I haven't read through the thread yet, but I was at the game up until 5 min left in the 3rd, so I can give my thoughts on the game/players:
Game was pretty decent. Wild were outshooting the Blues but it didn't feel like the Blues were ever being dominated, save for a few plays where they were hemmed in their own zone. Blues had a good extended shift like that as well and nearly converted on it, and they had plenty of zone pressure as well that led to a few goals. Husso looked SHARP. Read the play very well, gobbled up a lot of pucks, moved really well. I was hoping to see 2 periods from him, but I was pleasantly surprised at his poise in net. Lindgren was ok. There were a few plays where they threw it on net and he gloved it, but it popped out of the glove and the Wild held possession long enough to get the guys tired. One goal was definitely on him as he was either reading the puck wrong, or he didn't squeeze hard and quick enough to keep the puck from finding a small hole. The offense gave Lindgren some confidence though and he was able to build off that later in the game.
Forwards overall were hit or miss. Early in the game there were lots of pucks missing players or hitting Wild players, and I kind of take that as some chemistry issues. Not that there wasn't chemistry, but with half, if not more of the squad being players looking for jobs, you could tell they hadn't played with each other. As the game grew on, they got better obviously. The Thomas, Saad, Tarasenko line was DOMINANT. It was so much fun to see these guys together and they instantly had chemistry. Thomas looks legit guys. I dont know how to qualitatively say that, but he just looked like a different guy. So much poise with and without the puck, looked engaged, and it definitely showed on the scoresheet. Saad was impressive and had a lot of good looks along with his goal, but this line should have had more points. Tarasenko, well what can I say. He looked determined and ready to go, but my god his passing looked uncharacteristically refined, idk how to explain it. He had a lot of give and go's, lots of good passes, and just smart all around. Happy with his performance, but sad that he will likely be gone in 6 months.
Kostin was actually so good and really effective. I try not to watch the bad so much since it's preseason, but I don't remember too many bad times the Barbashev, Kostin, Frolik line had. Kostin had a nice presence on the ice and you could just tell he was a different player. Very much matured and played like he won a cup. Barbashev was quietly good, but aside from his goal, he didn't seem either very good or very bad. Just a good player. Frolik was definitely a player, but I didn't see a whole lot of him. Could have been dwarfed by my Kostin viewings, idk. Bozak was fine, Neighbours was definitely engaged and doing his best to eliminate possession from the Wild, but obviously Neal impressed. He looked like he was motivated to get a contract and I wouldn't be surprised if he gets an offer. Clifford was noticeable and not in a bad way, but just playing a good 4th line role. Joshua had a few plays where he could've shot a puck earlier and got a chance, but I thought he was an effective 4th liner tonight. Toropchenko is so damn fast and he used that to his advantage. Had a few nice touches of the puck in the o-zone, but his stick handling still isn't great and that could keep him from finding a job in the NHL. I hope he can work on that A LOT, but he was fine.
And now the defense. Parayko looked like a guy who rehabbed his back to 100%, he was that good. Compared to last year, this dude looked very good, very confident, and definitely healthy. There was a 2 on 0 break for the Wild I believe and Parayko caught up the them to break it up (along with someone else) and that's when I knew that he was healthy. Bortuzzo played a fine, calm game. Jumped up into the play and got back when he needed to. Nothing flashy but he wasn't necessarily an eye sore. Santini was just ok. He definitely had his issues, but I think that was more due to his partner than himself (maybe?). He wasn't great, but the few jumps into play I saw, he looked active. Nothing much to say about him. Walman at times looked pretty good and others he looked a bit overwhelmed. Maybe he didn't feel that way, but his posture kind of had an overwhelmed feeling to it, but he did stand out, so take that as you will. Perunovich looked amazing in the o-zone. His poise with the puck on the blue line is inherent and he will definitely be a great addition when he plays. I don't recall a lot of plays involving him in the d-zone, but he definitely had to be much quicker with his decisions or he would have to throw away the puck. A few things for him to work on, but he definitely looks promising.
And now Galloway. Boy what can I say about this guy. When I first noticed him, he immediately came off the ice, so I made a note to watch him more closely. He definitely has an ability to box guys out, but he probably isn't strong enough to do it well just yet. You could tell his instincts were there to make those plays, but often it would lead to a chance on the net and he would be forced to turn around wondering where the puck went. And then his passing. It's not good and it's not a strong pass either. Idk if it was the nerves, but it felt like I could make harder passes than him and I'm 4 inches shorter and probably 20-30 pounds lighter. He definitely will need to work on that if he wants to make it in the NHL. And then his defense... Well, he looked ok in the first and maybe a bit in the 2nd, but he started to get overwhelmed. Like a lot. He tried to stop a rush because he accidentally pinched too hard and then fell and caused a 2 or 3 on 0, which the Wild scored on. Then he and Santini couldn't figure out (Santini yelled at him pretty loud) who to cover so they bumped into each other and another goal was scored or another chance occurred. After that, they split up that pair and I didn't see him much after that. Defense was not great, passing not great, and he just looked like a scared junior kid so, there's that.
