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Fletcher's Plate Full with Tight Cap Limited Maneuverability

June 2, 2015, 1:16 PM ET [7 Comments]
Tony Dean
Minnesota Wild Blogger • RSSArchiveCONTACT
Fletcher's Plate Full with Tight Cap Limited Maneuverability



The Elephant in the Room is Flawed Veteran Core for Minnesota Wild

I think that Minnesota Wild General Manager Chuck Fletcher did everything in his power to gather up a group of veteran players here that he believed would combine their talents and effort to compete for a Stanley Cup. Unfortunately the veteran core of players has vanished with the season on the line versus the Chicago Blackhawks three years in a row.



Fletcher has painted himself deep into a corner with the contracts he doled out to this veteran core. Fletcher has made his bed with Mikko Koivu, Zach Parise, Ryan Suter, Jason Pominville, Thomas Vanek, Niklas Backstrom, and Matt Cooke. The contracts of the veterans I just listed not only include hefty cap hits and salaries but movement clauses that give the players leverage to affect or dismiss any sort of transaction Fletcher could get agreed upon with another franchise.

I am no Monday morning blogger, so I am not going to puff out my chest and deal a bunch of "I told you so" points here. I will say that for how talented and skillful Fletcher has proven to be as a top personnel guy here in 'The State of Hockey', it is stark how much question exists in the future performance of veteran guys that maybe immovable. I have always been so impressed by Fletcher's ideology when it comes to personnel moves as he literally has shown he projects and evaluates players for the current season in addition to 3 years and 5 years down the road.



No contract looks worse for Fletcher than that of veteran Finn netminder Backstrom who is no longer an NHL contributor. I have heard Fletcher explain that Backstrom earned the trust of his teammates and proved he was still at the top of his game after the 2012-13 shortened by lockout NHL campaign. The 35-year-old was a workhorse appearing in 42 regular season games (41 starts). He went 24-15-3 with a 2.48 goals-against average (GAA), a .909 save percentage (SV%) and posted two shutouts.

Since signing the 3 year $10.25 million dollar contract on June 24th 2013, Backstrom has appeared in just 40 games the last 2 NHL seasons with a combined record of 10-18. Backstrom has not appeared in a playoff game since the 2007-08 NHL post season. It is clear that Blackstrom will finish his career considered to be the most productive and talented netminder in franchise history but Fletcher was clearly leveraged into a terrible contract that he has yet to justify performance wise.

Fletcher rolled the dice giving the 35 year old netminder giving a 3 year deal two offseasons ago and it is currently plaguing the franchise because it is fully guaranteed under the collective bargaining agreement due veteran contract rules.



Fletcher may just pull off a miracle and get another franchise to take on Backstrom in a swap but that would be highly dependent on a number of factors. Fletcher is going to have to include other assets to move Backstrom in what would be purely a cap dump. Backstrom holds all the cards as well because he has a no move clause in his contract giving him veto rights to any deal involving him.

It is far more probable that Fletcher will be forced to buyout Backstrom which will just free up a roster spot because a majority of his $3.4mil cap hit will still count against the cap of the Wild.

I think many fans believe it is as easy for Fletcher as deciding to trade a guy who doesn't measure up. Instead it is a very complex game of chicken in today's NHL trade wise and salary cap management wise.

Currently over half the teams in the NHL look to be squeezed tight against the salary cap this summer just taking into account their currently under contract players and restricted free agents.

I say that to forward the point that Fletcher' hands are tied even if he was fed up with the lack of point production in the playoffs of Kaptain Koivu or he was no longer a believer in Pominville's ability to perform in the playoffs after three seasons of ineffectiveness with the season on the line. Fletcher in my opinion has gather a bunch of talented pieces both veterans and young players that just do not quite fit together.

The first thing on Fletcher's plate is getting Devan Dubnyk locked into a new contract, which is a no-brainer for both the team and the goalie. Getting 'The Savior' signed will only create more work for Fletcher though as he currently is also committed to Backstrom and Darcy Kuemper on a combined cap hit in 2015-16 of $4.6 mil. Fletcher is plenty capable of maneuvering and leveraging his situation via the trade as he has proven many times over since his arrival.



I worry though that Fletcher will continue to avoid the need to shake up some off the pieces here choosing instead to put a bandaid on the wound that is a roster full of talent that just does not complete fit together. Currently the greatest need of this team is a Top 6 Center with size and skill to compete in the Western Conference. Fletcher has Mikael Granlund to man one of the pivot spots on the top two forward lines and surely they will be betting that his projections of production bounce back in 2015-16. Unfortunately Fletcher is trapped into a couple of tweener types in Koivu and Charlie Coyle as the other options to center his other top forward line.



Koivu is still extremely effective in the defensive zone and can contribute to a highly effective offensive zone puck possession game that employs a heavy cycle. Koivu has been a dynamic offensive player though instead relying on his size to shield the puck. Koivu's role must evolve for Wild Head Coach Mike Yeo to get a maximum return on his effort. I think that means a specialized deployment of Koivu next season in a shut down assignment for his line at regular strength and an evolution of his power play role that may include dropping to the 2nd unit with a great emphasis on his even strength ice time and penalty kill roll.

I really though Coyle did everything in his power to make good on his time playing the pivot for the Wild during the 2014-15 season. That being said I am still not convinced he is an NHL center and obviously Yeo and his staff are not either.

With the season on the line versus the Chicago Blackhawks, they again pulled the plug on Coyle in the center of the ice. Believe me I am not taking any shots at Coyle because he works his ass off and his size/skill combination is impressive. I just think there exists a huge hole in the center of the ice for the Wild between the tiny but talented Granlund and Kaptain Koivu.

Nearly every team in the league is looking for a Top 6 NHL Center with size/skill combo so just identifying it as a need is nothing ground breaking. I truly feel though that if Fletcher does not do something dynamic and aggressive to remedy this need, then we will again be staring at a flawed roster that has proven capable of being just good enough to qualify for a bottom of the playoffs spot only to make a fourth early round exit in a row.



The price tag for the type of player I am taking about will surely cause sticker shock for most Wild fans. I mean being honest to swing a deal for the type of difference maker I am stating is required would literally make or break Fletcher's career here in Minnesota as the top personnel man. Instead I expect status quo and positive spin from the Wild PR staff headed into 2015-16 because what we have heard thus far in the wake of the season ending has been how close this roster was.

To return this fall without an answer to the flawed and brutal top powerplay unit heavy on veterans with zero accountability and no remedy to the need to have a size/skill Top 6 center will prove to be the definition of insanity.


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Just My Take,
Tony Dean




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