Bill Guerin Relieves Bruce Boudreau of Head Coaching Duties.

What a roller coaster of a week Minnesota Wild fans.

To start things off early in the week we see our beloved Jason Zucker depart for the Pittsburgh Penguins. To end the work week, General Manager Bill Guerin announces this morning that Bruce Boudreau has been relieved of his head coaching duties, and assistant Dean Evanson has stepped in as interim.

Michael Russo, as usual, was there to drop the news.

You can start to see the competitive nature in Bill Guerin come out.  Guerin took about a half-season to evaluate the team and come to the conclusion on how to move forward.

Judging by the reaction on Twitter most fans in the state of hockey are in complete shock.  I think some, like myself, were more prepared for this outcome.  I didn’t see it happening in the middle of the season, but Guerin is showing that no one is safe.  Show up to the rink, do your job, be a good teammate, and wins games.  That’s what Guerin wants.

Guerin’s Message

Bruce has been a staple in the state of hockey since he was hired in 2016.  Bringing a winning pedigree to a state that has been begging for a Stanley Cup parade down 7th Street.  Unfortunately, that was never the case.

Per Hockey Reference, Boudreau holds a .635 winning percentage and was only 16 wins away from having 1,000 NHL wins.  Unfortunately, Wild fans weren’t able to see Boudreau eclipse the 1,000 win mark.

In his first two seasons, Boudreau brought the Wild screaming into the playoffs. Only to have the Wild lay an egg with a first-round exit.  Last season was one to forget, as fans saw the Wild finish 7th in the Central Division.

What will be the outcome of this season?  Time will tell, the Wild are currently three points out of a playoff spot with a couple of games in hand.  Dean Evanson will step in and look to jettison the Wild into the Playoffs.

Farwell Bruce, My Take on His Departure

I will miss Bruce, he’s a fantastic coach, a competitor, and he won’t be unemployed long.  Bruce was behind the bench for some of my favorite Minnesota Wild moments, and he arguably coached one of the best teams this Franchise has seen since returning to the state of hockey.

Bruce, from all the fans in the state of hockey.  We wish you well and good luck in your hunt for the Stanley Cup.  Most of all, thank you for the alarming number of GIFs you created.  You played a pivotal piece in keeping things light on the bench.  Good luck in the future Bruce, wherever you go I’ll be cheering.

Dave Stevenson, Puck Prose Site Expert, Thoughts

The time is a bit puzzling to me, but I think Bill Guerin is starting to make his mark on the team.

Bruce Boudreau’s a good coach, as his regular-season record shows. But he was no longer the right coach for the Wild and that’s what matters.

Brandon Quast, GonePuckWild Contributor, Thoughts

Another large domino as fallen in Minnesota, This time it was Bruce Boudreau’s meeting with Bill Guerin and Boudreau being told he was being relieved as head coach.

In my opinion, I have always felt that Boudreau may have been a ticking time bomb to getting fired this season, whether it be the slow sluggish start in October or what seemed to me as the outlandish excuses on games being lost in the last 10 minutes to in my eyes was Boudreau throwing his players under the bus one last time.

Bill Guerin can be quoted as saying “If players are hurt by this, then maybe they’re players we shouldn’t have here. This is the business.” Those words should strike the Wild players like lightning as now that Boudreau is gone, this core group on the Wild will have to step up in even more ways.

Lake Martin, GonePuckWild Site Expert, Thoughts

Bruce Boudreau had an interesting time as Minnesota Wild Head Coach. He inherited a team that immediately had a great season, but one of the worst trades in Wild history (a 2017 1st round pick, a second-round pick in 2018, a conditional pick in 2019, and Grayson Downing, for Martin Hanzal and Ryan White) arguably derailed the momentum of that dominant squad. A first-round exit to the Blues soured a truly great season

The next year, the Wild managed to finish third in the division, but with significant injuries with the defenseman, the Wild only won one game against the Winnipeg Jets that series.

I think Bruce is a solid coach. He plays a strong scheme that helps protect the most impactful position in the game, the goalie. He wasn’t afraid to make unpopular decisions, like demote Captain Mikko Koivu to the fourth line.

I believe Bruce Boudreau did everything he could with the squad in front of him. He listened to his GM, whether right or wrong and played objectively bad players (Paul Fenton with Anthony Bitetto and Victor Rask, Chuck Fletcher with Martin Hanzal), and had goalies that were sometimes spectacular and sometimes a statistical nightmare.

Bruce Boudreau will land on his feet. It might be in Seattle, might be in San Jose. He won’t be done in the league.

I enjoyed Bruce Boudreau. He did his job fairly well, was respectful and was available in the media, and seemed to love being in the State of Hockey. I wish him all the best.