Minnesota Wild: Iowa Wild players in line for a call-up
The Minnesota Wild have got off to a solid start, but they are not the only ones. Their affiliate down in Des Moines, the Iowa Wild, have also got off to a franchise best start.
The Minnesota Wild finished October with a strong month, and exceeding many expectations. The Iowa Wild had a similarly strong month, and currently have 8 wins through 11 games.
The Minnesota Wild are currently only carrying 22 players on the NHL roster, so there is definitely room for a call-up. With recent illness striking Eric Staal, and the possibility that the Wild may be on the brink of a locker room virus spreading, a minor league call-up could be coming as soon as today.
Should the Wild be looking to fill the 23rd spot on the roster, or need an immediate player to fill any holes if the sickness spreads from Staal to other players, there are plenty of NHL ready options down the highway waiting for an opportunity.
Matt Read is clearly among the top players in terms of NHL depth, as a player with past experience and success. He got the call-up during the injury to Joel Eriksson Ek, and would clearly be in line to fill a hole again if the need were to arise.
Aside from Read, there are plenty of other players in Iowa with experience at the NHL Level. Luke Kunin, Mike Liambas, Kyle Rau, Andrew Hammond, Matt Bartkowski, and Carson Soucy have all spent time in the NHL and could find their way to Minnesota this year.
So, of those players, who would be the most likely to see a call-up? Who is playing well enough at the AHL level this year to be at the top of the list and most deserving to get a chance with the Minnesota Wild?
Luke Kunin
The Minnesota Wild and Luke Kunin had a very positive relationship last season, resulting in the first-round pick spending 19 games in the NHL and finishing with 4 points before an ACL tear ended his season early.
Kunin missed NHL training camp entirely this season, as medical would not clear his knee in time to participate. Since starting the season in Iowa, Kunin appears to have picked up as though he was never injured.
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He has supplied 3 goals and 7 points in 7 games for Iowa, and is a +2 in that time. With the injury to Staal, this should be the perfect opportunity for Kunin to be called up and play top line minutes.
If the Minnesota Wild want to know what they have in their former first-round pick, and give him a fair shake at playing Top 6 minutes, an injury to the 1st line center should be the opening that allows that to happen.
The Minnesota management and coaching team appear to be taking a conservative approach with Kunin’s injury recovery, but he is playing like that approach is overly cautious. He deserves a chance to regain his position in the NHL, and the Wild have the roster space to give him that chance.
Kunin spent most of last season in a 3rd line role, and played admirably in a position that required him to be more defensive and less of an offensive threat. Given a chance to perform alongside Jason Zucker and /or Mikael Granlund, Kunin should be able to perform at the level of his first round draft status
Andrew Hammond
The Minnesota Wild signed Andrew Hammond during the offseason to provide goaltending competition in the preseason, and a veteran stability to the Iowa Wild crease.
His performance in the preseason was solid, but not spectacular enough to overtake the pairing of Devan Dubnyk and Alex Stalock on the NHL roster. He was sent to Iowa, where he has been a stabilizing presence for the young Wild in Des Moines.
Hammond has 6 wins in 8 games, a 2.59 GAA and a .920 Sv% at the AHL level. These stats are much better than what Stalock has been producing in Minnesota, and could be enough to see the Wild make a swap for their back-up goaltender.
Kaapo Kahkonen has been playing strong, but the Wild would like him to continue in the backup role with an established goalie taking more starts. If Hammond were to get the call-up, and perform well enough to stay, then Stalock would need to clear waivers to go down to Iowa.
More realistically, Hammond is waiting for his opportunity to come from injury or illness. If Dubnyk or Stalock fall victim to sickness, then Hammond is getting a ton of time to stay in a rhythm in Iowa.
Hammond has NHL experience, and played well in limited stints through his career. Should the Wild need to dig into the goaltending depth, there should be no hesitation to give Hammond a shot in the Minnesota crease.
It is an enviable situation for the Minnesota Wild to be in, with a 3rd NHL-caliber goalie waiting for his opportunity. With goaltending depth being a struggle in recent years, it has now become a position of strong depth for the Wild.
Mason Shaw
Mason Shaw was a 4th round pick of the Minnesota Wild in 2017. He was coming off a 94 point season in the WHL, and looked like a solid pick that late in his draft year.
Sadly, an ACL tear in the Traverse City prospects tournament last year cost Shaw an entire year of hockey before making his return at this year’s Traverse City tournament. Like Kunin, Shaw appears to be playing better since recovering from the injury.
He has 9 points through 11 games to start the season, and is playing well beyond his rookie status. At a +3 with only a 12% shooting% he has plenty of room to grow, but growing from this starting point would mean he has an extremely high ceiling.
Should the Minnesota Wild need to call up a winger, Kyle Rau and Matt Read may get the call ahead of Shaw. Not necessarily because they are playing to deserve it, but more because they’ve had more experience.
If we are basing the call-up purely based on performance and deserving it, then Shaw is playing better than everyone else on the team right now. He would be my first call to give him a taste of the NHL, and a chance to showcase if he could translate his AHL success to the Minnesota Wild.
The Minnesota Wild could use a star player to carry their offense, besides Zach Parise. Why not take advantage of the skill of a player like Mason Shaw, who has shown a knack for scoring in Iowa.
In the search for the future stars of the Minnesota Wild, a late round pick performing like a star should be given a fair shot to become that player.
Guys like Nino Niederreiter and Charlie Coyle have intermittently been that guy, but neither is extremely consistent in their scoring. Should one of those guys find his way out of town, Mason Shaw could be the solution to fill the scoring role on the Wild.
It seems farfetched to think, with guys like Justin Kloos and Cal O’Reilly playing at a high level, that a rookie like Mason Shaw could be the one to deserve the call-up, but I think the team should strike while he’s hot. Give him a chance to translate his success to the NHL before he cools off.
Joel Eriksson Ek could use some time back in Iowa to rediscover his offensive spark. Perhaps Mason Shaw is the guy to fill his spot in Minnesota, and an opportunity to provide a youthful spark to players like Coyle and Jordan Greenway.
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This is purely speculative. Let me know if you agree with these picks, or if you would rather the Minnesota Wild call someone else up should the need arise.