My Evaluation of the Wild trade



Well, I had to take a break from writing after UND lost out of the tournament to Yale. I just didn’t have the heart to think or write about hockey.  However, things changed fast when the Wild completed a blockbuster trade right at the deadline bringing Buffalo Sabres captain Jason Pominville to the State of Hockey in exchange for two quality prospects and draft picks.  Here’s the article.

What I like about the trade:

Above all, I like that Fletcher is putting his confidence in this team and trading to make them a contender right now.  Being a Minnesota sports fan, I’m so used to seeing the reverse role…watching a prospect develop into a stud just to see him traded for more prospects (Twins).  Fletcher made a bold move trading some quality prospects to bring in a guy that is in his prime right now to help the Wild win right now.  Besides what it symbolizes, Pominville brings a lot to the table.  He can play point on the power play, he can score, he can grind it out, he can kill penalties, and he’s a leader in the locker room.  He’s also a right handed shot which makes me think he’ll fit in very nicely with Z-Par and Koivu on that top line.  Also, we all have to wonder whether his buddy and linemate, Thomas Vanek (former Gopher), will consider returning to Minnesota to join him when he becomes a free agent next season.

What I don’t like about the trade:

If the Wild were going to give up some quality prospects to add a stud veteran player, I was hoping it would be a defenseman.  Their offensive line-up is starting to look pretty lethal, but can the Wild D-Corp take them deep in the playoffs?  Suter and Brodin are fantastic and Spurgeon and Gilbert have been playing fine, but it really drops off after that.  Hopefully the addition of Brett Clarke will prove to solidify the blue line.  As far as what they gave up, Larsson is the only one that I struggle with.  Kuemper has looked better in net than Hackett and with the Wild making a playoff push they aren’t going to have a very high first round pick anyway this year.  Larsson is a great two-way player with natural leadership and insane competitiveness.  If it weren’t for Coyle, Zucker, and Granlund I would have questioned this move, but it was starting to look like Larsson’s ceiling with the wild was as a third line center anyway.  He will be a big player for the Sabres and I wish him the best of luck.

What’s next for the Wild?

With the addition of Pominville and the way Coyle and Zucker are developing, it’s safe to say a few players that are in the Wild line-up won’t be next season.  I was hoping they would trade Pierre-Marc Bouchard for something (picks) because the odds of them resigning him are not much above 0%.  They didn’t get that done so he will walk away for nothing, but he’s one that I assume won’t be here next season.  I will also be surprised if Heatley is still here next year.  With the addition of Pominville and the play of Zucker and Coyle with the big club, I don’t see Heatley being a top 2 line player again.  If he’s not on a top line, I have to think they will deal him. Finally, they have to trade for or sign a free agent defenseman to solidify that group.  I look for Fletcher to do this in the off-season.