You cannot say the Wild has not tried…

Posted by Richard Pollock in Minnesota Wild on August 17, 2008 — 4 Comments

From Michael Russo of the Minneapolis Star Tribune:

The Wild gave Gaborik specifics on everything it tried to do, especially this summer and at the deadline. Gaborik knows the Wild went after Marian Hossa because he was involved in the recruitment. The Wild wanted guys like Kristian Huselius and Brendan Morrison, but they chose to go elsewhere. After that it was an under-supplied market.

Risebrough told Gaborik that the Wild went hard after a center at the deadline, especially Olli Jokinen, and I’ve since found out, Mats Sundin. The Wild thought it was going to land Peter Forsberg, and when he chose Colorado, it thought it had Jokinen. But at the last second, Florida decided not to trade him, and like at the Draft in June, the Wild wasn’t going to give up Mikko Koivu or James Sheppard to get him.

Read the entire entry from Russo’s Rants here.

Obviously the Wild is trying to convince Gaborik to stay with the team and has gone to all lengths to get him to eventually sign on the dotted line. But if the convincing is not and enough and if he decides he wants to become a free agent, then the Wild will have quite the predicament to deal with all season long.

Bob Roberts

If you were a gifted offensive player who played 7 seasons on the same team for the same coach and GM and notched 22 points in the 29 playoff games you played, who would blame you for wanting to move to a better environment to do what you do best? Not me.

As he said at the 2008 All Star game, “Sometimes you think how it could be in an Eastern system, in a more offensive system. There’s more offense there for sure.”

No one can say he hasn’t given the Wild system a long run (514 games), or that he hasn’t listened to what Risebrough and Lemaire were pitching in the past, but if DR is flying to Slovakia to try to sell him more of the same I wouldn’t blame him for being noncommittal at best.

If he is, look for DR to shop him this season, especially at the trade deadline. Or hey, is MG being a sly negotiator and looking for a contract re-write? Could be…
curve

I can’t see Gaborik committing in the next little while. I agree with your points about giving the Wild’s system a chance, so he really needs to decide if he believes the team can compete for a Stanley Cup. If he does, I think he will sacrifice playing in a more offensive system. If not, I see him hitting free agency next summer.
Bob Roberts

Would you be more surprised if he stayed or if he went? I’d be more surprised if he stayed. Maybe he doesn’t love to score as much as Ovechkin seems to, but with his skills and speed he must be aching to try. Imagine him with Crosby…

I’d be even more surprised if he was still there to opt for UFA at season’s end as a Minnesota Wild player. His value as an asset will diminish from the Wild perspective the longer the season goes, and with the Hossa memory fresh in NHL GM’s minds, his value as a rental at the deadline won’t be as high as it would have been in the past, don’t you think? Still impressive, of course, but not quite as attractive.

The plus for DR if he has to shop him during the season is the incentive to really shine for prospective GMs even more than the vaunted “contract year performance” for your own GM so many observers love to point to.
http://www.illegalcurve.com Richard

At this point, I feel like he wants to test the waters. And you are right, if he does want to do that, the Wild would probably trade him.