knew the current problem existed but thought he could get thru the season and have it done summer of 09, would the Wild have known that? If not did they have a right to know?
Reading DR’s comments in the story lead me to believe he is as pissed as anyone this is happening.
guess the question is whether or not this last month of this season is enough to undermine how the team has performed since CL took over - which was late March, IIRC??
what have you done for me lately or
since we haven’t won the cup we are failures.
Craig Leipold is going to watch the bottom line. And I suspect he won’t pull the trigger on Risebrough right away. But perhaps the numbers to really watch aren’t on the ice — rather, it’s things like the season-ticket renewal rate and suite/club ticket sales. Softness there (where it hasn’t really existed before) may indicate to Leipold that it may be time for a change. This organization has been able to coast along on the mythic amounts of goodwill from its fanbase. If there are indications that it’s going to dry up, though, there’s ample reason to expect changes.
This organization has been able to coast along on the mythic amounts of goodwill from its fanbase.
how have they coasted?
Look DR may have made some mistakes and I am as frustrated as anyone as to how the team has played recently and the cupboard is bare analysis by Russo is spot on. But “coast”?? This franchise has had one of the best, if not the best, record of any expansion franchise up to this point. They have tried. The Gaby situation is frankly one that neither side wanted or expected. Yes, DR will be judged on how we move forward and maybe we are at a point where the “plan” has failed, but so far it hasn’t been too bad.
I didnt read through the comments to see if this was discussed previously. But does gaby being out for the season mean KK is up for good? Or does this just give benny more time on the ice?
I’m with KJ on this… we have the right to be critcal of DR because of his past records AND the fact that he got us into this situation.
The Vegas Odds of Gaborik getting hurt this season were at best 2 to 1. If i’m the house (Wild) and I know this then as the GM you have to bit the bullet and trade him by the deadline you softly put in the sand (which was the beginning of the season) and trade him.
Instead, as KJ pointed out he became paralyzed and did nothing… letting the season play out and Gaborik to get injured. It simply shouldn’t have gotten that far.
And now, the Wild… farm-club cubbards bare have a collection of 3rd & 4th line wingers playing on the scoring lines with little chance to improve with any trades of Gaborik. It’s a major set-back for this franchise.
And to those defending DR… stop impowering him to make poor decisions, they did that over in Minneapolis and that time has & will be junk for years. As a Season Ticket holder I can and will voice my opinion when I think they are screwing up.
maxpower, I think KK is playing his way into a roster spot, most likely at the expense of Ben.
Schmidty,
The problem with your “odds” on the Gaby injury is that the guy only missed 5 games last year and supposedly the problem was conquered. So, there was no reason for DR or any other GM to suspect that he would be out for more than a few games here and there, if at all. Sure, it would have been nice to have completed a trade before the season started but as many here have pointed out, we have no idea what, if anything, was offered. It is very likely that a much better trade could have been made prior to deadline and also that the Wild would have been much higher in the standings with a healthy Gaby at that point. DR gambled and lost but again I don’t think anyone would have suspected or could have suspected the magnitude of Gaby’s injury (including Gaby and Salcer or he would have signed that long-term offer from DR)
>>>The Vegas Odds of Gaborik getting hurt this season were at best 2 to 1.<<<
Crapola. He played a full season last year.
These words from DR lay out the plan. Risebrough said: “I’d say I’m more concerned because I thought this would have been more behind us. It’s not going the way we wanted it or the way it was the last time. It’s not good.”
Asked about the quandary of Gaborik being in the last year of his contract and now potentially untradeable: Risebrough said, “It’s complicated, there’s no doubt about that. He played the majority of the season last year. He had a productive year. Ultimately, we were counting on that type of a year. It hasn’t translated.
They went to Slovakia and pitched him the plan. There was reason for optimism. They assigned a signing deadline of season opener but understood it could drag on longer. However, the two options at that time were to eventually get him signed or eventually trade him between the first of the year and the trading deadline. That was how they were going to maximize Gaby’s value. Based on the available information at the time, Gaby’s health was low risk. This is just one of those times where the opponent gets dealt a 100 to 1 shot on the river card. It is just plain bad luck. Nothing more, nothing less.
Can I put “Lecturer” on my resume?
Esteemed Lecturer gives it the weight it deserves
sure, why not ms.c? You’ve already got one “client,” it would appear.
on the other hand, though, the Captain of the Titanic wasn’t the guy that designed, built and virtually guaranteed the watertightness of the bulkheads (or whatever). But he still went down with the ship.
My point is that, in the world of pro sports, someone’s got to take the fall. As fans, we hope it’s not us. As fans of Minnesota teams, it usually is.
Oh I like it, Stoned.
NiNY, I don’t necessarily disagree. DR will take the fall. My disagreement was with the “odds” of the Gaby injury and the claim that DR should have foreseen this and dealt him. Of course, if the other GM’s were as prescient as DR was supposed to be about Gaby’s injury then I suppose all we would have received would have been a 5th round draft choice. Imagine how we would have roasted him then.
I agree that Smug is in a vulnerable position for all the reasons laid out in The Don’s article. Also, he doesn’t come across as the fan friendliest guy in the world so that doesn’t help him either.
When the team is winning, everything he does is right; when they are losing, just the opposite. I haven’t looked at this closely, but given all the one goal losses, it would be interesting to know where the Wild would be with a healthy Gaby. In addition to his goals, others would have more also. My bet is they would be in very good shape. Smug has done more right than wrong, but he is in a bind here. My bet it that Leipold will give him a chance to right the ship by watching how the Wild recover from the Gaby incident. That will take at least until this time next season.
DR put the negotiations into the worst possible time frame (for the club) by setting the deadline so close to the season.
It made him virtually untradeable - because other rosters were set.
Last spring, I suggested that DR offer Gho$t the maximum he was willing to pay - on the first day of negotiations. That way, he would know immediately if Gho$t was really going to re-sign with the Wild.
IIRC, the date for re-signing falls on or about the UFA sweepstakes. By knowing that early that Gho$t isn’t going to re-sign, you could dangle his services to a team (i.e. Penguins) that lost out to someone else…
question: say they make the playoffs this year and then beat the (Flames) in the first round? Then Gaborik walks on July 1st.
Do you still burn Riser in effigy? Does CL?
“He’s not an investment you can always be guaranteed a value for. His stock rises and falls, and that can’t be pinned on him, his agent, or his team.”
Ok. let’s stick with this theme. Would you rather have sold out of your high flying mutual fund in June 2008 or December 2008? Doug is the fund manager in this scenario. Marianne is the toxic mutual fund with a sub-prime tranche. The mutual fund manager gets indicted and then fired, no?
I will agree with the sentimet that gabby needed to be traded in the offseason if dr knew he wasn’t going to resign, but there is always the chance that no one else in the league wanted to do a deal either….
most gms are pretty smart, and more than likely they wern’t ready to trade a large chunk of players for a player that could get injured at any point in time. Every trade idea brought up in the last year seemed to fizzle out in days….and they seemed without merit….
I don’t think we ever got a valid trade offered for our end.
Backstrom gives Doug a chance for a little redemption. Didn’t we pull the Backuum off the Euro scrap heap for next to nothing? If Doug can deal Back’s and get a couple players/legitimate prospects in return he can create value, instead of destroying value.
And to those who are excited about have $8M to throw around since Gabby is going away, that’s like getting excited that McHale and the Twolves get the #1 lottery pick next year. 100% of nothing is still nothing.
Ok. let’s stick with this theme. Would you rather have sold out of your high flying mutual fund in June 2008 or December 2008? Doug is the fund manager in this scenario. Marianne is the toxic mutual fund with a sub-prime tranche. The mutual fund manager gets indicted and then fired, no?
hey, mutual fund analogies…I’m game!!
First, the manager doesn’t get indicted because investing in SPM from, say, 06-08 was totally justifiable. Remember the 3rd party ratings orgs put AAA-ratings on some of this garbage.
Second, nevertheless I agree he might get fired (some already have.)
Third, investors are dumb. Sorry, but we are. Lets play “fill in the blank”:
Buy _______
Sell ______
But, in either June or December 2008, anyone that was selling (which was a lot of people) were doing the exact opposite. Dumb.
The point is WE - the shareholders in this little game - shouldn’t have to sell at all. The question is: does CL - the CEO of the parent company for which DR manages this fund - decide that he’s going to replace DR with another manager, or mandate that he only buy 1-year treasuries for the next five years or something like that?
I do not judge DR based on the Gaby situation alone. There’s a case to be made that this is extremely unfortunate luck, and one to be made that, maybe, one creates his own (bad) luck. Instead, I judge DR based on the development and progression of the franchise. Are we still ascending, or have we plateaued or, worse, are we descending? If not exactly ascending, is it reasonable to think this season is a temporary blip on an overall ascending pattern? If you think you can answer the latter question in the affirmative, then maybe DR gets more time. However, if you think that the future, at best, looks like a 1st round playoff team, then maybe it’s time to change.
doug has been solid….except recently….I say see what he does with this situation….arguabully his toughest one yet.
he failed miserably last year, has already turned down a free, young talented center (judging by the fact that jokenin, passed through entirely, he is either playing really bad, or there is a nasty case of coillusion going on in the nhl)
He has one more chance in my book to rectify the situation….the question then becomes….who do we get in return
mutual fund managers don’t necessarily get fired the first time the fund takes a loss.
“With every pick, or player, it’s a risk that might or might not turn out. That’s why I don’t get all to worked up over what he does get - because you never know what you’ll have anyway for a while.”
But isn’t something better than nothing? Pass the Kool Aid…..and the vodka. I need a tall glass.
Instead, I judge DR based on the development and progression of the franchise. Are we still ascending, or have we plateaued or, worse, are we descending? If not exactly ascending, is it reasonable to think this season is a temporary blip on an overall ascending pattern? If you think you can answer the latter question in the affirmative, then maybe DR gets more time. However, if you think that the future, at best, looks like a 1st round playoff team, then maybe it’s time to change.
exactly, hockeydad. Exactly.
To me, I’m not willing to give them a “step back” because they hadn’t ascended high enough yet. When more than half of the freakin’ league gets to participate in the playoffs, just getting there a third year in a row isn’t good enough for me this season. I bought into slow, but steady improvement until they get to the point where they’re competitive (for the Cup) every season. I think we’re at the point where we should be able to expect the playoffs, if not advancing in them. No that won’t happen every year (though for some teams it seems to), and you don’t fire the GM every time you miss them.
But it seems like the reasons they’d miss them this year indicate a broader, organEYEzation-wide stutter or a change in the overall trajectory of the progress of the team - and I would be comfortable blaming DR for that.
I guess, by my own criteria, I have to give them the rest of the season to see if they don’t actually make the playoffs and advance before I pull the cord on DR in my own mind, then. So be it.
ok that t-wolves line was a bad example…..come on pewtershmidt
(family guy reference….right?)
There are some really good free agents out there next year….including saku koivu, jay bowmeester, cammerelli (young and skilled). Just to name a few. Unlike in basketball (to some degree) and football where good players rarely go into free agency, the nhl always has really good players jump in to the pool…obviously you won’t get the crosbys of the world, but that next level of players usually shows up.
Light Snack
I think we’re generally on the same pgae, Nick. My only concern is that, now to the deadline, seems to be a critical point for the franchise with the Gaby and Backstrom situations still pending. I have concern about DR making those decisions when I have generally lost confidence in his ability to move this team past being a first round playoff team. Tough decision.
I just wish dr would find a good trade for kimmy or zidlicky….
we need a forward who can score when given the opportunity…preferably someone to play with butch…they want him to shoot more, but it isn’t in his nature…we need to get the shooter with butch, then his stats will come.
An off topic post: Does anyone else think that the Wild Desktop Wallpaper feat. Clutterbuck checking a NYI is the best ever?
Your thought’s?
…ms.c?
Last week I heard a replay of an interview of Red Wings (BOOOOOOOOOOO!!)
office guru Jimmy Devellano. it was on the XM Home ice program.
He was talking about how far the Red Wings had sunk in the seventies as a franchise. Then the Illitch family bought the team and brought in guys like he and Kenny Holland. this was in 1981.
He spoke about what a process it was to finally get a Cup again for the club…. 15 years later.
Is this really the worst-case scenario with Gabby? I think worst-case would have been if he signed the offer last summer, which he’s clearly not worth now.
Actaully, Gaborik has never technically played a full season. Last year he missed five games in November.
02-03 he played 81 games of 82.
“question: say they make the playoffs this year and then beat the (Flames) in the first round? Then Gaborik walks on July 1st.
Do you still burn Riser in effigy?”
No, we all get on our unicorns and ride them to the north pole to meet Santa.
Don’t mean to be too glib, but as a fan I feel like I’ve paid my dues and deserve to watch a team that looks more like the current Blackhawk team, not the Houston Aero’s.
Bring back the North Stars!
Buster Harvey! Stan Palmer! Blake Dunlop! Big Smitty! Pete LoPresti! The Gumper! Cesare! LOOOOOOOIIIIEEEEE!!! Goldy! (tears) Sharps! Stevie Payne! The Jeep! Charlie Burns!! Wren Freakin” Blair!!!!
>>>>Last spring, I suggested that DR offer Gho$t the maximum he was willing to pay - on the first day of negotiations<<<<
That violates every basic rule of negotiating. He could have offered $10M per year and Salcer still wouldn’t have accepted it right away because he would then figure if he is willing to pay $10M he might pay 11. Time is an element in the negotiations that is necessary to determine a party’s earnestness.
Also, Smug had a reasonable expectation of what they were hoping to get for Gaby if they had to trade him at the deadline. If there had been anything remotely close to that on the table this summer, he would have taken it.
Beat the Flames in the regular season and I’ll give DR a pass for awhile.
The Wild CAN beat the Flames, they can’t beat their goaltender….
Wow, as an outsider, your comments are incredibly harsh towards Gaborik. Yes, the guy’s injured, but didn’t he score 5 goals in one game for you last season? Seems to be as an outside observer, you are taking out your frustration of all your team’s woes on one guy. Why is it that people at the top always escape blame?
You really need to be blaming your GM and coach for creating this Wild system. When you put 99.9% of your team’s strategy on defense and the Trap, of course there will be problems when your one and only goal scorer goes down.
Ohhhhhhhhhh Alan… it could be bombs away for you brother! I think I’ll stand back and observe the responses.
(BTW, this does occur in every sport in every market when the ship is tilting a bit, but you know that right?)
What I mean by the notion of “coasted” is that I don’t think they have felt any pressure to “win now” at any point in the team’s history. They keep talking about the long term and “the plan”, but show no recognition of the fact that at some point the idea of the plan is to build a championship team in the present instead of continually positioning for the future.
