John Madden Coming to the Wild

http://wild.nhl.com/club/news.htm?id=535652&navid=DL

Russostrib John Madden's contract w #mnwild is 1-year, #1 million. Can make up to 250K in games played and playoff bonuses. 1.25 cap hit, says source

Pasting what I said on the other board aswell.

Quote :

I love the signing but I'm still wondering how lines are gonna work.. I picture something like:

Bruno-Koivu-PMB
Lats-Cullen-Havlat
Mittens-Madden-Clutterbuck
Nystrom-Brodz-Kobasew
Staubitz

It doesn't leave much room for the youngsters unless a trade is in the works. Either way its looking more and more like we are going to be able to roll 4 legit lines this upcoming season(without a yard ape or shep) and I'm pretty stoked about that.

That is if PMB gets back into shape, might have to start off with mittens on the 1st line wing.

This is all but the end for James Sheppard.

BOOM! Get tough actin' Tinactin!

Based on Chuck's comments regarding this latest move, sounds like he's sending a strong message to some boys regarding training camp.

BTW, cehnehdeh needs to go over to CDC and spread some knowledge.

Seriously? THAT'S our top 6?

Looks like someone else in that thread already set the record straight.

TaLoN wrote:

This is all but the end for James Sheppard.

Yep, and that made my day.

if you read Russo interwiev GMCF said that shepp is still in the mix its up to him, now given his history i'm 99.9% sure its the end but you never know

i love this move

-
Booggard,Scott,Hnidy Nolan

+
Staubitz,Madden,Nystrom Cullen

Wild sign John Madden

Written by Derek Felska
Friday, 06 August 2010 16:01

Veterans from conflicts throughout history often describe being in a combat zone as long periods of boredom interrupted by moments of sheer terror. While an offseason is not nearly as dire as combat, it really is typified by long periods of boredom. Hockey beat writers have little to discuss, and so they resort to dragging out some stories they simply did not have time for during the season. I know that is more or less how I've felt this summer as free agency just sort of lagged its way along. The lack of activity in someways has forced me to find other ways to spend my time. I described it at the beginning of July as feeling of compulsion to race back to my computer to check tsn.ca to see what players signed with new teams. Yet just after two or three days into the opening of free agency on July 1st the amount of player movement basically ground to a halt; and even with high profile players like Ilya Kovalchuk the big deal did not really emerge (at least not right away). What gives? The salary cap, and having so many teams finding themselves without much flexibility has made for perhaps the most unexciting offseason in recent memory.

After the Wild picked up Matt Cullen and Eric Nystrom on the opening day of free agency there was little more than some speculation that the team was interested in Mike Modano. The Wild did not have a lot of cap room to work with, so predictably there was no dramatic changeover in the Wild's roster. Minnesota made deals to re-sign Nate Prosser, James Sheppard, Josh Harding as well as giving a hefty 7-year contract extension to Mikko Koivu, but hardly anything that you could really quantify as being a surprise. The Wild decided to add another piece to its roster by signing 37-year old veteran center, John Madden to a 1-year deal worth just about $1.25 million when you include incentives. Madden won a Stanley Cup with the Chicago Blackhawks (the 3rd of his career) this season, after providing 10 goals, 23 points in 79 games. The Barrie, Ontario native won the Selke Award as the league's best defensive forward in the 2000-01 season. He is certainly in the twilight of his career but he still moves well, and can be a great asset on the 3rd or 4th line in a shutdown sort of role. Madden also is a proven leader in the lockeroom, who is the consummate teammate and his veteran presence will likely serve as a replacement for Owen Nolan who still remains an unsigned free agent. Minnesota has liked having a few 'graybeards' in the lineup to provide guidance for the team's younger players and a guy like Madden will be a valuable presence of experience. Wild General Manager Chuck Fletcher certainly agrees, "John will bring a lot to this team at both ends of the rink, and he will also bring a lot of character to the locker room."
(click on the link for the rest of the article)

Enjoy!