Often referred to as the last line of defense, the goalie is just about as imp a leader as the quarterback is in football. Given that, here is a dive in the Minnesota Wild’s depth at the position with a look at each goalie in the system as well as thoughts towards the future.
Cam Talbot
Billy Guerin stated on the eve of last year’s free-agency period that the top priority for him and his staff was a goalie and that resulted in the signing of Cam Talbot. The veteran agreed to a 3-year, $11 million dollar deal.
In itself, it provided the Wild with not only stability in the goal but also bought them time with developing goalies in the system such as Kaapo Kahkonen, Hunter Jones and Dereck Baribeau.
Talbot started the season as the Wild’s No. 1 netminder, and boy, did he own the crease in Minnesota. Posting 19 wins and only eight regulation losses in 33 games , Talbot was tied for 11th in the entire league for wins.
All in all, it was a solid first season for Talbot in Minnesota — a great sign of stability and calmness in the crease moving forward.