Minnesota Wild General Discussion 2024-25

[AKL]

I’d rather have none of them. They are all trash.

If nothing else the cap space alone would be more valuable than any of them

 

[57special]

I’d rather have none of them. They are all trash.

What do you think you get with 4th liners? Boldy gets paid 7 times as much as most of them, Faber 8 times. You get what you pay for ... if you are lucky.

 

[DigitalBoldy]

If nothing else the cap space alone would be more valuable than any of them

Exactly. We can pick and choose whatever situation fits for whatever narrative, but the underlying issue has always been wasteful spending (in particular re: bottom 6).

Imagine if we decided to give Holloway $2.29M (+3rd) instead of giving Trenin $3.5M. We wouldn’t give Duhaime or Dewar or Khus or Lauko or any other 4th line nothing player a second thought. Guerin needs to pull his head out of his ass when it comes to contract negotiations.

 

[AKL]

Exactly. We can pick and choose whatever situation fits for whatever narrative, but the underlying issue has always been wasteful spending (in particular re: bottom 6).

Imagine if we decided to give Holloway $2.29M (+3rd) instead of giving Trenin $3.5M. We wouldn’t give Duhaime or Dewar or Khus or Lauko or any other 4th line nothing player a second thought. Guerin needs to pull his head out of his ass when it comes to contract negotiations.

Well I can't disagree with any of this. Still, you'll always need a 4th line, and for what 4th liners provide, my choice is to go cheap, young and fast.

 

[Luceni]

2 goals and 1 assist in 10 games is pretty ok for a fourth line player IMO. That would be about 16 goals and 8 assists (24 points) in 82 games.

I miss Marat's wheels, you can't teach speed.

 

[DigitalBoldy]

What do you think you get with 4th liners? Boldy gets paid 7 times as much as most of them, Faber 8 times. You get what you pay for ... if you are lucky.

Someone with some form of utility for our team. Example: $2M for Stenlund - we would have a guy that firmly wins over 50% of his draws and is a solid PKer. He’s also someone that can close out tight games.

 

[AKL]

Someone with some form of utility for our team. Example: $2M for Stenlund - we would have a guy that firmly wins over 50% of his draws and is a solid PKer. He’s also someone that can close out tight games.

Well Gaudreau should be our 4C. and hopefully starting next year will be.

 

[DigitalBoldy]

Well I can't disagree with any of this. Still, you'll always need a 4th line, and for what 4th liners provide, my choice is to go cheap, young and fast.

I would like to also add useful in some form or fashion.

Well Gaudreau should be our 4C. and hopefully starting next year will be.

They might consider putting him at wing. I think he is too good in terms of play to be on the 4th line and his faceoffs are mediocre at best. Excellent candidate for 3RW:

Kap-Rossi-Zucc
Boldy-Yurov/Ek-Hartman
Ohgren-Ek/Yurov-Gaudreau
Trash-(hopefully useful trash)-trash

Not sure if I missed anyone. Gets a little more complicated with signings. If we sign Nelson, Yurov might find himself on the wing and Gaudreau at 4C. Now that I think about it… that’s exactly what they’re going to do, isn’t it?

 

[DigitalBoldy]

2 goals and 1 assist in 10 games is pretty ok for a fourth line player IMO. That would be about 16 goals and 8 assists (24 points) in 82 games.

I miss Marat's wheels, you can't teach speed.

They played him 17 minutes tonight. That’s not 4th line minutes.

 

[AKL]

If we sign Nelson, Yurov might find himself on the wing and Gaudreau at 4C. Now that I think about it… that’s exactly what they’re going to do, isn’t it?

I think so, yeah

 

[MNRube]

Just got an assist tonight, as did Duhaime, who he was playing against. I'd rather have Duhaime, Marat, Lauko, and 1.5M than Trenin, Shore and Brazeau.

I’d rather have Duhaime and Trenin. Clear best options from this group, IMO.

 

[57special]

I’d rather have Duhaime and Trenin. Clear best options from this group, IMO.

Also the most expensive, at 1.8 and 3.5, and neither can play C. The others all make under 1M. It starts to add up after a while.

 

[Dr Jan Itor]

I would like to also add useful in some form or fashion.

They might consider putting him at wing. I think he is too good in terms of play to be on the 4th line and his faceoffs are mediocre at best. Excellent candidate for 3RW:

Kap-Rossi-Zucc
Boldy-Yurov/Ek-Hartman
Ohgren-Ek/Yurov-Gaudreau
Trash-(hopefully useful trash)-trash

Not sure if I missed anyone. Gets a little more complicated with signings. If we sign Nelson, Yurov might find himself on the wing and Gaudreau at 4C. Now that I think about it… that’s exactly what they’re going to do, isn’t it?

Foligno, unless you consider him to be trash.

 

[DigitalBoldy]

Foligno, unless you consider him to be trash.

Meh. Trash adjacent.

 

[DigitalBoldy]

Also the most expensive, at 1.8 and 3.5, and neither can play C. The others all make under 1M. It starts to add up after a while.

Shore is unironically the best center in that group and it’s not close.

 

[BagHead]

They played him 17 minutes tonight. That’s not 4th line minutes.

To say nothing of his linemates. His only 4 (so far) linemates there are Lauko (no change vs here), Lindholm, Mittelstadt, and Pastrnak. Those guys are just a bit better than Trenin, Shore, and Jones.

 

[MNRube]

Meh. Trash adjacent.

Foligno is a good player. Both by the eye test and the analytics. Brings a physical element and one of the better defensive wings in the league year after year. Don’t understand the hate for him.

 

[Saga of the Elk]

Foligno is a good player. Both by the eye test and the analytics. Brings a physical element and one of the better defensive wings in the league year after year. Don’t understand the hate for him.

Pretty rich contract for a third-line guy who mainly is there to hit someone. On balance he is a positive on-ice and I assume that he offers something in the locker room that the GM feels is important. That said, three more years at $4 million is not likely to look good.

I always think it's worthwhile to look at a successful team like Florida. Their grinders are AJ Greer (850K), Evan Rodrigues (3MM but also plays center) and now Brad Marchand (acquired on an expiring contract for not much).

Overpays in one area generally means underperformance somewhere else.

 

[DigitalBoldy]

Foligno is a good player. Both by the eye test and the analytics. Brings a physical element and one of the better defensive wings in the league year after year. Don’t understand the hate for him.

I’m not hating him. He’s a solid 3rd-4th liner and seems like a glue guy. Not trash, but certainly not a difference maker.

 

[AKL]

So he's supposedly a great locker room presence and a leader, except I'm not sure that him being those things has ever won us anything. Looking at what he brings on the ice. Good defensive winger, physical. Okay, fairly common among bottom six wingers. Offensively, doesn't bring much. 3/4 line tweener production. His contract should be a little over half of what it is now. It's not the player anyone has problems with, it's the contract and the role.

 

[f7ben]

So he's supposedly a great locker room presence and a leader, except I'm not sure that him being those things has ever won us anything. Looking at what he brings on the ice. Good defensive winger, physical. Okay, fairly common among bottom six wingers. Offensively, doesn't bring much. 3/4 line tweener production. His contract should be a little over half of what it is now. It's not the player anyone has problems with, it's the contract and the role.

Exactly , he’s a 2.5m player and that’s accounting for all his amazing off ice intangibles

 

[DigitalBoldy]

I’d have Foligno around $3-3.25M.

 

[north21]

Would love to see a 4th line of Freddy, Foligno and Trenin because it would mean Ohggy, Yurov and maybe a ufa replaced them in the top 9.

 

[f7ben]

Would love to see a 4th line of Freddy, Foligno and Trenin because it would mean Ohggy, Yurov and maybe a ufa replaced them in the top 9.

I think you’re doubting Billy’s ability to go out there and sign the next pylon they try and jam into the middle 6 ….grit first

 

[57special]

Meh. Trash adjacent.

I wonder why Guerin never thought of OS'ing Holloway? You could say that of 29 other GM's, but he was there for the taking. He's got size. He plays with FU.