Fixing the Wild

[RubeTube]

Here's Rubetubes recommendations...

HC Barry Melrose

GM Lou Nanne

New announcer Steve Levy

Scouts Mikaleti and Maleski


Hoisting Lord Stanley.

Thoughts?

[full force five]

I think it's becoming clear: Paul Fenton is over his head.

[Jack Hoff]

Move the team to Green Bay

[Hole Nova Level]

I think it's becoming clear: Paul Fenton is over his head.

It's getting to the point where this thing is you forecast big picture, is getting and will be ugly.

The Wild "peaked" as a "made the playoffs-phew" team.

Fenton or anyone can't work miracles. He's traded the only tradeable players on this team. And unfortunately the market dictactes what the league feels about the players. Aside from the Raask trade which I think Fenton obssessed about him, he's really not going to be doing anything worthwhile, no different than anyone else. Simply because he can't. This team is full of aging, over-rated players. Their best players are middle-tier players.

And the Baby Zach and Bryan situation are the wooden-spike-contracts to this vampire-corpse of a team. Until those spikes/contracts are removed, this thing is a lifeless body. I find it funny and telling that every Baby Zach and Bryan fan shout "well their contracts are cheaper now, they are only on the books for....ABC..."

Yet not one GM has inquired about them??? NTC clause or not, that's telling.

[The Replacements]

I think it's becoming clear: Paul Fenton is over his head.

It's getting to the point where this thing is you forecast big picture, is getting and will be ugly.

The Wild "peaked" as a "made the playoffs-phew" team.

Fenton or anyone can't work miracles. He's traded the only tradeable players on this team. And unfortunately the market dictactes what the league feels about the players. Aside from the Raask trade which I think Fenton obssessed about him, he's really not going to be doing anything worthwhile, no different than anyone else. Simply because he can't. This team is full of aging, over-rated players. Their best players are middle-tier players.

And the Baby Zach and Bryan situation are the wooden-spike-contracts to this vampire-corpse of a team. Until those spikes/contracts are removed, this thing is a lifeless body. I find it funny and telling that every Baby Zach and Bryan fan shout "well their contracts are cheaper now, they are only on the books for....ABC..."

Yet not one GM has inquired about them??? NTC clause or not, that's telling.

Maybe the plan is to let Fenton bottom out the Wild and start over in a few years.

[Hole Nova Level]

I think it's becoming clear: Paul Fenton is over his head.

It's getting to the point where this thing is you forecast big picture, is getting and will be ugly.

The Wild "peaked" as a "made the playoffs-phew" team.

Fenton or anyone can't work miracles. He's traded the only tradeable players on this team. And unfortunately the market dictactes what the league feels about the players. Aside from the Raask trade which I think Fenton obssessed about him, he's really not going to be doing anything worthwhile, no different than anyone else. Simply because he can't. This team is full of aging, over-rated players. Their best players are middle-tier players.

And the Baby Zach and Bryan situation are the wooden-spike-contracts to this vampire-corpse of a team. Until those spikes/contracts are removed, this thing is a lifeless body. I find it funny and telling that every Baby Zach and Bryan fan shout "well their contracts are cheaper now, they are only on the books for....ABC..."

Yet not one GM has inquired about them??? NTC clause or not, that's telling.

Maybe the plan is to let Fenton bottom out the Wild and start over in a few years.

Honestly that's all he can do. He'll be the guy to ride out Parise and Suter contracts, then start fresh. In the meantime trade away what he can to stock pile picks. This is a no-mans land.

[full force five]

Yup - Zach and Suter's contract are the book for the next 6 years, ouch. This team can still make some moves, get lucky in the draft, hope the new young core develops etc. Mikko's contract and 5.5 million comes off the books next year thankfully.

[B-Town]

It's getting to the point where this thing is you forecast big picture, is getting and will be ugly.

The Wild "peaked" as a "made the playoffs-phew" team.

Fenton or anyone can't work miracles. He's traded the only tradeable players on this team. And unfortunately the market dictactes what the league feels about the players. Aside from the Raask trade which I think Fenton obssessed about him, he's really not going to be doing anything worthwhile, no different than anyone else. Simply because he can't. This team is full of aging, over-rated players. Their best players are middle-tier players.

And the Baby Zach and Bryan situation are the wooden-spike-contracts to this vampire-corpse of a team. Until those spikes/contracts are removed, this thing is a lifeless body. I find it funny and telling that every Baby Zach and Bryan fan shout "well their contracts are cheaper now, they are only on the books for....ABC..."

Yet not one GM has inquired about them??? NTC clause or not, that's telling.

Maybe the plan is to let Fenton bottom out the Wild and start over in a few years.

Honestly that's all he can do. He'll be the guy to ride out Parise and Suter contracts, then start fresh. In the meantime trade away what he can to stock pile picks. This is a no-mans land.

Agreed. Trade everyone useful for prospects and picks. The team has to bottom out, pick up a couple of Top 5 talent guys, then rebuild another young nucleus. If they blow it up this year and next, hopefully the new group of players are just hitting their stride when the albatross contracts expire. This is really the only logical way to go.

[Jimtown guy]

Maybe the plan is to let Fenton bottom out the Wild and start over in a few years.

Honestly that's all he can do. He'll be the guy to ride out Parise and Suter contracts, then start fresh. In the meantime trade away what he can to stock pile picks. This is a no-mans land.

Agreed. Trade everyone useful for prospects and picks. The team has to bottom out, pick up a couple of Top 5 talent guys, then rebuild another young nucleus. If they blow it up this year and next, hopefully the new group of players are just hitting their stride when the albatross contracts expire. This is really the only logical way to go.

Agree with all of these posts. Bottom out and start anew

[B-Town]

Honestly that's all he can do. He'll be the guy to ride out Parise and Suter contracts, then start fresh. In the meantime trade away what he can to stock pile picks. This is a no-mans land.

Agreed. Trade everyone useful for prospects and picks. The team has to bottom out, pick up a couple of Top 5 talent guys, then rebuild another young nucleus. If they blow it up this year and next, hopefully the new group of players are just hitting their stride when the albatross contracts expire. This is really the only logical way to go.

Agree with all of these posts. Bottom out and start anew

The only good thing about the back half of these contracts is that it'll be less and less likely that Parise and Suter will be able to keep the team relevant without a great supporting cast. Blow it up! I want to be excited to watch Wild hockey again! It's been a few years.

[bubu dubu.]

I think it's becoming clear: Paul Fenton is over his head.

It's getting to the point where this thing is you forecast big picture, is getting and will be ugly.

The Wild "peaked" as a "made the playoffs-phew" team.

Fenton or anyone can't work miracles. He's traded the only tradeable players on this team. And unfortunately the market dictactes what the league feels about the players. Aside from the Raask trade which I think Fenton obssessed about him, he's really not going to be doing anything worthwhile, no different than anyone else. Simply because he can't. This team is full of aging, over-rated players. Their best players are middle-tier players.

And the Baby Zach and Bryan situation are the wooden-spike-contracts to this vampire-corpse of a team. Until those spikes/contracts are removed, this thing is a lifeless body. I find it funny and telling that every Baby Zach and Bryan fan shout "well their contracts are cheaper now, they are only on the books for....ABC..."

Yet not one GM has inquired about them??? NTC clause or not, that's telling.

I think you nailed it all with the Parise/Suter thing, and not really being able to make big moves because of them.

However, I think Fenton is over his head. Trading Coyle/Nino and Granlund and not getting a couple picks to go with Fiala and Donato? Maybe I was just used to Fletcher tossing out draft picks in trades when we were buyers, that I expected to get some draft picks back when we became sellers.

[Slap Shot]

If they tank enough do Suter and/or Parise consider waiving their NTC's because they don't want to play on a going nowhere team while they still have 1-2 viable years left? I realize part of the problem is finding other franchises willing to take on their contracts, butt...

[Hornets]

I know Hola Nova will probably chime in, but I think everyone needs to settle down thinking that the Wild are doomed for the next 5 years. NHL hockey more than any other major sport is a game in which things can go north or south IN A HURRY. Got a hot goalie? Well, that might carry you for a month. Goalie is a sieve? Well, that's gonna cost ya. No one in their right mind here pictured Da Blues winnin the Cup, not even close. We all know that in early January they were like the worst team in the NHL. Well, they got hot, got some incredible goaltending and just simply road the train to Lord Stanley. No way in hell they do it again next year and if anything this playoff run shows that anyone can do it! Am I predicting a Wild Stanley Cup run? Of course not, but to think the local boys can't be competitive next year is just silly and simply misguided.

[Hole Nova Level]

I know Hola Nova will probably chime in, but I think everyone needs to settle down thinking that the Wild are doomed for the next 5 years. NHL hockey more than any other major sport is a game in which things can go north or south IN A HURRY. Got a hot goalie? Well, that might carry you for a month. Goalie is a sieve? Well, that's gonna cost ya. No one in their right mind here pictured Da Blues winnin the Cup, not even close. We all know that in early January they were like the worst team in the NHL. Well, they got hot, got some incredible goaltending and just simply road the train to Lord Stanley. No way in hell they do it again next year and if anything this playoff run shows that anyone can do it! Am I predicting a Wild Stanley Cup run? Of course not, but to think the local boys can't be competitive next year is just silly and simply misguided.

Nothing to chide you on. Your generalizations are safe and may be proven to be correct. One thing you got to remember tho, teams that are in bad contract situations with multiple players- and are paying aging, slow, footed "stars", are pretending and tricking themselves into thinking they have "top" D-men or Forwards, aren't the one's that make some sort of "uncanny" run, like the Blues did or other teams have. The "elements" aren't on this team for a random-star-align possibility.

This team has lived in the "fake" rolex world-long enough, they got into some clubz, enjoyed some ladies, while faking it...but now the cats outta the bag, your fake sh-t (fake hockey players) aren't hacking it.

[Hole Nova Level]

If they tank enough do Suter and/or Parise consider waiving their NTC's because they don't want to play on a going nowhere team while they still have 1-2 viable years left? I realize part of the problem is finding other franchises willing to take on their contracts, butt...

This is honestly a great angle/idea.

I mentioned a while ago, what kind of hockey players these two in particular will be. Do they want the "comfort" of the money and the "live in MN, life is good" etc...all while being a dead-fish of a team. Or do they truly care about real hockey player immortality and want to try for a Cup?

Stall already showed us he wants to "wind-down" his career and live happily ever after in MN. And in true MN fashion we said 'awe that's cute" and gave him a contract (nothing worse than giving a contract to a player that want to "retire here")

If Parise and Suter put up with crap seasons and ride into the MN-sunset while floundering for the next 7 seasons and don't say "ummmmm, I wanna win a cup, imma wave my NTC" then if nothing else let that show MN, what kind of "hockey" players we splurged on. This may well be the "Hershal Walker" of MN hockey, all said and done.

Two 100-mill-FA-"studs" and not a banner of any sort to show for it:

Finished 2nd in NHL Northwest Division
Lost Conference Quarter-Finals (4-1) versus Chicago Blackhawks
Finished 4th in NHL Central Division
Lost Second Round (4-2) versus Chicago Blackhawks
Finished 4th in NHL Central Division
Lost Second Round (4-0) versus Chicago Blackhawks
Finished 5th in NHL Central Division
Lost First Round (4-2) versus Dallas Stars
Finished 2nd in NHL Central Division
Lost First Round (4-1) versus St. Louis Blues
Finished 3rd in NHL Central Division
Lost First Round (4-1) versus Winnipeg Jets
7th in NHL Central Division

[whiskerbiscuit]

If they tank enough do Suter and/or Parise consider waiving their NTC's because they don't want to play on a going nowhere team while they still have 1-2 viable years left? I realize part of the problem is finding other franchises willing to take on their contracts, butt...

This is honestly a great angle/idea.

I mentioned a while ago, what kind of hockey players these two in particular will be. Do they want the "comfort" of the money and the "live in MN, life is good" etc...all while being a dead-fish of a team. Or do they truly care about real hockey player immortality and want to try for a Cup?

Stall already showed us he wants to "wind-down" his career and live happily ever after in MN. And in true MN fashion we said 'awe that's cute" and gave him a contract (nothing worse than giving a contract to a player that want to "retire here")

If Parise and Suter put up with crap seasons and ride into the MN-sunset while floundering for the next 7 seasons and don't say "ummmmm, I wanna win a cup, imma wave my NTC" then if nothing else let that show MN, what kind of "hockey" players we splurged on. This may well be the "Hershal Walker" of MN hockey, all said and done.

Two 100-mill-FA-"studs" and not a banner of any sort to show for it:

Finished 2nd in NHL Northwest Division
Lost Conference Quarter-Finals (4-1) versus Chicago Blackhawks
Finished 4th in NHL Central Division
Lost Second Round (4-2) versus Chicago Blackhawks
Finished 4th in NHL Central Division
Lost Second Round (4-0) versus Chicago Blackhawks
Finished 5th in NHL Central Division
Lost First Round (4-2) versus Dallas Stars
Finished 2nd in NHL Central Division
Lost First Round (4-1) versus St. Louis Blues
Finished 3rd in NHL Central Division
Lost First Round (4-1) versus Winnipeg Jets
7th in NHL Central Division

Pretty depressing. I thought for sure we'd at least make a run at a cup after we got those two.


Couldn't even do the post 91 typical MN sports thing and lose in the semis.

[B-Town]

I know Hola Nova will probably chime in, but I think everyone needs to settle down thinking that the Wild are doomed for the next 5 years. NHL hockey more than any other major sport is a game in which things can go north or south IN A HURRY. Got a hot goalie? Well, that might carry you for a month. Goalie is a sieve? Well, that's gonna cost ya. No one in their right mind here pictured Da Blues winnin the Cup, not even close. We all know that in early January they were like the worst team in the NHL. Well, they got hot, got some incredible goaltending and just simply road the train to Lord Stanley. No way in hell they do it again next year and if anything this playoff run shows that anyone can do it! Am I predicting a Wild Stanley Cup run? Of course not, but to think the local boys can't be competitive next year is just silly and simply misguided.

If the Wild couldn't get past the 2nd round with the best iteration of this team, it seems less likely that they'll take it home with a b-team version, featuring Parise and Suter on the decline. I'm not saying there's no chance, but I think the sooner the team and fans see the writing on the wall, the faster they can blow it up and start building again. Stories like the 2019 Blues are 1 in a million. It shouldn't be used by anyone involved to hold out hope for a quick turnaround. I think all indicators say that we should be hitting the reset button.

[salamander]

Here's how to fix the Wild:
Blow it up.

[Miley Cyrus]

Why Wild are better off being terrible next season
By James O'BrienJul 18, 2019, 4:49 PM EDT

When you ponder what separates the good, the bad, and the ugly in the NHL, don’t forget the importance of self-awareness.

For all of Minnesota Wild GM Paul Fenton’s lizard tongued blunders through his first year at the helm, the Wild’s biggest problem is that owner Craig Leipold is in denial about his team.

It’s been about a year since Leipold shared this message, yet all signs point to the Wild refusing to embrace a true rebuild. In ignoring their reality, the Wild only dig the hole deeper by making more mistakes, and dragging their feet on finding better answers.

Instead of getting the best of both worlds of competing and “rebuilding on the fly,” the Wild are stuck in purgatory: too bad to credibly contend, too competitive to get the picks that help teams win championships. Leipold’s paid for a contender while the Wild have slipped to the level of outright pretenders.

In catering to Leipold, both Chuck Fletcher and current GM Paul Fenton created quite a mess. The Wild’s Cap Friendly page might as well include a horror movie scream mp3 every time you load it up.

Allow this take, then: the Wild would be better off bottoming out in 2019-20, rather than battling for mediocrity.

Changing perceptions?

Most directly, an epic Wild collapse would help them get higher draft lottery odds.

The indirect benefits are considerable, if not guaranteed. Most importantly, Leipold may finally realize that the current plan isn’t working. Failing to even be “in the mix” may also inspire the Wild to trade away certain players, and for those players to make the process easier by waiving various clauses.

To start, there are players who are more or less in their primes, but may slip out by the time the Wild can truly compete. Jared Spurgeon is the biggest example with his expiring contract, but it continues to make sense to shop Jason Zucker, and Jonas Brodin heads the list of other considerations.
If the Wild end up cellar dwelling, it might be easier to convince Mikko Koivu and Devan Dubnyk to accept trades, and perhaps even to part ways with Eric Staal. (Trading Staal would be awkward since he gave the Wild a sweetheart deal, but sometimes things have to get awkward before they get better.)
Via Cap Friendly, the Wild’s commitments for 2020-21 go down to $59.46M, and really open up in 2021-22 (just $37.36M to seven players). So, if the Wild are too stubborn or cowardly to trade some of the above players, Fenton could get something close to a clean slate if they merely let them walk or retire. This thought makes a Spurgeon decision especially important.
On Parise and Suter …

Speaking of money regrets, the Wild should try to get Parise and Suter off the books, even if it’s tough to imagine them actually pulling that off.

Honestly, if Parise went on LTIR, I’d view it as far more credible than plenty of other cases. He’s had significant back issues, and those don’t tend to go away, particularly for 34-year-olds with a lot of mileage.
Suter seems impossible to trade, but we’ve seen other seemingly impossible trades actually happen.
Maybe there’d be a hockey deus ex machina, like expansion draft creativity, or a compliance buyout?
Not the best odds, yet Fenton would be negligent if he didn’t explore many avenues to ease concerns.

Hope can come quickly

A long rebuild would be a tough sell, but maybe Fenton could sell a Rangers revamp to Leipold: going all-in for a short period of time to bring in picks, prospects, and generally gain flexibility.

While I doubt that many teams can recreate the Rangers’ mix of wisdom and luck, the bottom line is that the Wild have gone a long time since they focused on getting blue chip prospects. Look at the Wild’s draft history and you’ll see how rare high first-rounders have been lately, and how often they’ve lacked higher picks altogether.

To sweeten the deal, the 2020 NHL Draft crop is getting quite a bit of hype, too.

Imagine the Wild landing a lottery pick, some picks and prospects through trades, and Kirill Kaprizov’s long-awaited NHL leap. If they hoarded cap space, they could strike for their own answer to Jacob Trouba and/or Artemi Panarin. Suddenly, the Wild go from drowning slowly in quicksand to seeing some light at the end of the tunnel.

Things can change quickly in sports. The Wild could make their “poor, sad, dejected, beaten down” fans far happier with some bold changes, but they must sway their most important fan: their owner. If a truly lousy season is the only way for Leipold to clue in, then it might just be worth it for the Wild.

TLDR: Lay down for Lafrenière,

[Cripes]

Suter and Parise salaries start dropping after this season. They haven’t been the problem anyway. The previous regime wasn’t able to identify enough young talent and made trades to try and win now, only hurting the franchise in the long run.

[Hornets]

Suter and Parise salaries start dropping after this season. They haven’t been the problem anyway. The previous regime wasn’t able to identify enough young talent and made trades to try and win now, only hurting the franchise in the long run.

The salaries of these 2 certainly aren't helpful, but it's time for fans to stop using this as an excuse. Otha teams have bad salary hits also and are able to succeed. More than anything it's been questionable drafts and questionable trades that have kept this squad from takin a run at Lord Stanley. I guess the best we can do for the foreseeable future is just enjoy NHL hockey even if our team isn't da bomb.

[full force five]

Suter and Parise salaries start dropping after this season.

Incorrect. Both are $7,538,461 per year until the 2024-2025 season. We have 6 more year for those guys eating up 15 million of our cap, smart move.

[B-Town]

Suter and Parise salaries start dropping after this season. They haven’t been the problem anyway. The previous regime wasn’t able to identify enough young talent and made trades to try and win now, only hurting the franchise in the long run.

I had no issue at all with this part of the equation. The Wild front office tried to give the team tools when they were good. It's not their fault that the players couldn't score goals in the playoffs.

[Cripes]

Suter and Parise salaries start dropping after this season.

Incorrect. Both are $7,538,461 per year until the 2024-2025 season. We have 6 more year for those guys eating up 15 million of our cap, smart move.

Yep, my bad. Salaries go down but the cap hit stays the same. The ghost of Chuck Fletcher will continue to haunt us.

[Lenny5160]

Call me crazy, but I'd rather watch a competitive team that makes the playoffs every year and maybe even wins a round, than a terrible team for 2-3 years (minimum) in the hopes that MAYBE they get lucky and become a top team for a short period.

There's no guarantee that bottoming out is the path to success. Look at Edmonton or Buffalo.

[full force five]

The Suter/Parise era will down as the team never being more then above average. Maybe that's all the average fan needs, the last couple years when Parise is always hurt and Suter has lost a step will be interesting.

[Hole Nova Level]

Why Wild are better off being terrible next season

Good news is, i don't think they have to worry about that...

LOL.

[bubu dubu.]

Suter and Parise salaries start dropping after this season. They haven’t been the problem anyway. The previous regime wasn’t able to identify enough young talent and made trades to try and win now, only hurting the franchise in the long run.

Salaries might go down, but cap hit stays the same.

[B-Town]

Call me crazy, but I'd rather watch a competitive team that makes the playoffs every year and maybe even wins a round, than a terrible team for 2-3 years (minimum) in the hopes that MAYBE they get lucky and become a top team for a short period.

There's no guarantee that bottoming out is the path to success. Look at Edmonton or Buffalo.

They didn't make the playoffs last year and seem to be trending in the wrong direction. I guess the question should be, do you want:

A) A team that is probably 7th-11th best in the conference for the next 2-3 years, and continues giving long contracts to older players?
or
B) A team that bottoms out for the next 2-3 years, in hopes of rebuilding back into a competitive team?

[Lenny5160]

Call me crazy, but I'd rather watch a competitive team that makes the playoffs every year and maybe even wins a round, than a terrible team for 2-3 years (minimum) in the hopes that MAYBE they get lucky and become a top team for a short period.

There's no guarantee that bottoming out is the path to success. Look at Edmonton or Buffalo.

They didn't make the playoffs last year and seem to be trending in the wrong direction. I guess the question should be, do you want:

A) A team that is probably 7th-11th best in the conference for the next 2-3 years, and continues giving long contracts to older players?
or
B) A team that bottoms out for the next 2-3 years, in hopes of rebuilding back into a competitive team?

They're kind of in no man's land at the moment. I know that Fenton had to do something, but I'm definitely not a fan of where the team is at right now. It's like he couldn't choose between A and B and did a little of both.