In second stint with the Wild, Nico Sturm knows what he’s here to do

The typical transition a player goes through when switching teams hasn’t applied to Nico Sturm as he settles in with the Wild.

For starters, Sturm didn’t have to find a place to live because he and his fiancée, Taylor Turnquist, were already spending their summers in Minnesota; the two bought a home here a few years ago.

“Just pop right into our house, went grocery shopping, and you’re all set,” Sturm said.

Then there’s the fact Sturm, 30, didn’t have to make many introductions; he broke into the NHL with the Wild six years ago, playing parts of four seasons before getting traded to Colorado, where he won the Stanley Cup in 2022.

“Know a lot of faces around here,” Sturm said.

But even if he didn’t have that familiarity — with the team and the Twin Cities — Sturm would still be set up for a smooth arrival after signing a two-year, $4 million contract. He showed up to training camp knowing what’s expected of him, and that’s being the Wild’s fourth-line center who prioritizes the penalty kill, draws and the forecheck.

“Not a lot of ambiguity in terms of that right now,” Sturm said. “They knew exactly what they were looking for. I know the player that I am. I know what I’m not. I also know what I’m really good at, so it just makes your role easier.”

He was just starting his pro career after leaving Clarkson University and was trying to figure out who he was as a player. Sturm was a tenacious skater with depth scoring potential, as evidenced by the 11 goals he tallied during the COVID-shortened season, but he didn’t hone his bread and butter as a defensive specialist until after the Wild traded him.

Sturm went on to be a stabilizer for rebuilding San Jose before Florida picked him up earlier this year and he helped the Panthers become back-to-back champions.

“Knowing that you have established yourself in the league makes stuff like camp a little more enjoyable,” Sturm said, “because you can actually truly worry about the stuff on the ice and the things that you need to improve on and not try and do things just to stand out.”

Where the Wild need the most help is on the penalty kill, which was third-worst in the league last season, and the Wild’s scheme on the PK (and power play) will become a bigger focus at camp this week.

Faceoffs and zone entries especially hamstrung the Wild, and already Sturm has watched video so that he is ready from the get-go.

In becoming a reliable penalty killer, Sturm has asked players on the power play for their perspective, and he’s worked in various systems; what the best penalty kills have in common is their consistency.

“We never really adjusted how we killed,” Sturm explained, mentioning Florida, a top-10 unit. “We kind of lured teams into our traps and how we wanted to play, and that only works if everyone is 100% on board with how you do it, and that just needs to get dialed in as soon as possible.”

Offense will still be on Sturm’s radar, and he scored a career-high 14 goals with the Sharks three seasons ago.

“I’m a forward,” said Sturm, who was one of the first six selections Germany made to its preliminary roster for next year’s Winter Olympics in Italy. “That’s what we love to do.”

But he understands his responsibilities and has made it his mission to excel in those areas.

The Wild dropped their second game of the preseason, losing 3-2 in overtime Tuesday night to an experienced Dallas lineup playing on home ice.

Tyler Seguin netted the final tiebreaker after a third-period goal by the Wild’s Ben Gleason extended the action.

David Jiricek opened the scoring for the Wild on the power play in the first period, and Dallas didn’t respond until the first minute of the third period on a Mikko Rantanen goal. Barely three minutes later, Jason Robertson gave the Stars the lead. Goaltender Cal Petersen, who signed with the Wild in the offseason, finished with 34 saves, and the penalty kill went 3-for-3.