Minnesota Wild. The lights are about to come on for the first game tomorrow evening in Denver on what promises to be an exciting season for Minnesota Wild hockey. The Wild will enter the season with much higher expectations than ever before. That comes when you return virtually the same roster that last year finished the regular season as the hottest team in the league, combined with three straight playoff appearances. Although last season ended abruptly at the hands of the Blackhawks once again, there is much reason to for optimism.
Let's begin behind the bench with Mike Yeo. Yeo enters his fifth season as head coach in Minnesota. The Wild have improved in each of Yeo's four previous seasons, with the last 3 ending in playoff losses at the hands of the Blackhawks. The team is clearly stamped with Yeo's style and system from the start. The goaltending is the most stable it has been since he took the helm in 2011. The youth of the organization has been brought up in his system and know what is expected of them in all three zones on the ice. Mike Yeo himself is a year wiser to the rigors of the NHL schedule and what it takes to get this group to the next level. Last season was quite the roller coaster ride and Mike Yeo bent, cracked, and almost broke (with the blow up in practice right before the Dubnyk deal). Mike Yeo is the rock behind the bench and also behind the scenes pushing the right buttons and pulling the right strings to get the Wild to perform at their peak at just the right time.
The 2015-16 Minnesota Wild Team Preview by Position, starting from the net out just as this team is built:
Goalies: Devan Dubnyk, Darcy Kuemper, Niklas Backstrom
There is no doubt that the Wild season turned around significantly with the acquisition of Devan Dubnyk. I am not sure who benefited more from the move the Wild or Dubnyk himself. Both appeared to be at a crossroads, with the Wild floundering after a dreadfull December and early January swoon and frustrations at a boiling point, and Dubnyk trying desperately to salvage his career which appeared headed for destruction after being let go by three NHL clubs the year before.
Dubnyk's climb up the ladder of NHL net minders was well documented as he almost single handedly took the Wild on his back from out of the playoff picture altogether to the best record in the NHL from mid January through the end of the season. This year will be a bit different though as expectations are going to be much higher from the start. That is not a bad thing, because unlike last year Dubnyk will not have to play every game as a must win. Darcy Kuemper is a capable backup and will be called upon to build on what he accomplished early last season. Darcy became a better goaltender as well with the arrival of Dubnyk. He needed to practice better and stay sharp because he was not playing every day. He is a proud professional athlete and his learning curve is ramping upward as well. Niklas Backstrom is the x-factor because he is under contract through this year so the crease is over crowded with three goalies. Again Backstrom is a proud pro and he believes he should be playing every day. His situation will be one to follow as the season unfolds.
Defense: Ryan Suter Jared Spurgeon Matt Dumba Jonas Brodin Marco Scandella Christian Folin Nate Prosser
The defense unit of the Wild is arguably the finest in the NHL. Led by Ryan Suter, the veteran who leads this unit on and off the ice. He logs all the key minutes and excels in every situation. The projection this season is with the maturation of Jonas Brodin, Marco Scandella, and Jonas Brodin the workload on Suter should be reduced to a much more manageable level which will only increase his effectiveness and overall performance. Matt Dumba is the player to watch as he will be given a much larger role on this unit. Dumba is a dynamic skater with a booming shot. He brings skill that the Wild have never had before on their blue line and should be a catalyst to a much better Wild offense this season. Christian Folin and Nate Prosser round out the defense unit as solid contributors that can step up and play top 4 D minutes when called upon. Mike Reilly will start the season in Iowa but he figures in the short term future plans so look for him to be recalled sooner rather than later.
The Offense: Mikko Koivu Jason Zucker Nino Niederreiter Mikael Granlund Zach Parise Jason Pominville Tyler Graovac Thomas Vanek Charlie Coyle Erik Haula Chris Porter Ryan Carter Justin Fontaine Jordan Schroeder
The Wild offense looks to be improved over seasons past with much greater scoring depth. Beginning with last season's big off season acquisition Thomas Vanek. This season Vanek is healthy agian and he has a year in Minnesota under his belt. He finished last season from November on at a better than 30 goal pace so look for more of the same as the new season unfolds. Just like the maturation of the young Wild defenseman look for much of the same from Nino Niederreiter, Charlie Coyle, Jason Zucker, Erik Haula, and Mikael Granlund. These are the players that will be called upon to build on their past year's experiences to take this team to the upper echelon of the NHL. Granlund is a key player for the Wild his return to the lineup from injury last year coincided with the Dubnyk deal and the recall of Dumba. A case could be made that Granlund and Dumba were also very instrumental in the Wild emergence as a top tier NHL club. Nino Niederreiter is poised along with Charlie Coyle to break out and make the Wild one of the toughest teams to play against no matter what zone they are in. The veteran leadership of Parise, Koivu, and Pominville will be the glue that makes the unit see their true potential. The checking line is fast and brings a combination of size and grit. Chris Porter will be a big addition with his size and speed to complement the sandpaper of Ryan Carter and tanacity of Erik Haula. The lone rookie to start the season Tyler Graovac looks to bring the scoring ability that he exemplified in Iowa. He played himself onto this roster and will benefit from the experience and skill of Thomas Vanek who will be teamed with Graovac and Coyle to begin the season.
The overall expectations of the Minnesota Wild are very high and rightfully so. This team has been built mainly through the draft, along with some key free agent acquisitions, and rounded out through the trade market. The weaknesses are not glaring and they can be addressed with tweaks to the roster, the skill level is improved, the defense is as good or better than most, and the forward corps is as deep as it has ever been. Goaltending is solid and stable for a change and the outlook is very good. That said the season is long and is a grind. The Minnesota Wild appear to be ready and up for the challenge.
Looking forward to watching with great anticipation. Just remember champions are made one game at a time, not saying this is a championship team but they sure are a lot closer to that caliber than ever before.