Wild's Richards setting the bar high

Todd Richards felt certain that during some stage of his hockey career, either as a player or as a coach, he must have endured an unforgiving start like this one. He just couldn't remember it Monday.

Some things, of course, are best left forgotten. And in Richards' case, a lifetime of winning prevented him from gaining much experience with the other side of the ledger. But the Wild coach expected he could be in for some hard lessons this season, and an 0-5 road trip -- part of a 1-6 start -- ruined any hopes of a gentle transition to life as an NHL head coach.

Still, all those years as a winner gave Richards great insight into how to become one. The guy who set the standard for commitment as a player continues to do so as a coach, and he expects nothing less from everyone in the locker room. So at Monday's practice, after chewing out his players for a lifeless effort in the first part of the workout, he plunged right back into the task of shoring up a sagging team before things get any worse.

"It's frustrating," Richards said of the poorest start in Wild history. "It's disappointing. You feel all those emotions, but there's only one way you can get out -- and that's through hard work.

"When you're winning, it's easy to come to the rink. But I learn a lot when things aren't going well; it gets me to look at myself, the job I'm doing, what I can be better at. Hopefully, the players are doing the same thing."

Since the beginning of training camp, Richards has been in full teaching mode, trying to deprogram the defense-first style of the Jacques Lemaire era and develop a more aggressive approach. No one could have predicted how long it would take or how painful it might be.

Neither Richards nor his players blame all their troubles on the transition, and they are loath to make excuses. Still, it's clear that ingrained habits have been difficult to break. On the road trip, Richards noted that the forecheck often fell apart for lack of teamwork; while one forward might forge ahead, others would hesitate. Eventually, he said, the players who did attack would give up because of the lack of support.

"The games we lost on the road trip came down to sometimes just not winning the battles, not competing," he said. "There are some hard areas of the ice; the corners, the front of the net. Those are the areas where we're not getting the 100 percent effort we need."

Richards is demanding the same attention in practice. He constantly is teaching, observing and shaping details in the Wild's workouts, and Monday, he let his players know -- quite emphatically -- that he expects them to be more focused and prepared from the moment they come to the rink. That means every day, even the first practice session after an 11-day road trip.

Forward Andrew Brunette noted that this is uncharted territory not just for Richards but for Wild veterans. The team has gotten off to strong starts in each of the past three seasons, winning their first four games last season, their first five in 2007-08 and their first six in 2006-07. The Wild's stability allowed them to take early-season advantage of opponents who were getting used to new coaches or philosophies, and now that the skate is on the other foot, they have to correct their problems before things get out of hand.

To Richards' credit, he is not asking anything of his players that he and his staff aren't doing themselves. He created a new puck-pursuit drill to use in Monday's practice, in the hope of solving that issue. He continues to adjust his teaching methods, scour game videos to pinpoint trouble spots, and emphasize that coaches must also strive to do better every day.

It may not be easy, but in Richards' mind, there is no other way. "We want to be positive and try to keep spirits upbeat, but there comes a point where enough is enough," he said. "The way we can help is with teaching, showing video and breaking it down.