Volume 78 / Number 18
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Editor's Note: Wild need a trade in order to make playoff run
BY ZACH GRILL | STATESMAN STAFF WRITER
ASSOCIATED PRESS
Pierre-Marc Bouchard and the Minnesota Wild could use help from another proven
scoring threat during the playoff stretch.
The Minnesota Wild will head into the second half of the season with a spot in the playoffs if they were to start today. Unfortunately for the Wild, they still have about 35 games left to play before even thinking about raising Lord Stanley's Cup.
The Wild play in the ultra competetive Western Conference and share a division with hard-nose teams like the Vancouver Canucks and the Calgary Flames. So far this year, it looks as if the Detroit Red Wings are the team to beat in the West with the rest of the conference trying to play catch up.
Minnesota head coach Jacques Lemaire has built the Wild around strong defensive play and solid goaltending. Lemaire has never been an advocate of an all-out offensive attack and his views on the game do not appear to be changing any time soon.
Even with offensive talent like Marian Gaborik, Pavol Demitra, Brian Rolston and Pierre-Marc Bouchard, the Wild have been struggling to score goals lately. Lemaire wants his team to give up no more than two goals a game. That means he expects the offense to score at least three goals to win, which in today's NHL is not too difficult.
However, Lemaire's defensive style of coaching limits the scoring talent of a purely offensive player like Gaborik by asking him to play a defensive- minded game. Unfortunately for Wild fans, there isn't a great deal of players on the trading block this year.
The deal that would make the most sense for Minnesota would be to put a package together to get veteren center Mats Sundin from the Toronto Maple Leafs. Sundin, 36, has been in the league for 16 years, according to NHL.com, and would add depth to the center position that has been a problem for the Wild this year after the unexpected retirement of fan-favorite Wes Walz.
It could be difficult for the Wild to land Sundin simply because there are other teams with more willingness to spend money to win immediately. The Red Wings have been hurt by injuries this year and Sundin has never played in the Stanley Cup Finals, let alone raise the cup over his head in victory. It makes sense that Detroit would do whatever it takes to add him to what is already the most talented roster in the NHL and steamroll through the playoffs.
The Wild's front office has deferred from making big trades in the past. Instead, they prefer to build the team from within the system through the draft and talent development.
This process is a great idea for a franchise that is looking to build for the future, but the Wild have been in the league since 2000 and fans are getting anxious. With the trade deadline approaching on Feb. 26, the Wild should look to add another player that can put the puck in the net on a regular basis, whether or not that player is Sundin is up to the front office. It could be the difference between losing in the first round of the playoffs and bringing the Stanley Cup to the state of hockey.
