Wild @ Flames GDT 12/18

Uh yeah.

Hey, they didn't get scored in the first minute... progress?

BABY STEPS!

The Wild with 2 goals in the... 2nd period?!!??!!?

When was the last time we saw the Wild get a 2-0 lead with both goals in the 2nd??!?!?!

Wild vs. Flames post-game and much more!

Patient and steady effort yields 3-1 road win over Calgary

Written by Derek Felska
Saturday, 18 December 2010 16:32

Every now and then you'll see an infamous scene from the 1976 film Network, where the character Howard Beale (played by Peter Finch declares, "You've got to say I'm a human being goddammit! My Life has value! So I want you to get up now, I want you to all get up out of your chairs. I want you to get up right now and go to the window. Open it and stick your head out and yell I'm mad as hell and I'm not going to take this anymore! Things have got to change. But first you've gotta get mad." I think its safe to say that many Minnesota Wild fans are pretty mad at this point in the season. With the team sitting in 14th in the Western Conference you could say most fans are feeling as though the season has slipped away. A few weeks ago, Wild General Manager Chuck Fletcher had promised changes if the team's fortunes did not improve soon. Well the future has continued to slide towards the abyss that is near the bottom of the league's standings but no changes have taken place. I don't think you can call keeping Jared Spurgeon in the lineup as a serious shakeup to your roster. Do I expect to see him unload tons of players in a matter of a few days but if you're going to promise changes then don't deliver on your ultimatum it sort of makes fans tune you out as a source of change. I know it would not be a fun gig to have to tell some player you're going to move them over the holidays. Yet this is a business and being "nice" doesn't always help the team. Last year the team was "nice" to veteran Owen Nolan around the trade deadline and abiding by his wish not to be dealt despite some interest from other clubs and the result was a missed opportunities to acquire at least another draft pick or two. Ultimately the Wild decided not to re-sign Nolan so what did being "nice" get the team?

If the team is sort of mailing it in already with the hope of scoring a top draft pick, then announce it as such and let the firesale begin. Don't hold onto any asset that you can get rid of via trade to avoid being seen as "cold" just make the move and let the controlled demolition begin. Teams love to trot out the Penguins, Blackhawks and Capitals as success stories of building through the draft. However, what is often ignored is that their success at the draft came through being terrible for quite a while allowing them to accumulate the picks necessary for a turn around. If you have a few disastrous drafts (cough like the Wild have had cough) and that can really slow down your rebuild. Are Wild fans prepared for the pain of multiple seasons if the turnaround can take place? That's a tough question I doubt many fans are ready to answer just yet. Obviously Minnesota has some obstacles as the team is more or less loaded with most of its contracts until 2012 (insert end of the world joke here). So that will make moving players a bit more difficult. Well, no one ever said it was going to be easy. So will the Wild give Chuck Fletcher a reason to hesitate by winning on the road in Calgary or will they make him want to get out his cellphone and start working the other 29 GM's of the league looking for interested parties in to make some trades? (click on the link for the rest of the article)

There is a complete post-game, an Aeros update on their weekend, a prospect report on Brett Bulmer and Johan Larsson. Great game, and pretty solid effort where they played smart hockey. Just the type of effort you need to win on the road. Enjoy!