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Quiet Does Not Mean Inactivity

June 30, 2018, 11:46 AM ET [4 Comments]
Dan Wallace
Minnesota Wild Blogger • RSSArchiveCONTACT
For a team that has made the playoffs for six straight seasons, yet brought in a new GM, the Wild remain an afterthought when it comes to talk about personnel moves at this critical point in the offseason.

It of course could be the tight lipped approach of new Wild GM, Paul Fenton, or just maybe it is the fact that the Wild have done nothing to establish themselves as anything but a solid organization that keeps plugging away.

There has not been a lot of names mentioned with the Wild, and I do think that Fenton will make some significant moves but I believe they will be predicated on other moves occurring first.

Former Wild GM, Chuck Fletcher, has been reunited with Ray Shero. Shero hired Fletcher as his assistant in New Jersey, a position he held under Shero with the Penguins from 2006-2009.

A couple more free agents that may make sense for the Wild:
We mentioned Greg Pateryn, Anthony Duclair, and goaltender, Petr Mrazek yesterday.

The need for organizational depth at the goaltending position is an absolute necessity for Fenton to address. A guy that may be very intriguing is Zach Fucale who was not extended a qualifying offer from Montreal.

Fucale is just 23 and was the highest ranked goalie in the 2014 NHL draft. He had a storied junior career winning a Memorial Cup and a tremendous international resume, winning Golds at 2012 Ivan Hlinka Tournament, 2015 World Junior, and 2016 Spengler Cup.

He has struggled to establish himself at the professional level, but a change if scenery may be all it takes for Fucale to realize his true potential at the highest level.

Former Wild goalie, Anton Khudoban, might present another interesting option as he has established himself as a quality NHL goaltender with the ability to be a starter if something were to happen to Dubnyk.

Dylan DeMelo is another defenseman the Wild could look at to fill in that right handed shot d-man to fill out their third pair. DeMelo, the 6'1" 197 lb 25 year old is not as big or physical as Pateryn, but brings a bit more offensive upside.

Should be an interesting Saturday as teams position themselves for the initial wave of free agent signings tomorrow.

Follow me on Twitter @dwallace17

UPDATE: As expected Wild place Tyler Ennis on waivers, set up to officislly buy him out. Obviously Fenton was unable to find a trade partner willing to take on the $4.6 million for one year left on Ennis's deal, and the inevitable was the buyout route we expected all along.
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