Minnesota Wild General Discussion X

[Dr Jan Itor]

Assuming the same injuries for a few more games:

Anas/Mayhew - Staal - Zuccarello
Parise - Donato - Fiala
Greenway - Sturm - Kunin
Foligno - Rask - Hartman

The bottom 3 lines have all had some success together and have clear roles. Boudreau would have two strong checking lines that aren't offensive black holes and one pure scoring line. He'd have to be careful with the deployments, but again that should be easier at home.

Zucker's a big loss, but Staal and Zuccarello have had strong enough chemistry that the third player on that line shouldn't need to be spectacular. Tom Kurvers admitted in his interview with Russo that the reason Anas hasn't been called up is because he's just not a bottom-6 player and there hasn't been an opportunity for him at top-6 wing yet. I'd argue that the same is more or less true for Mayhew; it hasn't stopped them from calling him up, but he's also not suited for a checking role. Give either guy their shot and see how it goes.

If they need to shorten the bench late, take the best guy that night from the 2nd line and move them up with Staal.

Hell, can we pull Beckman out of the WHL for a couple weeks (keep it under 9 games)?

 

[Wabit]

Hell, can we pull Beckman out of the WHL for a couple weeks (keep it under 9 games)?

If you call them up midseason don't you have to keep them for the rest of the season?

 

[DeagleJenkins]

If zucc is elite why not throw donato on that line since he has a quality shot? I cant watch a single game but I assume he doesn't look that great at center??

 

[AKL]

If zucc is elite why not throw donato on that line since he has a quality shot? I cant watch a single game but I assume he doesn't look that great at center??

The couple games he played between Parise and Fiala weren’t that bad. He’s definitely not going to be a center for any meaningful amount of time in the future, but while Koivu and Ek are out, it’s a better option than Luke Johnson at center.

 

[Bazeek]

If zucc is elite why not throw donato on that line since he has a quality shot? I cant watch a single game but I assume he doesn't look that great at center??

He doesn't look great at center, but for some weird reason Parise - Donato - Fiala has worked fine as a line. Not ideal, but under the circumstances there's zero reason to avoid using it.

 

[Dr Jan Itor]

If you call them up midseason don't you have to keep them for the rest of the season?

No idea. I just remember Dumba starting with the NHL club early on and then getting sent back in the middle of the season.

 

[DonatoisDaddy]

No idea. I just remember Dumba starting with the NHL club early on and then getting sent back in the middle of the season.

I think it's a 10 game tryout

 

[DeagleJenkins]

The couple games he played between Parise and Fiala weren’t that bad. He’s definitely not going to be a center for any meaningful amount of time in the future, but while Koivu and Ek are out, it’s a better option than Luke Johnson at center.

He doesn't look great at center, but for some weird reason Parise - Donato - Fiala has worked fine as a line. Not ideal, but under the circumstances there's zero reason to avoid using it.

I understand for the time being him at C works but if we want him top line wing potential shouldn't we attempt him there? bb already is willing to break that line up.

 

[Bazeek]

I understand for the time being him at C works but if we want him top line wing potential shouldn't we attempt him there? bb already is willing to break that line up.

I'd have no problem putting Donato in Zucker's spot, I'm just not sure who would play 2C. Johnson was (somehow) worse than Rask at it.

 

[DeagleJenkins]

I'd have no problem putting Donato in Zucker's spot, I'm just not sure who would play 2C. Johnson was (somehow) worse than Rask at it.

Was Johnson even C in iowa? I thought he was a wing.

 

[Bazeek]

Was Johnson even C in iowa? I thought he was a wing.

I think so. Based on what Kurvers said, Sturm/Johnson/Dumont have been Iowa's top-3 centers this year.

 

[57special]

I think Sturm deserves more of a look. If nothing else, i think he will be a decent 4th line C. Like Soucy, he is an older, 4 years college player, so he has a more mature body.

 

[DeagleJenkins]

I think so. Based on what Kurvers said, Sturm/Johnson/Dumont have been Iowa's top-3 centers this year.

gotcha, the lineup down there has fluctuated enough that I don't look too far into it yet.

 

[BuiumSaveUs]

I'm not upset, in fact I'm still on the floor trying to pick myself up.

Seriously, if you want the best for the team you simply don't split the very productive Staal & Lizard duo.

Fiala has no business on the top line, or Hartman for that matter.

I don’t know how you have this idea in your head that Zuccarello is some savior, but he’s like our 5th best forward. Fiala does deserve top line minutes, and the rationale behind putting Hartman on the line is a new concept that’s called spreading that talent. One line teams don’t do anything in this league, and we win with depth. I have no issue swapping Zuccarello and Fiala in the lines, but you have to realize that Zuccarello has been a disappointment since coming here.

 

[2Pair]

I don’t know how you have this idea in your head that Zuccarello is some savior, but he’s like our 5th best forward. Fiala does deserve top line minutes, and the rationale behind putting Hartman on the line is a new concept that’s called spreading that talent. One line teams don’t do anything in this league, and we win with depth. I have no issue swapping Zuccarello and Fiala in the lines, but you have to realize that Zuccarello has been a disappointment since coming here.

Zuccarello is right there with Fiala as the 2nd best forward on the team. He had a terrible start, but is nowhere near being a disapointment

 

[SupremeNachos]

Evolving Hockey fixed their charts for rolling team numbers, and I thought these three summed up the season so far pretty well.

Expected Goals - Team's bread and butter, but the recent injuries have hurt.

Save % - All over the ****ing place

Shooting % - To Infinity, and Beyond!

I don't remember anything from math class that was suppose to help me decipher this.

 

[TaLoN]

I don't remember anything from math class that was suppose to help me decipher this.

The nice thing about those graphics? It's a simple higher is better. The trends up are good, down are not good.

 

[SupremeNachos]

The nice thing about those graphics? It's a simple higher is better. The trends up are good, down are not good.

I figured that part out. I was just confused because there are 10 different colored lines and no reference to what is what.

 

[TaLoN]

I figured that part out. I was just confused because there are 10 different colored lines and no reference to what is what.

Pretty sure the other colors are for other teams? The one for the Wild is just darker for easier reference.

 

[SupremeNachos]

Pretty sure the other colors are for other teams? The one for the Wild is just darker for easier reference.

Get out of here with that reasonable kind of thinking.

 

[Bazeek]

I figured that part out. I was just confused because there are 10 different colored lines and no reference to what is what.

Yeah, it's kind of a mess. I could've left the phantom lines for the other teams off but I figured it helped give a sense of scale, especially for the sh% one.

 

[TaLoN]

Yeah, it's kind of a mess. I could've left the phantom lines for the other teams off but I figured it helped give a sense of scale, especially for the sh% one.

I think it's better with them for reference.

 

[Bazeek]

Thank goodness.

 

[2Pair]

Thank goodness.

Every time I see another line chart, I try to laugh it off but it's geting difficult to do.

 

[Bazeek]

Every time I see another line chart, I try to laugh it off but it's geting difficult to do.

I have no major complaints. Maybe swap Parise and Donato, but I don't think it's a game-changer.