It was a busy weekend for the Minnesota Wild and the NHL. Sure it was the beginning of summer, but it was also the NHL Entry Draft in Ottawa and what an interesting couple of days it was.

Minnesota Wild general manager Dougie and his cronies spent Friday night working out deals to move around in the draft selection. Either they wanted to go earlier than their original 24th pick or they wanted to get something in return and just go later. In the end, the Wild powers that be swapped first-round picks with New Jersey and threw in next year's third-round pick to move up to the 23rd spot...LONG DRAMATIC PAUSE...

The Minnesota Wild selected Tyler Cuma as their first round draft pick, No. 23 overall. Cuma is a tough defenseman. He weighs in at 6-2 and 180 pounds. I think he could use some Minnesota home cooking to beef him up a bit, but overall he has a positive attitude and aspires to be a top hitting physical force in the NHL. Cuma is happy to be drafted into the Hockey Wilderness (see my Tyler Cuma fanshots for his quote) now let's just see how he holds up in camp. I won't be rushing out to buy my Tyler Cuma jersey anytime soon and I won't be scratching my head if he doesn't show up starting on the Minnesota Wild roster, but he is as good a choice as any. Welcome to Minnesota Tyler Cuma. Welcome to the Hockey WILDerness!