Minnesota Wild: The powerplay still needs to be better

By Luke Ryan | Nov 15, 2018

ST. PAUL, MN - NOVEMBER 13: Zach Parise #11 of the Minnesota Wild chases a puck that gets behind Pheonix Copley #1 of the Washington Capitals during a game between the Minnesota Wild and Washington Capitals at Xcel Energy Center on November 13, 2018 in St. Paul, Minnesota. The puck would find it's way to the back of the net and Matt Dumba #24 of the Minnesota Wild would be credited with the 3rd period power play goal as the Capitals defeated the Wild 5-2.(Photo by Bruce Kluckhohn/NHLI via Getty Images) /

For a team sitting third in the league, the Minnesota Wild have a decidedly average power-play percentage.

Now, this might not be a reflection on the Minnesota Wild; it could be a reflection on the Central Division on the whole. League leaders, the Nashville Predators have the worst power-play percentage in the entire league. However, the Winnipeg Jets have the best in the league, so maybe that theory doesn’t fly either.

What was clear to see against the Washington Capitals was that the Minnesota Wild wasn’t able to convert on their extra-man chances. Six times they had an extra-man and only once were they able to do anything with it.

Now, there’s nothing to say that the Wild simply were out-done by a Washington Capitals’ penalty-killing group that has remained roughly the same as the one that delivered them a Stanley Cup this summer.

However, fact is, the team sits 17th in the league in terms of making use of their power-play. At the top of the list are teams like Winnipeg that can roll out Patrik Laine, teams like Boston with their Brad Marchand line and of course, Washington themselves with the sniping of one Alexander Ovechkin.

More from Analysis

The Minnesota Wild don’t have such riches on offer. Defensively, they have solid options in Matt Dumba and Ryan Suter, interestingly still rolling a two-man defensive pair on the power-play against Washington with Jared Spurgeon the extra guy.

It’s the forward groups that don’t exactly strike fear into the opposition; the four-man forward line made up of Charlie Coyle, Mikael Granlund, Eric Staal and Jason Zucker.

That group as individuals is well-rounded enough, especially if you put Staal or Coyle in place in front of the opposing goalie, but what it lacks is a true play-maker to drive the possession and passing.

WATCH NHL ON ESPN+: Get your free 7-day trial of ESPN+

Think Patrick Kane in Chicago – you need the key player for distributing the puck. This is one spot where acquiring William Nylander could be a very smart option for the Minnesota Wild.

Net-front presence alone isn’t enough to bring power-play goals. Something is missing there.

The second group is made up of Mikko Koivu, Nino Niederreiter and Zach Parise; again decent enough individuals, but that isn’t about to be a dominant trio on the power-play anytime soon. Koivu is getting a bit long in the tooth and Nino is only just finding his game again.

My thinking is to bring someone like Jordan Greenway out for that second power-play unit. Make him your net-front presence, let Zach Parise be the man dishing the puck around.

If there’s one thing to be said about Minnesota Wild head coach, Bruce Boudreau; it’s that he isn’t afraid to throw the lines in the blender. Maybe the power-play needs to go through the blender after a lacklustre showing versus the Capitals.

Next. Wild should look to capitalise on Canucks injuries. dark

Or maybe tonight against the Canucks, it gets going again and all this thinking about it is for nothing!