>> First off, I’d like to offer my most sincere apology to those that have followed my website over the last few years. Due to unforeseen technical events (i.e. losing Internet access) I was unable to cover the games as I normally would. I have worked as best as I can to restore that access as soon as possible to resume my regular coverage of Wild hockey. Again I apologize for any inconvenience or trauma this has caused. I will do everything in my power to make sure this does not happen in the future. Sincerely, The State of Hockey News staff <<
The end is within sight. The Wild has trimmed its roster considerably over the past few weeks as have most teams across the league as they are winding down their exhibition schedule before the 82-game grind that is the regular season is just around the proverbial corner. Gone are Zack Phillips (Saint John, QMJHL), Josh Caron (Kamloops, WHL), Colton Jobke (Kelowna, WHL), Tyler Graovac (Ottawa, OHL), and Carter Sandlak (Belleville, OHL) as they were dispatched back to their major junior league teams. Also gone are older players like Justin Fontaine, Sam Lofquist, Mike Kramer, Jarod Palmer, Carson McMillan, Chad Rau, David McIntyre, Kris Foucault, Joel Broda, Tyler Cuma, Kyle Medvec, Chay Genoway, goaltenders Darcy Kuemper and Matthew Hackett to their American Hockey League affiliate in Houston where they will join their new head coach John Torchetti. One other player at Houston Aeros’ training camp will be former Wild draft pick (175th Overall, 2004) Aaron Boogaard who is the little brother of recently deceased State of Hockey fan favorite Derek Boogaard. Aaron is still facing charges stemming from violating a crime scene and the 3rd degree sale of a controlled substance. Aaron Boogaard tried out for the Aeros last year and didn’t make the cut and played with Laredo Bucks in the Central Hockey League. Meanwhile, older minor leaguers like Jeff Taffe, Jed Ortmeyer, Jeff Penner, Warren Peters, Jon DiSalvatore and goaltender Dennis Endras enjoy the uncertainty of waivers before they’d take their game south to Houston as well. The Wild said ‘buh bye’ to tryout defensemen Kris Friedheim and Jordan Hendry. That leaves 28 players on the current Wild roster and that means there are 5 more cuts to make to get the team down to 23 where it needs to be once regular season play resumes. To quote Wild General Manager Chuck Fletcher, “the first week of camp needs to be about evaluation and the next two weeks needs to be about team building” and with that many sent down in such a short time its obvious the team wanted to cut to the chase and start looking to develop chemistry both on and off the ice. So who will make the cut?
Well, who is left?
Centers: Cody Almond, Kyle Brodziak, Matt Cullen and Mikko Koivu
Left Wings: Brett Bulmer, Eric Nystrom, Colton Gillies, Guillaume Latendresse, and Matt Kassian
Right Wings: Casey Wellman, Darroll Powe, Devin Setoguchi, Pierre-Marc Bouchard, Dany Heatley, Cal Clutterbuck and Brad Staubitz
Defense: Drew Bagnall, Justin Falk, Nate Prosser, Nick Schultz, Mike Lundin, Clayton Stoner, Greg Zanon, Marek Zidlicky, Marco Scandella and Jared Spurgeon
Goaltenders: Niklas Backstrom, Josh Harding
With the lone exception of goaltending, the Wild still have some tough decisions to make. The three-game regular season league suspension of enforcer Brad Staubitz for a vicious check from behind during their home game against the Blue Jackets may it tough for the Wild to ship two players known for toughness in Matt Kassian and Drew Bagnall although Kassian is out with a hurt finger so would likely make Bagnall the front runner to replace that toughness role. Then again you may be able to go without a tough guy for 3 games as the league’s suspension dictates. No matter what, for many of the ‘bubble’ guys like Nate Prosser, Marco Scandella, Justin Falk, Casey Wellman, Cody Almond and the surprise of training camp in Brett Bulmer they have to be feeling some nervous anxiety as they report each day for practice. But that is the life of a professional athlete. A place that knows all too well the saying, “What have you done for me lately?”
Click on “Read More” to see the rest of the article…
Does Brett Bulmer really have a shot to make the big club?
My initial gut reaction to that possibility is no. Partly, because as potentially good as Brett Bulmer may be I have been hoping to see him perform at a more dominant role in junior with a Kelowna team that was searching for a horse to pull them along throughout the first half of its season. Bulmer had a few flashes but struggled with inconsistency where he could be a dominant player one night and then barely an afterthought the next. Its tough for me to get around the fact he struggled with this so much in junior that suddenly it wouldn’t be an issue at a higher level, as is the case with most players any issue you have at a lower level is amplified considerably in the pros. Any hole in your game is exposed big time, but he doesn’t seem to have that problem with the Wild so far this pre-season. Bulmer hasn’t been making his impact on the score sheet as much as he’s been a huge pain in the ass for his opponents, with an edgy style of game that quickly makes him unpopular with those not wearing the same kind of jersey as his own. He finishes his checks, he uses his 6’2″ frame to its fullest effect to protect the puck as he’s a beast along the boards and that is how he’s defied most predictions and eluded the cuts that claimed so many other older players despite the fact he’s only 19 years old. I still do not believe he makes the big club but the fact he’s lasted this long means the organization is liking what they’re seeing and they relish his competitive drive as well as his ability to get underneath his opponents’ skin. Wild Assistant General Manager Brent Flahr told Michael Russo of the Minneapolis Star Tribune, “It’s hard to find that type of tenacity and aggressiveness with his skill.” One thing is for sure he is not intimidated by just about anyone. He earned some kudos from the Wild coaches for jabbing at the Edmonton’s young stars Magnus Paajarvi and Taylor Hall, drawing the ire of the Oilers’ bench as one would expect. If you listen to the team’s management they are giving Bulmer a lot of praise and almost talk like he almost has a spot in the lineup. Despite that I am not sure having 4th line ice time is going to make him that much better. It didn’t work all that well for James Sheppard and Colton Gillies, and even if Bulmer “doesn’t look out of place” as Flahr states I think unless you’re really planning on using him a lot I think the best choice is to send him back to the WHL and let him benefit from the increased ice time. Bulmer was a late cut last season as well, which is another good sign of his potential but there is a big difference between the level of play in pre-season and regular season action and I think unless he’s really performing at that level of intensity you send him back. Scoring a goal last night against what was basically the St. Louis Blues’ ‘A’ team didn’t hurt his chances as this Michael Russo article explains here. Then again, most didn’t think Jared Spurgeon had a chance at the start of last year’s training camp myself included. So who knows?
The Defenseman shuffle, who is going to make it?
This is easily the most intense roster battle, the battle over who is going to be on the Wild’s blueline. Each player provides some of the same skills, but also some unique abilities. Nate Prosser is your mobile, safe and steady player with a little offensive flair. He doesn’t mind to be physical and seems to get under his opponents’ skin. Justin Falk is a big, 6’5″, 215lbs stay-at-home defenseman who is very mobile for his size and has steadily developed a bit more nastiness to his game. Marco Scandella combines size with skill and can be very effective at both ends of the ice. He is a blue chip prospect who is best suited as top 4 defenseman, but he’s only 21 and entering just his 2nd season as full-time pro. Lastly, Drew Bagnall is your big, strong physical warrior. He loves to hit (will fight as well), and plays a brand of hockey that makes opponents miserable. Wish you could keep them all? I know I wouldn’t mind it, but there really is just one more full-time spot available on the Wild’s blueline. Technically there is a 2nd spot as Apple Valley-native Mike Lundin is out with back spasms but really this is all about who will be the team’s 7th defenseman.
So who is the front runner? If you listen closely the two guys that are getting the most discussion from coaches and media people is Nate Prosser and Marco Scandella. Both have played reasonably well in pre-season and seem to have the utmost confidence of the Wild coaching staff. Prosser was a healthy scratch last night, but that doesn’t mean he’s the odd man out yet. Scandella’s skill level creates a bit of a conundrum for the coaching staff since he really is the kind of player you want on one of your top 2 pairings. Its not that he couldn’t play on the 3rd pair, but typically you have a bit more sandpaper in that group. Falk really appears as though he’s going out of his way to show the coaching staff he wants to play with more of an edge to his game but I think the calm, poised nature of Prosser and Scandella’s game is what makes them front runners so far. Prosser seems to be more of a natural fit for that 3rd pairing position and with Scandella being only 21 years old, it probably wouldn’t hurt him to play top minutes in Houston rather than being used occasionally or on the 3rd pair in Minnesota. With the departure of Brent Burns the team is hoping to replace that level of skill on its blueline and it wouldn’t mind replacing some of that offense that the Ajax, Ontario-native brought as well. That makes me lean towards Scandella to get a shot, but I think they’d like to give him that Top 4 role and push another defenseman down to the 3rd pairing.
At this point the Wild are 3-2 in pre-season which is certainly better than last season but there are two trends which the team has struggled with over the last two seasons to give reason for some caution.
1. Wild being outshot most of the time – One of the tenants of Mike Yeo coached teams is that their hard-working forechecking style suffocates opponents with a barrage of shots and limits their offensive chances because they’re working so hard in their own zone. Yet in this pre-season, just as it was for Todd Richards, the Wild have found themselves outshot in most pre-season games, sometimes trailing their opponents by 10 shots or more. Yes, they have a winning record but for a team with limited offensive depth putting up more shots is a far more reliable formula than throwing a few on goal and hoping to get lucky.
2. The 2nd period continues to be a place where letdowns occur regularly – The middle stanza of games continues to be a sore spot for the Wild. Mike Yeo’s post-game interview eluded to the team “getting away from its game” in the 2nd period and the result was St. Louis was to turn the game around. While it may bring some drama as fans usually enjoy a 3rd period comeback, for coaches its simply a lack of discipline and commitment to hustle. This is already shaping up to be a significant issue that Yeo must find a way to solve.
Add The Sports Daily to your Google News Feed!
