Minnesota Wild vs. Calgary Flames: Game Recap

this is starting to make me sick..

This team needs a huge wakeup call and I hope it is not Yeo getting fired. It would be a huge mistake because I think Yeo will be an asset to this team once the young kids start coming to the big club over the next 3-4 years. I think firing Fletch would be even worse because his drafting and most of his trades have been pretty good too. That leaves the roster and I am not sure who to move but here are some observations I have made.

1. Wellman is not going to be an NHL player with the Wild. There is obviously something about him that the staff does not like. There are reasons he gets called up and usually plays on the fourth line even though he is not a checker. I have never seen him in practive but it may start there. He put up good numbers in Houston but he may be a career NHLer. He was part of the first goal for the Flames and otherwise I did not notice him at all nor did I last game either. He got called up and made a quick impact the first few games, then nothing, then got hurt, then nothing more. I would be perfectly fine with him being traded for a veteran (hello Tuomu Ruutu) as I do not think he has much of a future here.

2, Why the heck was Nick Johnson on the second line? Don’t get me wrong, he played well when he was first claimed and scored some big goals at first. Since then . . . . I don’t mind him on the third line but he is probably more suited for the fourth line. Second line? I know PMB is hurt but there have to be better options like.

3. Clutterbuck. I know most people do not see him as a top six player, and I would agree, on most teams. But on this team and right now, he has to be a top six player. He has shown pretty good chemistry with Koivu and played well for a few games on the top line. At the very least, he can fill in on the second line while PMB misses some time. I get that Yeo wants him back on his original third line but this just seems to be messing with the chemistry even more.

4. Setogutchi, where does this guy fit? I have no doubt that he is trying, maybe even a bit too hard. But he is not cut out for top line minutes. He makes some interesting decisions with the puck, does not possess very good hands, and cannot possess the puck very well on his own. Second line? Maybe, but he is looking more and more like a third liner if he was on a more competitive team.

5. How bad is this team missing Latendresse? Power forward, sick hands, perfect complement to Heatley and Koivu and just gone now. They miss him and there is no cure, at least not within the organization. He’d be wise to take as much time as possible to recover from his latest concussion. At 24, he has a bright future if he ever gets healthy, it just may not be with MN which is really too bad.

6. I love the people that say we don’t need t player like Parise and shouldn’t pay for him. How has this last stretch of 15 games or so not proven that we need as much offense as we can get and from any position. Guaranteed, if you throw a player like Parise on this team next year, it will change the whole dynamic of the offense. I do not advocate trading for him because that would be idiotic. If he makes it to free agency, Fletch needs to pull out all the stops to try and land him.

7. Find a way to trade Zidlicky. I am tired of his game and what he supposedly brings to this team. I understand that he has some offensive skill but this team needs to look big picture and realize this season is all but lost. Give the minutes to the future defensemen and just let them play. There will be a ton of growing pains but they will come out better from it in 1-2 years. That would also mean trading Lundin (why did we sign this guy? Did Russo need company in the press box?) and Zanon.

8. I cannot stand this nonsense about keeping Harding because he is such a great #2 that if Backstrom gets hurt down the road, we can just ride Harding into the sunset. We need to capitalize on the few trade chips that we have and move them while we can. That means Harding needs to start 5 or so games coming up, hopefully looks good, and gets moved for the right return. He would probably like the chance to start and I know I would like another prospect or pick.

This is all very pessimistic but I think it is a reality we have to face. This team is not going to get Bobby Ryan (at least not during the season) but there are some other moves that could be made. The season might be able to be saved but I seriously doubt it. The Wild just look defeated right now, they played well to start the game but couldn’t finish. It has been the same story for the last 3+ years. This is not a playoff team. The start was nice, it got us all excited and made us all believers. It brought the team some attention but the reality is they are just not good enough and while other teams seem to be getting stronger (Dallas, St. Louis, Phoenix, Colorado?!), we are getting worse.

My last thought, the Bruins thumped the Flames 9-0 the other night. We pretty much just got shutout by the Flames tonight. How awful are we?

besides goaltending. And that is not a team activity.

It’s not just a lack of offense. It’s a complete failure to be in position, skate hard or make a decent pass on both ends of the ice. We lose every race to every puck. We’re always out-numbered on the puck, yet our players are nowhere else to be seen. We fail to keep it in the offensive zone. We’re on a constant PK in the defensive zone, and can’t clear it to save our lives. The back door is always open. Our offensive strategy is to put 3 forwards in a 15-foot radius, usually away from/behind the net, and yet we still can’t control the puck. We can’t break into the offensive zone; meanwhile, teams skate into our zone and set up with ease. And our powerplay … is our powerplay.

This truly is bad for the game.

That if we can’t win the Calgary game we won’t make the playoffs. I said it mostly to make a statement that we need to turn the ship around and start getting some Wins. Now I see that I said it in spite because like most of you I’m really down on this team.

I watched the Canucks/Bruins game this weekend and I couldn’t help but stare in wonder on how their offense looks and then watch ours. I don’t know what it is but it isn’t the same. It isn’t even in the same geographical area much less the same ballpark. I just don’t understand why we can’t run a competent offense with our top line?

Either way, I’m not off the bandwagon because I’ve come to love hockey in general and I still like supporting the Wild but I think my pre-season prediction of not making the playoffs is going to become true.