Wilderness Walk: Big, tough, team

That’s Wild

• Minnesota Wild head coach Dean Evason just needed to see video of Jacob Middleton to then thrust him on the team’s top pairing with Jared Spurgeon. [Hockey Wilderness]
• The transactions are still coming after the NHL Trade Deadline, as the Wild announced that they have signed forward prospect Vladislav Firstov to his entry-level contract, and the 20-year-old will report to AHL Iowa on an amateur try-out for the rest of the year. [Hockey Wilderness]
• Having Marc-Andre Fleury on this team is special, but for Kevin Fiala, it’s a dream come true getting to play with one of his childhood idols. [Hockey Wilderness]
• The Wild must fix their power play before even thinking about the playoffs. [10K Rinks]

Off the trail...

• Get out of Moritz Seider’s way. [Defector]
• Just two days after the Toronto Maple Leafs goaltender Petr Mrazek cleared waivers and was seemingly going nowhere near the NHL team, he started for the team last night. [Sportsnet]