Outside of hiring Bruce Boudreau and signing Eric Staal, the Minnesota Wild had a very quiet summer. Signing the best coach on the market and a top-six center will certainly improve the team. But even those two moves couldn’t fix all that was wrong with Minnesota.
One of the downfalls of the Wild was their lack of depth. It was something they struggled with throughout the season, as their fourth line was constantly killing momentum for them. The worst of it came during the postseason, where injuries to Zach Parise and Thomas Vanek meant they had no option but to dress several AHL-level players.
Obviously, that’s a situation one would want to prevent, so it’s surprising Chuck Fletcher wasn’t more proactive in addressing it. Minnesota added Chris Stewart and his capable scoring depth, but other than that, nothing.
And it wasn’t for lack of opportunities. Matt Cullen was available and had interest in joining Minnesota. But despite Cullen addressing the Wild’s need for depth scoring, penalty killing, and faceoffs, nothing happened.
Instead Minnesota opted to give their prospects every chance to make the roster. Alex Tuch, Joel Eriksson Ek, Mario Lucia, and Tyler Graovac were the most competitive group of prospects they’ve had in a training camp for years. The best-case scenario: two (or more) of those prospects step up and force their way onto the roster.
That didn’t happen. The Wild re-assigned Lucia to the AHL near the start of camp, and sent Graovac and Tuch to Iowa on Wednesday.
Only Eriksson Ek remains in contention, though being in the NHL may not be right for his development. For one, there may not be room on the depth chart. If the Wild’s centers remain healthy, Eriksson Ek will be behind Staal, Mikko Koivu, and Erik Haula. Minnesota would either move Haula to the fourth line — a waste of his talents — or Eriksson Ek would play there.
27 SEP 2016: Minnesota Wild right wing Alex Tuch (53) puts a shot on net during the preseason matchup between the Colorado Avalanche and the Minnesota Wild. (Photo by David Berding/Icon Sportswire)
And with few prospects looking NHL-ready, Boudreau doesn’t seem willing to use that fourth line much. Speaking about Tuch, Boudreau said “We just need him to play more, rather than play eight minutes a night (in the NHL). That wouldn’t be in his best interest.”
Eriksson Ek is 19 — a year younger than Tuch — meaning getting ice time is equally important for both of them. Does Minnesota want to burn a year of Eriksson Ek’s contract to play 8 minutes a night? Probably not. The safe bet is that he makes the team out of camp, and goes back to Sweden after a 9-game cup of coffee.
So, where do the Wild go from here? That’s the tricky part. Internally, the options aren’t great. Right now, they have Ryan Carter, who was a part of Minnesota’s ineffective fourth line last season. They also have AHL lifer Zac Dalpe and Christoph Bertschy, who has skill but doesn’t rate as an impact prospect.
And externally? There’s not much out there. Most capable NHL players looking for a job are already trying out with other teams.
And that’s the problem with Minnesota’s approach to addressing their depth. If you sign on a couple of veterans and it doesn’t work out, you have prospects to fall back on. For the Wild, they really had no contingency plan in case their prospects weren’t ready.
The options that Minnesota has are slim. Do they want to re-live last year’s fourth line, when they threw out the Carters and Dalpes, crossed their fingers, and hope they wouldn’t be a total liability for 10 minutes? Or do they want to try a line similar to what they plan to ice Saturday night, perhaps stunting a teenage Eriksson Ek’s development for 10 minutes alongside Bertschy and Jason Zucker?
Unless Eriksson Ek earns meaningful ice time, neither scenario is ideal. But barring a savvy trade or waiver pickup before the season, Minnesota will have to make do for now.
Fortunately, they ought to have options mid-season. Fletcher has been known to be aggressive at the trade deadline and has made moves to address his depth during recent seasons.
They also have the option to call up their prospects at any time. Perhaps Graovac will take pointed comments from his coach to heart and bring his A-game in Iowa, forcing his way onto the roster. Perhaps Alex Tuch will dominate AHL competition, proving himself ready for the big club in time for the stretch run.
But if the Wild can’t find a workable solution in the meantime, they’ll be at a disadvantage. Minnesota saw how having an unreliable fourth line hurt them throughout last season, and how a lack of depth can hurt once injuries strike. Fletcher took a risk, betting on his prospects cheaply filling the depth roles that he needed. That gambit failed, and by not being proactive in addressing this issue, that failure could put his team’s season at risk as well.
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