Mikael Granlund Scratched Tonight Versus Canucks

Minnesota Wild coach Mike Yeo was on KFAN this morning, and made the "announcement" that FBJ, rookie phenom Mikael Granlund will not play tonight versus the Vancouver Canucks. Granlund has not been overly impressive since opening night, spent one game searching for his stick, and the last game was a fourth liner with Zenon Konopka and Devin Setoguchi.

What does this mean?

Long term, likely absolutely nothing. The kid has the raw talent to be a great NHLer. He will figure it out, and will be a career NHLer with jaw dropping moves. There is no reason to panic, and no reason to say the kid is anything but a kid still trying to figure out the game.

Short term, it means he isn't playing like an NHLer, and needs to find his game before he is put into the lineup. Gone are the days of James Sheppard and Colton Gillies being given their lineup spot simply because they were drafted in the first round. This is a smart move by Mike Yeo, and shows he is in charge of the team, and capable of making decisions that fans may not like.

Personally, I'm a big fan of the move. Not playing up to par? You sit. Doesn't matter what your name is, or how many teenage girls in Finland love you.

Get the message, kid. Get the message, and use it to improve. You'll be just fine if you can do that.