The Minnesota Wild is among the more unexpected teams to be eliminated from the Stanley Cup playoffs in 2024. Following a 5 goals given up loss to the Colorado Avalanche on April 9, the Wild were officially eliminated from the postseason.
The Wild won’t be in the postseason for the first time since 2018–19, although their previous postseason appearances have been largely disappointing. They haven’t advanced past the first round since 2014–15. Even if the Wild have a lot to cheer about, let’s take a look at what went wrong, what could have been, and what they have to look forward to beyond 2023–2024.
Where the Season Went Wrong for the Wild
To begin with, the Wild were among the first clubs to let go of head coach Dean Evason. On November 27, he was fired from his position because the squad was having trouble in every area of the game and had lost seven straight games (0-5-2).
With just one game remaining in the regular season, the team’s penalty kill rate of 74.6 percent placed them 30th overall. This indicates that they were having trouble with the kill. Considering that they were punished 11:30 minutes a game on average, they were the fourth most penalized team, which is a surefire way to lose.
Furthermore, Matt Boldy finished second on the club in scoring with 66 points in 73 games this season, behind only Kirill Kaprizov, who has 93 points in 73 games. Even said, the Wild would want to see someone who is a little bit closer to Kaprizov in terms of total points rather than someone who is a third-year NHL player.
It was simply not in the cards for the Wild, especially when you consider their goaltender problems this season with Marc-André Fleury and Filip Gustavsson.
Damage and Lack of Experience Affected Wild
Remember that the core is still developing. This club is being impacted by the buyouts of Zach Parise and Ryan Suter, but it was necessary for the team to take a different turn. They had an excellent mix of young players and seasoned players this season. Newcomers like Brock Faber and Marco Rossi were assisted in adjusting to increased NHL time by players like as Joel Eriksson Ek and Mats Zuccarello.
Nevertheless, this club lacked some expertise, at least in the NHL, in shutting down the opposition and locking down in close games.
In addition, the team’s chances of making the playoffs were undoubtedly hampered by the season-ending injuries that Marcus Foligno suffered in March and Jared Spurgeon suffered in January. These kinds of injuries are unavoidable, but they do harm a team’s prospects in the closing stages.
Minnesota’s Youth Movement Is Exciting
Boldy, Rossi, and Faber have already been identified as key components of this youthful team. Even Kaprizov is just twenty-six. The Wild have a bright future.
Although it would be great to have Fleury back for the Wild, Gustavsson and Jesper Wallstedt appear to be the team’s future goalies. Fleury is anticipated to become an unrestricted free agency on July 1.
With their core in place, they have a promising future for the next several seasons even though they only have six picks in the upcoming 2024 NHL Draft. The Wild should be a playoff contender in 2024–2025 if these players can advance in their development the following season. Having said that, the team members from 2023–24 can now relax.