Wilderness Walk: Turn the Page

The trade deadline has passed. There was a far amount of action, of course, but perhaps a bit less than I would have expected. Marc-Andre Fleury is still in Pittsburgh. Colorado still has Gabriel Landeskog and Matt Duchene. Mark Streit being traded twice in one day was pretty interesting, though I hope he hadn’t already boarded a plane from Philadelphia to Tampa Bay only to turn around and fly back to the other NHL team in Pennsylvania.

The Wild didn’t make any trades yesterday, seeming pretty content with the acquisition of Martin Hanzal and Ryan White. Teemu Pulkkinen was traded to Arizona for "future considerations" which should probably read "past considerations" as it seems it was really intended as an extra piece of Arizona’s haul in shipping the Wild Hanzal and White. Zac Dalpe is gone as well, having been claimed off of waivers by the Wild’s opponent tonight, the Columbus Blue Jackets. Dalpe has had a rough season, scoring few points and dealing with injuries, but he is a worker and filled in when called upon. Here’s wishing him all the best as he, and many other hockey players, turn the page to a new chapter of their hockey careers.

Wild News

Wild's Suter 'day to day' with lower-body injury - StarTribune.com
Do. Not. Play. Him. The Wild lead the West and have games in hand on many teams, there is no need to play him tonight.

Wild stands pat at deadline, turns focus to shoring up defense - StarTribune.com
The Wild allowed nine goals in two games. I'm not happy either, although some of those goals were pretty fluky.

NBC analyst Pierre McGuire calls Hanzal trade 'gigantic' for Wild
The Wild's biggest weakness from last season, the center position, is now a source of strength. This is good.

Wild winger Jordan Schroeder still fighting to prove he belongs
Good. Jordan Schroeder is at his best when he has a chip on his shoulder. That's a good trait in a 13th forward.

On Frozen Pond

Minnesota Hockey: Six Gopher Commits in Action at Mariucci Tonight - The Daily Gopher
A lot of talent squaring off before the big dance.

Behind Enemy Lines - The Cannon

February: Month in Review - The Cannon
The Blue Jackets may have won the big showdown of winning streaks, but the Wild have had the better of it since then.

Off the Trail

Ranking the 2017 trade deadline winners and losers | The Hockey News
Where do you think the Wild ended up on this list?

Down Goes Brown: NHL Trade Deadline winners and losers - Sportsnet.ca
I often disagree with Sean McIndoe (usually because my homerism gets in the way of objectivity), but I think he hit the nail squarely on the head with this line:

Here's the harsh reality of today's NHL: When it comes to putting together a championship roster, you'd better be moving forward or moving backward. Being flatfooted is a ticket to irrelevance.

TradeCentre winners and losers - Video - TSN
More of the same, but in video format!

25 fun things Ilya Bryzgalov said on NHL Trade Deadline Day - Sportsnet.ca
"Catch the scorpion and train the rattlesnake" and read the 25 best things we heard Ilya Bryzgalov say backstage during NHL trade deadline.

Catch the game tonight on FSN at 6 pm CST.