It is Desember and not June, so not to get too far ahead of ourselves but the fact is the Wild have the most points in the NHL standings at roughly the 1/3 pole of the season. That should not be overlooked for a team that was old and very slow a mere 16 months ago when they qualified for the bubble just barely and then were eliminated in 4 games by the Vancouver Canucks.
What Dean Evason has done behind the bench combined with the work that Bill Guerin and his staff have done to assemble a squad that competes night in and night out regardless of the opposition, is simply remarkable. The realization that the locker room had to be turned over before any real leap forward was to occur, took a lot of planning and of course convincing to execute.
The Wild are riding an eight game win streak, Karill Kaprizov, has established himself as one of the league's elite talents, and the team depth just may be the best in the league.
Again it is December and we know nothing is won in December, but the points bank is sure adding up and that is what every team strives for through the first half of the season. We know that the cream will rise to the top once the calendar turns to 2022, but the Wild are in a far better position today than most would have predicted prior to puck drop back in October.
Evason has had his finger on the pulse of this club ever since he took the helm, and he seems to know the right time to give the team the kick in the tail, and when to keep it light, or to even give them time off. He has created an atmosphere of team, where egos are checked at the door and every player earns their ice time.
He has given player opportunities and he has taken those away as well. One night a healthy scratch or possibly multiple nights, but nearly every time that player, whether it be Victor Rask, Nick Bjugstad, or most recently Rem Pitlick. Comes back with a renewed energy to make the coach's next decision that much more difficult. The residual affect is that the others that are in the lineup recognize this and it makes them that much hungrier to perform to their best abilities so that they stay in the lineup.
We know the difference between the majority of NHL teams is not as large as the gap in the standings may indicate, and that is why chemistry and internal competition is vital to any team that is going to ultimately compete the longest come late Spring.
Lots more season ahead for the Wild who have accomplished nothing yet, and they know that. They also know the league is on notice that they are for real...