Minnesota Wild: Trouble on the Penalty Kill?

Last season for the Minnesota Wild can only be described as a roller coaster ride first half of the season that moved into a consistent and smooth second half. When looking at those two halves of the season one major team statistic was strong in both halves and that was the Penalty Kill. The Wild’s PK was so good that they finished the season first in NHL with an 86.32% penalty kill ratio. This year however after 6 games played , which is almost 5% below the league average.

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It’s hard to tell what exactly attribute this change when simply looking at the surface. After all the coaches are pretty much the same as last year and the players are pretty much the same as last year. Notice I said pretty much the same, because when you look closer you can see two changes, one on the coaching side and one on the player side that have been huge for the Wild’s Penalty Kill.

On the coaching side Assistant Coach Darryl Sydor is not with the team due to his DWI troubles from back in August. Sydor was the Defensive and PK coach who authored the Wild’s PK scheme and had the ball on the right players and how to adjust to each situation. Sydor was one of the most successful defensive defenseman in the 1990s and 2000s in the NHL, so it stands to reason that he imparted a huge amount of knowledge and experience that might be missed right now by the Wild’s PK.

Feb 26, 2015; Nashville, TN, USA; Minnesota Wild center Kyle Brodziak (21) celebrates after a open net goal during the third period against the Nashville Predators at Bridgestone Arena. The Wild won 4-2. Mandatory Credit: Christopher Hanewinckel-USA TODAY Sports

On the player side I can point to the absence of Kyle Brodziak. Brodziak during his five seasons in Minnesota was on the ice for almost 50% of every Wild penalty kill during his time with the team. He was the consensus team leader on the penalty kill as his mix of speed, size, and grinding ability made him the perfect PK warrior. Say what you will about his even strength ability, Brodziak was the best Wild Penalty Killer last season and his absence has translated to lower numbers on the kill.

Despite that Brodziak is not coming back I really feel the Wild can right this ship and get their PK percentage back up close to last years 86%. First there is a good chance that Sydor will re-join the team at some point as the Wild have decided to re-address his status with the team at a later date. My thought is that if they wanted to cut ties with Sydor they would have done it right away rather than draw this out. Second I think there are enough talented Brodziak-like players in the current Wild line-up that they can step up and lead the PK unit. I really look to Mikko Koviu or Ryan Carter to fill this role. Both centers have the size, speed, and two-way instincts to be extremely successful on the PK.

Don’t get me wrong I still think that this season’s start has been very strong by the Wild, but I just feel this is the one glaring weakness that the team can easily address. The pieces are there to turn the PK around it just needs a little time, love, and physicality!

Next: Minnesota Wild Top Five Players Thus Far

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