Minnesota Wild Offseason-Top Five Stories-Gone Puck Wild

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Jan 29, 2015; Calgary, Alberta, CAN; Minnesota Wild goalie Devan Dubnyk (40) celebrate a win with teammates against the Calgary Flames at Scotiabank Saddledome. Minnesota Wild won 1-0. Mandatory Credit: Sergei Belski-USA TODAY Sports

Get ready, training camp is only one week from today. After the smoldering summer heat it’s finally time to get back to playing Minnesota Wild hockey. I, for one, didn’t really feel like it was an off-season per say. It was apparent after the Wild left the ice at Xcel back in May that there was a lot to accomplish in four months, and the team accomplished a ton this off-season. So if you weren’t listening, watching, reading, or were just plain taking the summer off from hockey, here’s the Wild’s top five stories of the summer.

1) The Wild Inked Devan Dubnyk to a 6 year deal

Apr 26, 2015; Saint Paul, MN, USA; Minnesota Wild goalie Devan Dubnyk (40) makes a save during the third period in game six of the first round of the 2015 Stanley Cup Playoffs at Xcel Energy Center. The Wild defeated the Blues 4-1 advancing them to the second round of playoffs. Mandatory Credit: Marilyn Indahl-USA TODAY Sports

The first and most pressing issue for GM Chuck Fletcher was to establish the Wild’s goal-tending situation. Knowing how great Devan Dubnyk was down the stretch, it was only logical that the Wild looked to secure his services long term.

They made his signing the priority, but it was obvious that they wanted to do it at a certain price point in order to facilitate some other re-signings, most notably Michael Grandlund. It seemed for a brief minute that Dubnyk might slip away into free agency, but his desire to stay in Minnesota and Fletcher’s desire for him to stay made sure that a deal was done in a number that each side could live with.

The $4.3 million price tag per season is a fair number.

After all, Dubs is coming off a season where he won the Masterton Trophy, was a finalist for the Vezina Trophy, and was the single biggest reason that the Wild were the NHL’s best team in the second half.

Those who say that $26 million over six years is too much would point to Dubnyk’s record before becoming a member of the Wild and say he could regress back there. To that I’d answer simply that when he played in Edmonton and Arizona he did not have anywhere near the defensive support like he has here in Minnesota. If Dubnyk plays his game and the defense does its job he’ll certainly be proven well worth the money.

2) Nick Backstrom’s Injury

Jan 13, 2015; Pittsburgh, PA, USA; Minnesota Wild goalie Niklas Backstrom (32) takes the ice before playing the Pittsburgh Penguins at the CONSOL Energy Center. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports

It’s no secret that goaltender Niklas Backstrom has had his share of injuries over the last two seasons, but I think it was a surprise by all that this off-season it was so bad.

The injury to his right elbow which occurred in the pre-season in Winnipeg and was made worse early in the season caused him to have issues with his hand in everyday activities like driving a car or holding a cell phone. He had surgery in May to repair the damage.

The reason this injury was so key to shaping the off-season was not because the Wild need him in net, it’s actually because they don’t need him in net. The NHL rules on contract buyouts prohibit a club from buying out the contract of a player while they are injured.

A buyout of his final year of his contract would have saved the Wild $1.3 million against the cap. This would have been huge to a team with only $1.9 million left in cap space after only re-signing players and not making a huge splash in the free agent market. This would have meant that the Wild could bring in another fresh free agent to bolster the line-up.

Additionally, this causes a big circus as the plan going forward is to have Dubynk start with Kuemper as the back-up. Will Backstrom take any practice or game time from either goalie? The answer is no, so you’re left with the question of what to do with him. He can be traded, which is not likely, due to his contract and declining play. He can be sent to the AHL or to a club in Europe, but only with his permission.

It’s a mess and one the Wild will need to be creative with, but on the bright side, his cap hit of $3.4 million will be freed up next season regardless of his health.

3) Thomas Vanek is Healthy

Mar 27, 2015; Saint Paul, MN, USA; Minnesota Wild forward Thomas Vanek (26) celebrates his goal in the third period against the Calgary Flames at Xcel Energy Center. The Minnesota Wild beat the Calgary Flames 4-2. Mandatory Credit: Brad Rempel-USA TODAY Sports

Apparently Vanek, even while scoring 21 goals, had a down year. While for the normal player a 20+ goal season is great in this era, the issue here is that Vanek is not considered a normal player.

Given that he has a history of larger scoring campaigns and a huge contract with a cap hit of $6.5 million next season, everyone was expecting much more from Vanek in his first campaign with the Wild. I would agree with those expectations as his scoring prowess could have paid off big time in crucial situations, especially in the playoffs.

Fast-forward to June, Vanek had surgery to repair two sport hernias on his left groin. Recently he’s started skating again and has told Michael Russo, of the Star Tribune, that his skating feels great and he is ready for camp.

The hope here is that a healthy Vanek will go back to the old Vanek and will add 40+ goals to a line-up that could use a goal scoring boost. It is very likely he will score more, but regardless all of us will be focused in on him to see if it was the injures or something else.

4) Mike Reilly Signs with the Hometown Team

Former Minnesota Gophers defenseman and Hobey Baker Finalist, Mike Reilly, signed a two year entry level contract with the Wild in early July, infusing more talent into an already deep and talented defensive corps.

After his draft rights expired without Columbus signing him to a contract, he became a very coveted free agent with multiple teams vying for his services.

He’s NHL ready, plays an up-tempo offensive style that will fit the Wild’s system, and most of all he’s motivated to play being a local from Chanhassen, MN. The only issue is where will he begin, which really will take the entire training camp to find out. Will Reilly find himself in one of the regular defensive pairings, will he be a depth defenseman playing only sporadically, or will he start the season down in Iowa?

Stay tuned to find the results.

5) Mikael Grandlund Re-Ups with The Wild

Apr 11, 2015; St. Louis, MO, USA; Minnesota Wild center Mikael Granlund (64) takes a shot on goal as St. Louis Blues center Paul Stastny (26) defends during the second period at Scottrade Center. Mandatory Credit: Billy Hurst-USA TODAY Sports

The Wild’s second highest free agent priority after Devan Dubnyk was their top line center Mikael Grandlund. The Wild shored up his services for another two years at a price of $6 million total ($2.8m next season and $3.2m the following season).

The young Finn is seen by Chuck Fletcher and the Wild as one of the key pieces to the future. His numbers from last year (8 goals and 31 assists) are almost identical to the year before (8 goals and 33 assists), suggesting that he may be reaching a plateau, but he’s young so there’s always the element of time.

Re-signing Grandlund was not so much about getting a goal scorer as it was about getting someone who can push the play, be physical, and when needed offer that extra bit of offense. Still most would say, like with Vanek, a bit more offense is needed, especially down the stretch and especially if you want to beat Chicago in the playoffs.

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