Russo's Rants

This is Michael Russo's 18th year covering the National Hockey League. He's covered the Minnesota Wild for the Star Tribune since 2005 following 10 years of covering the Florida Panthers for the Sun-Sentinel. Michael uses “Russo’s Rants” to feed a wide-ranging hockey-centric discussion with readers, and can be heard weekly on KFAN (100.3 FM) radio and seen weekly on Fox Sports North.

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Posts about Wild player moves

Mikael Granlund recalled; Dany Heatley sidelined for the Wild

Posted by: Michael Russo Updated: April 4, 2013 - 12:49 PM

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UPDATED

The Wild has recalled forward Mikael Granlund from AHL Houston with right wing Dany Heatley sidelined with what's believed to be a wrist injury. GM Chuck Fletcher said Heatley is "out," saying there is no timeframe as to when he will return at the moment.

Coach Mike Yeo indicated last night it would be awhile. Heatley was injured during a post-buzzer altercation with San Jose defenseman and former teammate Marc-Edouard Vlasic. Vlasic cross-checked Heatley to the ice, then slashed him over the back. When Heatley got up, he swung his stick and missed. Vlasic proceeded to two-hand Heatley over the arm and basically jump him, finally lifted him from his knees and driving him hard back to the ice.

That's where I think Heatley was injured -- not on the slash, which resulted in a five-minute major and game misconduct.

Heatley was in a lot of pain and skated fast to the exit as tempers flared and linesmen had to get in between the two teams. Vlasic said he was just defending himself, and the two were battling all period.

Vlasic has a hearing today at 2 p.m. ET. My guess is he gets at most a fine. Heatley, my guess, may get a call with a warning from the league for his swing and miss.

As for Granlund, with Matt Cullen hurt and Johan Larsson traded, my guess is the organization is looking for Granlund to center the second line so Coyle can essentially stay at wing and essentially replace Heatley's spot. I only say that because if Coyle was going to play center, I'd assume the natural callup would have been winger Jason Zucker.

Jason Pominville is scheduled to land in Los Angeles within the hour. Since the Wild didn't call up another forward with Granlund, I'd assume Pominville will make his Wild debut tonight. Otherwise, why make the guy fly to L.A. when he could have simply met the club in Columbus tomorrow?

The plan was for Pominville to slide into the right wing spot on the Zach Parise-Mikko Koivu line tonight against the Kings.

If it were me, I'd go with

Setoguchi-Granlund-Coyle (Granlund and Coyle were productive linemates together in Houston)

Clutterbuck-Brodziak-Bouchard

Rupp-Konopka-Mitchell

Also, and I'm not confident it'll happen, but time to sit Clayton Stoner. You just can't have this many bad games in a row and not finally sit. It's costing them points, and I think anybody that reads me knows I like Stoner as a player and person.

Last night, the entire blue line was bad. But Stoner really stood out in a nightmarish game.

No morning skate today because of the second of back-to-back. So I may not know the lineup until a couple hours before game time when I meet with Yeo.

From the release:

Granlund, 21 (2/26/92), collected six points (1-5=6) in 19 games with Minnesota this season and registered a goal in his NHL debut vs. Colorado on Jan. 19. The 5-foot-10, 186-pound native of Oulu, Finland has recorded 28 points (10-18=28) in 29 games with the Aeros this season. Granlund tallied seven points (2-5=7) in nine games with Houston after being reassigned from Minnesota on March 12. He was named the AHL Rookie of the Month for October scoring 10 points (3-7=10) and a +5 rating in seven games.

Wild recalls G Matt Hackett

Posted by: Kent Youngblood Updated: March 28, 2013 - 5:11 PM

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The Wild has decided to give Niklas Backstrom a little extra rest. Backstrom, who had started 16 of the team's last 17 games and the last 12 straight, was left in the Twin Cities when the Wild boarded a plane for Dallas for Friday's game with the Wild. Backstrom, with an extra night of home rest, will presumably be back atop his game for Saturday's game against the Los Angeles Kings at Xcel Energy Center.

Matt Hackett was recalled from Houston, sending Jake Dowell back to the Aeros to make room. Now the only question left is whether it will be Hackett or Darcy Kuemper in goal against the Stars tomorrow. Hackett started for the Houston Aeros Tuesday but gave up seven goals in a loss to Texas in an AHL game. Kuemper, meanwhile, was in Houston from March 13 until being recalled March 24. He played most recently for Houston in a 3-2 victory March 22.

"Really good sign" with Jason Zucker; Brett Clark arrives in Minnesota

Posted by: Michael Russo Updated: March 13, 2013 - 3:12 PM

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The Wild held an extremely optional practice today at Xcel Energy Center this afternoon (more on this decision below) led by assistant coach Darby Hendrickson and goalie coach Bob Mason.

After practice, in a track suit, rookie Jason Zucker hit the ice for a twirl. Coach Mike Yeo said that’s a “really good sign.” Afterward, Zucker said, “I feel alright,” but wouldn’t provide the extent of his “upper body injury.”

“Overall, I’m happy that I’m standing here right now,” Zucker said.

Asked if Zucker had a concussion after getting clobbered by Corey Perry last night, Yeo said: “I don’t think he’d be allowed to be on the ice if that was the case.”

Zucker has had concussions before and symptoms often arise a few days after an incident. Zucker said he would see how he feels in the morning, then talk to Yeo and the medical staff before determining if he can play.

Perry had a disciplinary hearing with the NHL at 11 a.m. CT. He has been suspended four games. Here is the league video explaining its decision.

If Zucker can’t play, Yeo said Pierre-Marc Bouchard, who has been scratched in three straight games, will get in.

Defenseman Brett Clark has arrived in Minnesota with his Oilers’ equipment bag. The Wild signed the 36-year-old veteran defenseman for the remainder of the year at a prorated salary of $900,000. He was a longtime Colorado Avalanche and a vet of four teams.

He had a two-week window in his contract to talk to NHL teams. The Wild called Monday. Edmonton liked him, but the Oilers have eight defensemen. He said he had a few good options, but Minnesota was the best. I hear Dallas also pursued him hard.

“It’s very exciting to get back up here,” Clark said. “The lockout put a kink on a lot of things, but it helped me get fully healthy and work on a few things, maybe strength wise. I went down to OK City. I was playing a ton down there and the opportunity came and it was very exciting.

“I knew I had to go down there and give everything I had like I was playing in the show because I’m playing for another opportunity.”

He’s always been a terrific shot blocker and decent puck mover. Last year was a tough one after a quality 2010-11 when he helped Tampa to the Eastern Conference Finals. He was a minus-26 in 2011-12, which ranked 890^th in the NHL. He says he blocked a shot and sustained a fracture to his ankle in December. He played all 82 games but says he wasn’t the same player after the injury. The lockout allowed him the time to get completely healthy, he says. He had 199 blocked shots last year, second in the NHL.

He was playing in Oklahoma City and was almost a point per game player. As of now, the Wild plans to keep eight defensemen on the roster, meaning Justin Falk and Nate Prosser stay for now. I talked to Falk about the Wild’s decision to sign Clark. He was mature about it and I’ll have quotes from him in the paper in the next few days.

Clark will not debut against his former Colorado Avalanche on Thursday. Yeo said Clark will have to get into a couple practices first, before adding with a laugh, “if we ever practice again.”

“I said it this morning, it’s almost like we’re in a beer league right now. just show up and play games,” Yeo joked.

(Again more on Yeo’s decision not to have a full practice below).

Fletcher says “you can never have enough defensemen, so this made sense on a whole host of levels.” Fletcher says all along the Wild wanted to add another veteran NHL defenseman at some point to provide depth, help in several areas, give Yeo more options and protect the team in case of injuries. Team defense for the Wild has been the least of its concerns, so this provides insurance. The Wild’s seventh-best in goals against and shots against.

On Clark, Yeo said, “It’s an NHL defenseman that we’re adding to our group, a veteran presence. Depth is very important. I think the defensive group has been doing a really good job for us, but this is a guy that we can add that adds veteran presence, adds puck-moving ability and has been around and thinks the game well.

“It adds a little bit of internal competition, which is not a bad thing. It puts the pressure on you to make sure you’re ready to be at your best every night.”

Yeo said Clark “can play the power play, he distributes the puck well, he thinks the game well. He adds some poise. He’s been in situations and knows how to handle them.”

Basically, this adds experience at a cheap price. A lot cheaper than say Steve Montador at 2.5M. He got through waivers from Chicago the other day.

“You realize how quickly things can change in this league,” Yeo said. “We’ve been fortunate – knock on wood – but things can change very quickly, so to have depth is very important.”

After last night’s 2-1 loss to Anaheim – a game the Wild basically gave away because it’s power play was so dreadful – Yeo said the power play looked like a power play that hasn’t had any practice time lately, and that’s because it hasn’t.

Then Yeo made the decision today not to have a full practice? Odd, to say the least.

I asked Yeo to explain, and he said, “Believe me, I would love to practice. I love practicing, I love the feeling going into games that you’ve covered all the things that you need to cover. But when you talk to the guys and even when you watch the third period, you can tell that we didn’t have the energy that we needed. Coming off three in four games with travel, coming off very emotional, very hard games, we needed this today.”

I watched the game again in the wee hours of this morning. It’s still amazing the Wild didn’t win. I had the chances after two periods at 20-3. That’s crazy. So you just knew something bad was going to happen when you don’t capitalize on so many chances.

Yeo said, “Even with that game, there’s an opportunity to grow. A lLot of good things to take out of that game. Overall lately, I feel like we’re a really good team right now. That’s what we have to stay focused on. It’s so difficult not to get so wrapped up in each and every game and the result of it and what the implications of what that result are, but where we want to get to, you just have to keep marching on.”

On Bouchard, Yeo said, “He’s a player that we have still a lot of faith in what he can do and what he can add to our team. It’s not the ideal situation that he finds himself in right now. The next time he comes in he’ll get a very fair chance. It is what is. It’s a game to game thing right now. We have a lot of good players.”

Bouchard, Cal Clutterbuck, Tom Gilbert, Mike Rupp, Zenon Konopka, Clayton Stoner, Charlie Coyle, Prosser and Falk skated today with goalies Darcy Kuemper and Matt Hackett. With Kuemper healthy he was returned to Houston on Wednesday.

Scary incident in the practice. Somehow radio play-by-play Bob Kurtz, with an entire arena empty and the only one sitting in a lower-bowl section, took a puck to the left side of the head. He sustained a deep gash and huge knot to his forehead. Dany Heatley guessed 10 stitches would close the wound. He was right on the money.

He was in great spirits afterward, which might mean he has a concussion (ha). “This gives you something to blog about. Day to day with an upper body injury,” he said.

Konopka on the incident: “It’s not funny, … but it’s funny.”

Poor Kurtzie.

Sources: Wild signs veteran defenseman Brett Clark

Posted by: Michael Russo Updated: March 13, 2013 - 9:20 AM

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The Wild has signed veteran defenseman Brett Clark to a one-year deal, NHL sources say. He will be in town today to take his physical. If he passes, he will join the Wild tomorrow.

Excerpt of my updated blog after 1 a.m.:

The 36-year-old free agent, who you may remember as a longtime Colorado Avalanche, has been nearly a point-a-game player for AHL Oklahoma City since the lockout.

He has one goal and 16 assists in 18 games and is plus-7. By all accounts, he has been very good. He played the past two years for Tampa Bay, playing 82 games each year and scoring nine goals in 2010-11. He has 45 goals and 185 points in 681 games over parts of 13 years with four NHL teams.

From watching him over the years, he's a good shot blocker and decent puck mover.

Wild's next two games are against Colorado, coincidentally enough, if Clark is to debut.

I have not talked with the Wild yet about signing Clark, but my guess is it's to provide depth and experience on the NHL roster. If he were to go to Houston, he would have to be placed on waivers.

I'm not sure what that would mean for Justin Falk or Nate Prosser, who are both on one-way deals. Obviously, Prosser has been the odd guy out most nights because Mike Yeo has explained the Wild doesn't have a right-shot D that feels comfortable playing the left side.

Either a trade is in the works or maybe Prosser is going on waivers to get to Houston. The Wild did trade an NHL salary out of Houston yesterday by sending Matt Kassian to Ottawa, so maybe it is willing to pay Prosser his NHL salary there. Just conjecture though.

Signing Clark also tells you right now where Marco Scandella is on the totem pole. He doesn't have a lot of experience, has been hurt a lot and is trying to beat the inconsistency demon. My guess is the Wild would be willing to trade Scandella at this point in his career. The second-round pick is the type of defenseman that may be a valuable asset.

Clark brings experience. When Tom Gilbert didn't play against Vancouver the other night, it was Ryan Suter and five very inexperienced D in the lineup -- Jonas Brodin, Jared Spurgeon, Clayton Stoner, Falk and Prosser. They actually did quite well in the 4-2 win though.

-- IN other news, Corey Perry has an 11 a.m. CT phone hearing for his eventual suspension for a blatant head shot on Jason Zucker. The Wild practices at noon, so we'll have a Zucker update after that. See more on the hit on the previous blog.

The Wild can insert Pierre-Marc Bouchard for Zucker. It'll also probably recall a forward from Houston. My guess is Justin Fontaine or Johan Larsson. We will see.

Matt Kassian traded to Ottawa Senators for draft pick

Posted by: Michael Russo Updated: March 12, 2013 - 5:14 PM

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The Wild traded tough winger Matt Kassian to the Ottawa Senators Tuesday afternoon for a 2014 sixth-round pick.

Kassian, 26, a 2005 second-round pick who was signed to his first one-way contract last summer, scored two goals and amassed 67 penalty minutes in 26 games over parts of two seasons. He was scratched in every game this season before being placed on waivers Feb. 12. and eventually reassigned to Houston, so this gives him a chance to play.

I emailed with Senators GM Bryan Murray and Kassian will report directly to Ottawa.

Here is a feature I wrote on Kassian last year for all you Senators fans.

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Posts about Wild player moves

Mikael Granlund recalled; Dany Heatley sidelined for the Wild

Wild recalls G Matt Hackett

"Really good sign" with Jason Zucker; Brett Clark arrives in Minnesota

Sources: Wild signs veteran defenseman Brett Clark

Matt Kassian traded to Ottawa Senators for draft pick

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