MNBassman

MNBassman
Membre depuis
14 mai 2015
Équipe préférée
Wild du Minnesota
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Minnesota
Messages dans les forums
4286
Messages par jour
2,32
Sujets de discussion
635
Biographie
Full-time outdoorsman/part-time GM for the Minnesota Wild.
Forum: Minnesota WildFri at 8:37 pm
Sujet: How I see the team's players
<div class="quote"><div class="quote_t">Quoting: <b>wabit</b></div><div>Again he's young, playing with different players all the time. There isn't the built in just knowing where a guy will be to just make a play. Different players do different things, as we saw with Zucc and his passes to nowhere all season he's expecting one thing from years with NYR and MN does things differently.

It's still hockey, yes, but at the NHL level they have some crazy set plays. I've been to a couple coaching clinics (which are mostly bs sessions to stay upto date for youth hockey). A couple times the coaches showed setups that they do in practice. I was thinking to myself, it was a joke. Then watch the game and that exact thing happens, it was a holy **** type of thing. They are different for different lines too.

The game hasn't slowed down for Kunin yet, and it might now ever happen. Look at JEE, it was like a switch flipped for him this year compared to previous seasons (even the start of this year) when all Wild fans were wondering if JEE was going to be a complete bust. It took Granny or Dumba (pre-injury) how many seasons to actually get to the point where the game slowed down?</div></div>

You make a lot of great points, as always...but i never saw slow processor speed with Ek. His issues were more physical in nature: his hands weren’t good enough, he played to not make mistakes, etc...but he could always see the game well and most of the time tried to make the right play, but simply did not have the ability to. He’s clearly worked very hard to improve his skill level and he can now do the things his brain wants him to. Kunin is the polar opposite. He has all the skill he needs, but simply can’t compute the game fast enough to get the most out of his otherwise very impressive skillset.
Forum: Minnesota WildFri at 2:50 pm
Sujet: How I see the team's players
<div class="quote"><div class="quote_t">Quoting: <b>wabit</b></div><div>I don't see that in him. I see a kid who has been bounced around between wing/center and linemates before he even played a full season's worth of games in the NHL. He just ends up making the rookie mistakes at 2 positions. A lot of his mistakes on the ice is from getting his assignments crossed due the bouncing around, or at least that's how I see it.</div></div>

That’s possible...but i disagree. People make WAY too big of a deal out of positions and systems. It’s just hockey. Kunin has been playing hockey at the highest possible levels for years now. He has had countless coaches and played in countless systems... While I really like many parts of his game, i see too many times every game where he is a split second late to make a decision and the subsequent play. I’ve said this before, but he reminds me a lot of Zucker with his lack of processor speed. With Zucker, just about every other element of his game was borderline elite, but his inability to skate and chew gum at the same time considerably limited his overall effectiveness...and i see Kunin the exact same way.
Forum: Minnesota WildFri at 7:33 am
Sujet: How I see the team's players
<div class="quote"><div class="quote_t">Quoting: <b>wabit</b></div><div><a href="/users/MNBassman" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">@MNBassman</a> I disagree about Kunin and his leadership being forced. He's wore the "C" (and not been the best player) on:
- two Gold winning WJC teams: U-18, U-20
- USDP (This team was stacked for skill/talent, Matthews, Tkachuck, Keller, etc)
- UW (Like the 2nd Soph in school history, but the team was pretty bad overall)

I don't think he wants to drop the gloves or try and make the big hit to get his team going, but he's willing to do whatever he thinks it takes for the team to succeed (similar to Foligno). He has a motor like Parise and doesn't take shifts off. The locker-room stuff I got no clue on (I'm not in them), but there must be something there is multiple coaches have given him the responsibility of wearing the "C".</div></div>

Like i said, it’s just a vibe i get from him...nothing based on anything i know. And you are right, he’s been given the C his entire life by many different coaches so he clearly has leadership qualities, but there’s just something about him that bugs me... But i admit, i’m pretty sure im wrong here, and definitely hope i am.
Forum: Minnesota WildThu at 5:08 pm
Sujet: How I see the team's players
From all accounts Donato is a great person, but he is a completely redundant part imo i think he needs to get moved. Zuccarello is the same and id pay a team to take him off our hands...
I completely agree with all the reasons above on why Spurgeon should not be the next captain. In my gut, i also dont feel like Kunin is a candidate either...i always get the impression his leadership qualities are forced, not natural, but i have absolutely no proof of this.
Foligno should be signed to the exact sane deal he was originally signed for AND be given a 3rd line role. His offensive ability and hockey IQ was completely missed by Boudreau. IMO, Foligno can be a 40 point/year guy if given the opportunity. Heck, id even put him on the 2nd pp unit abd have him create havoc in front of the net. I think he could crest a lot of extra space gor the other 4 and knock in a few rebounds as well.
IMO, Brodin has passed Suter up as the top LHD, but will never be given the minutes he deserves with Suter and Leipold being bffs... i do, however, think it would be ok to trade him even if a #1 center isnt part of the return. I would take picks and/or younger D prospects or a high end #2 center for him as well...but it would have to be a package that blows me away! My reason for this is simply because there are only about 10 true #1 centers in the NHL and as great as Brodin is, he’s not gonna get us one so the Wild would be better served accumulating 2 or 3 #2 centers instead.

As Ive stated 1000 times, if a player becomes virtually untradeable before the ink even dries on the contract, it’s a horrible contract. Spurgeon and Zuccarello are prime examples of this and i am struggling to get over the stupidity behind both contracts... Dammit - i was hoping to feel better after a quick venting session, but i still hate both deals and admittedly resent both GMs and both players For these contracts...

Lastly, i hope Koivu retires. I am from the camp that has appreciated him his entire career...even if he has been overpaid by a million+ for the past 9 years... I also hope (but have no confidence it will happen) that Suter and Parise will tske a back seat to the younger players and let them guide the ship going forward.
Forum: Armchair-GMWed at 10:37 am
Sujet: Trades with NSH MTL
<div class="quote"><div class="quote_t">Quoting: <b>wabit</b></div><div>The only way I touch this trade is if I think Seattle takes Turris in the expansion draft. I don't want Rask 2.0 on the team.

Which is better: Chucky (say 3 x $4m, I think this is high end for him) or Turris (4 x $6m)? Or even Chucky+Zucc, or Chucky+Turris? I'm taking Chucky and Chucky + Zucc without much thinking about it.</div></div>

I’m probably more sour about the Zuccarello signing (and his abilities as a player) than most of us Wild fans here, so keep that in mind when i express my opinions regarding him...but, i think he is almost as much dead weight as Rask when his contract is considered. He is a 2nd line wing on his very best days and an NHL-average 3rd liner most days. He has natural chemistry with no one on this team yet, because of his contract, gets opportunities and ice time he doesn’t deserve.
While today’s version of Kyle Turris doesn’t excite me much, at least he fills a need as a center who can skate.
As for Chucky, I wouldn’t pay him a dime over $2.75 and would only sign him to a 1 or 2 year deal. It would have been nice if the season hadn’t been abruptly halted and we could have all gotten a better chance to assess his merits and fit, but i will use his entire career over 2-3 decent weeks with the Wild to make my decisions about his future here.
Bottom line, I want Zuccarello and his contract gone enough to take a chance on Turris and his.