Tyler Graovac started last season on the Minnesota Wild roster out of training camp, and looked to have his first full season in the NHL. An injury in the first game of the season stopped that season from happening, and now heading into the offseason his future with the organization is a bit uncertain.
Tyler Graovac entered the Minnesota Wild’s training camp in September as a man determined to make the Wild’s opening day roster. As the leading scorer for the AHL affiliate Iowa Wild in the previous season it looked as if Graovac was in an excellent position to make the jump to a full-time NHLer.
“My goal has been to make that home opening roster,” Graovac told Evan Sporer of wild.com. “I have so much work to do still, and … it’s going to be small steps, and just showing them that I can play, and getting that 100 percent confidence from the coach will be number one.” And as we all know Graovac did get 100 percent confidence from the coaches and made the opening day roster for the Wild.
As fate would have it though just 13:37 seconds into the season opening game in Colorado, Graovac would suffer a lower-body injury and miss the next 26 games. And if the injury wasn’t enough, when he finally healthy enough to re-join the Wild Graovac was demoted back to Iowa where he largely remained for the rest of the season. The Wild did not have the roster spot after acquiring Jarret Stoll and there just wasn’t enough room for Graovac on the Wild roster.
Heading into this season offseason it can be said that Graovac will be much in the same place he was heading into last offseason, looking to turn his potential into a regular roster spot with the Wild. There is one difference this offseason as Graovac’s entry level contract will run out and he will be a RFA waiting to be re-signed. So as the Wild look to work out their personnel priorities, it’s worth asking is there a place for Graovac with the Wild next season?
With the almost certain departure of Jarret Stoll and possible departures of Ryan Carter, Chris Porter, and David Jones, Graovac could be a great option for the Wild to fill a possible open fourth line role. His 6 foot 5-inch frame makes him and intimidating presence on the ice, with the ability to put the puck in the net as shown by his 21 goals for Iowa to lead the team in the 2014-15 season. He can fill the role of any of the players on the current Wild fourth line and do it for a bit cheaper price tag.
The best way to size up Graovac is to hear what the experts think of him. According to his profile on hockeysfuture.com, Graovac is described as “a tall player with the finishing skill to thrive but his skating is not his strong point and he has struggled at times with coverage at the pro level. He possesses notably good character… He has been a consistent scorer at the AHL level.” Sounds like many of the current fourth line forwards in the NHL really.
The coaching staff at the beginning of last season thought Graovac was ready for the NHL. But with a new head coach and possibly all new assistants, he’ll need to prove himself all over again. Logic would say he could do it and make the opening roster again, but you never know if the new coaches will see the same potential in Graovac that the previous coaches did.
Graovac will most likely be re-signed, the issue will be if he makes the Wild roster or not. He’s an asset to a struggling Iowa team, so re-signing him for that end alone makes sense even if he can’t make it to the big club with the Wild. So once again it seems like the situation for Graovac heading into training camp will be the same as last year, he’s got a spot in Iowa for sure but he’ll need to prove himself to make the Wild.
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The question if he can do it is best answered by Graovac in his interview during last season’s training camp. “That feeling I had when I was up here was just — I’ll never forget that feeling, if I could have that every day would be a little kid’s dream, and is my dream for sure.” It’s safe to say Graovac will do all he can to make the Wild again this upcoming season.