Minnesota Wild: Dubnyk, Suter, Boudreau Named to All Star Team

At noon the NHL announced the final rosters and coaches for the All-Star Game in LA to be played on the 29th of January. The Minnesota Wild did well with selections of goaltender Devan Dubnyk, defenseman Ryan Suter, and Head Coach Bruce Boudreau all set to represent the Central Division. But should there have been another Wild face selected to the roster?

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It may not look like it, but the Minnesota Wild will be well represented at the NHL All-Star Game on January 29th. The NHL announced at noon today the final roster of players and the coaches who will join the Division Team Captains that were already voted in by the fans.

The Wild actually ended up with a relatively strong showing with Head Coach Bruce Boudreau being named as the bench boss for the Central Division squad that will feature two of his best players in Devan Dubnyk and Ryan Suter. They’ll join forwards Patrick Kane, Jonathan Toews, Patrick Laine, Nate MacKinnon, Tyler Seguin, and Vladimir Tarasenko, as well as defenders P.K. Subban and Duncan Keith, and goaltender Corey Crawford to form a very strong Central Division team.

The reason Wild fans should be happy here is because Suter is in. Boudreau made it in based on the team having the highest point percentage in the division, so no guess work needed there. And Dubnyk is statistically the best goaltender in the NHL so his selection also required little to no contemplation. Suter however despite his excellent play faced an uphill battle, which he seemed to have won.

Dec 29, 2016; Saint Paul, MN, USA; Minnesota Wild defenseman Ryan Suter (20) against the New York Islanders at Xcel Energy Center. The Wild defeated the Islanders 6-4. Mandatory Credit: Brace Hemmelgarn-USA TODAY Sports /

The issue for Suter to make the team as I pointed out last week was a simple issue that had to deal with the small number of roster slots for the Central squad, a need to spread slots to at least one player on each team, and of course the large pool of the deserving players.

It seems that the Wild’s top defensemen and co-leader in NHL plus/minus rating, was able to beat out the Jets’ Dustin Byfuglien and the Blues’ Kevin Shattenkirk even though both players boasted higher point totals. That most likely had to do with the fact that Suter has played such a solid two-way game, leads the league in a major statistical category, and his team has the highest point percentage in the Division. Sometimes a team’s success is more important to individual accolades than one would think.

As for reasons that Wild fans should be unhappy with this roster…there’s not more than two players on the roster. I’ve already said it twice in this article, so I’ll say it again, the Wild have the best point percentage in the Central Division. Yet the Blackhawks who have the second best point percentage have four players on the roster.

Dec 7, 2016; Toronto, Ontario, CAN; Minnesota Wild head coach Bruce Boudreau (right) on the bench against the Toronto Maple Leafs at the Air Canada Centre. Minnesota defeated Toronto 3-2. Mandatory Credit: John E. Sokolowski-USA TODAY Sports /

So why the difference? Couldn’t one of those Blackhawk’s slots been given to a Wild player to make it 3 Hawks and 3 Wild players? That seems to be the better answer given how evenly matched the two teams are in the standings and in performance.

My thought is that the league pandered to Chicago market yet again. As with most things like outdoor games and TV time, the NHL has decided to send a message that the Blackhawks are a special franchise and seem to be entitled to special treatment.