February 27, 20179 yr Hanzal would be a top 6 fwd on most teams in the NHL. He is certainly much more than a "depth" guy. He scores goals, plays well both ways and is top 6 in the league in faceoff%The Wild have a ton of prospects who should arrive in the next few years, id much rather give up the picks than one or two of Elk, Tuch, Haula etcThey also got white, who isn't super sexy, but is a nice guy to have on the team, clear upgrade over Gabriel, and a good platoon type guy with Schroeder.This is correct. Hanzal is meant to give the Wild three tough centers to match up with the big centers in the West (Toews, Kopitar, Getzlaf...). Hopefully it takes some defensive pressure off of Staal so his line can start performing again. This gives them another top faceoff guy to go with Mikko (Staal is just OK). Also, both Hanzal and White have more hits than anybody on the Wild, which is clearly a need for this team. Against rougher teams, play White. Against finesse teams, play Schroeder. Edited February 27, 20179 yr by Physics Guy
February 27, 20179 yr I hope you're right. Like I said before Hanzal wasn't on my radar at all, so others will be a better judge of him than me. Really I'm just excited that a Minnesota sports team is going all-in this season. Should be fun to watch down the stretch!I'm always right End of the day, it costs something to get something, Hanzal is definitely a much better player than Boyle etc My only qualm is the conditional pick, I wish it only went to a 2nd rounder IF they made the finals!
February 27, 20179 yr Author Let's not go nuts. I'm not saying it'll work that well, but the truth is that the Wild needed someone bigger than Haula so they can do what they really want to do to Chicago: Play Koivu's line against Kane and play Parise's line against Toews. That allows them to let Staal's big line pound on the Hawks much weaker third line while the top two lines are mostly negated. Hanzal gives them a player that can physically stack up with Toews and still be a threat. As good as Haula is, he's not a good matchup against Toews. Hanzal is a much better fit and allows for a lot more matchup problems for the Blackhawks.
February 28, 20179 yr Well, bye week sluggishness crisis averted. Narrowly. I like this Ryan White guy. Even before his equalizer, that flow, that red mustache...this guy's a hockey player.
February 28, 20179 yr Author I'm eating serious crow on Granlund and loving it. What a player. Goes to show how much good (or damage) a coach can do to a player. Edited February 28, 20179 yr by TheLeviathan
February 28, 20179 yr Me too. I was DONE with him last year. Such a simple change to put him on the wing and watch him flourish. He's making up for lost time. Edited February 28, 20179 yr by Pardon My Dinger
February 28, 20179 yr I think we all were done with Granlund last year... I would have been fine selling him for 50 cents on the dollar. He's been awesome to watch this year!
February 28, 20179 yr I'm eating serious crow on Granlund and loving it. What a player.Goes to show how much good (or damage) a coach can do to a player.Let's remember he is still only 25. He is a playmaker, so it stands to reason they might start him at C. I wouldn't fault Yeo too much as far as Granlund is concerned. Granlund showed stretches during Yeo's tenure of being a good player. I think he has improved his skating significantly the past two years and that is partly responsible for his improvement, besides switching to W.
February 28, 20179 yr Author Let's remember he is still only 25. He is a playmaker, so it stands to reason they might start him at C. I wouldn't fault Yeo too much as far as Granlund is concerned. Granlund showed stretches during Yeo's tenure of being a good player. I think he has improved his skating significantly the past two years and that is partly responsible for his improvement, besides switching to W.I think this year has shown us a lot about Yeo. And very little of it reflects well on him.
February 28, 20179 yr Yes, Yeo was a terrible coach who got very little out of a very talented roster. He's going to take the Blues down the tubes as well, which is good for us as Wild fan.It's no surprise that once Vanek left and went to Detroit he suddenly "found it" again, which is lame because Yeo ruined him and we still are on the hook for a decent cap hit for him for another year.
February 28, 20179 yr I think this year has shown us a lot about Yeo. And very little of it reflects well on him. Agreed. I don't know enough about the x's and o's anymore to go in-depth on it. Clearly Boudreau's system is a much better fit than Yeo's. And there is no divide in the locker room anymore between young players and veterans, which Yeo caused by continuing to cater to the veterans.
February 28, 20179 yr I hope this hasn't been touched on already, cuz I just got curious and was looking somewhere to ask-- but is it possible the Wild still have moves to make before tomorrow's deadline? What is rumored?
February 28, 20179 yr Agreed. I don't know enough about the x's and o's anymore to go in-depth on it. Clearly Boudreau's system is a much better fit than Yeo's. And there is no divide in the locker room anymore between young players and veterans, which Yeo caused by continuing to cater to the veterans. It's not x's and o's. if anything, it's a relative absence of 'system' mentality. It's Boudreau's leadership that sets him apart. He lets his players play, and focuses on finding the right chemistry.
February 28, 20179 yr I hope this hasn't been touched on already, cuz I just got curious and was looking somewhere to ask-- but is it possible the Wild still have moves to make before tomorrow's deadline? What is rumored? Nothing is rumored that I'm aware of, but the prevailing thought is that veteran defensive depth certainly wouldn't hurt.
February 28, 20179 yr Nothing is rumored that I'm aware of, but the prevailing thought is that veteran defensive depth certainly wouldn't hurt. I feel like I've heard for months that a young goal scorer was a target-- not that goals have been hard to come by. E.Kane and RNH are names I've heard-- thought I'm not sure it makes much sense at this time. I'd love to see either in green one of these days though.
February 28, 20179 yr I feel like I've heard for months that a young goal scorer was a target-- not that goals have been hard to come by. E.Kane and RNH are names I've heard-- thought I'm not sure it makes much sense at this time. I'd love to see either in green one of these days though. We're not getting anymore shiny new toys. Fletch spent his whole allowance on Hanzal/White.
February 28, 20179 yr Agreed. I don't know enough about the x's and o's anymore to go in-depth on it. Clearly Boudreau's system is a much better fit than Yeo's. And there is no divide in the locker room anymore between young players and veterans, which Yeo caused by continuing to cater to the veterans.Yep. The biggest difference between Yeo and Boots is everyone earns their playing time and lines now.It's a big motivator when the vets know they have to produce to keep playing top line minutes, and the young guys know they can earn more time and power play opportunities.
March 1, 20179 yr I hope this hasn't been touched on already, cuz I just got curious and was looking somewhere to ask-- but is it possible the Wild still have moves to make before tomorrow's deadline? What is rumored? Could use a backup goalie.
March 1, 20179 yr Author Could use a backup goalie. Yeah, tonight may cement that. But I have no idea who they could target.
March 9, 20179 yr Are people getting their hopes up back home? I remember how I felt when the Vikings were good....
March 10, 20179 yr Author Are people getting their hopes up back home? I remember how I felt when the Vikings were good.... I am and all my in-laws are Hawks fans so that only amplifies it. Edited March 10, 20179 yr by TheLeviathan
March 10, 20179 yr I'm pretty bummed about being away to miss this run. Mainly I guess because I can't watch most of it.
March 10, 20179 yr Are people getting their hopes up back home? I remember how I felt when the Vikings were good....The memes on a group text chat with friends back in MN are getting more confident throughout the winter... I'm ready for the playoffs!
March 11, 20179 yr Are people getting their hopes up back home? I remember how I felt when the Vikings were good....I'm not. The MN sports-ness is my default setting. I have to remind myself that they have have 90 points and are a top five team in the league. It doesn't feel like they've been that good. And I still don't feel like they'd make it past the second round. I'd certainly love them to kick the mn sports out of me though.
March 11, 20179 yr I'm not. The MN sports-ness is my default setting. I have to remind myself that they have have 90 points and are a top five team in the league. It doesn't feel like they've been that good. And I still don't feel like they'd make it past the second round. I'd certainly love them to kick the mn sports out of me though.I fear you are right. I hope you are not. I believe...I don't know what to believe.
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