Random thoughts...

The power of the agent

Minnesota Wild defenseman, Brent Burns, who apparently was injured during a practice back in late January and subsequently suffered a concussion, played several games with this condition and his agent is now pointing fingers. The allegations from Burns' agent, the infamous and very familiar Ron Salcer, is that the team failed to recognize the severity of this condition and allowed Burns to suite-up for games covering a six week period. In the end however, it was only the power of the agent, after a meeting with Burns over lunch, that ended this situation and allowed Burns to get the proper diagnosis.

You know there are two sides to every story and there is obviously one here. Of course the Wild maintain that the situation was not obvious to them, and Burns seems to be the reckless type that would play through any discomfort if given the chance. But it was the agents comments that to me are the most troublesome. Salcer was quoted as saying that it took him all but 'three minutes' to realize his client had a concussion, which is what bothers me about this finger pointing. It's easy to sit back and play the blame game but in this situation there seems to be plenty to go around. Point the finger all you want Salcer, but my question to you is where were you? I have no doubt that there is constant and frequent chatter between player and agent and you would think that at some point during this questionable six week stint, Salcer would have exercised his power to diagnose the situation over the text messages that were flying back and forth.

GM search

I won't question the decision by Wild owner Craig Leipold to fire Doug Risebrough, but we need to keep our excitement in check. This new GM hire will shape the face of the Wild for years to come and the scary part is that Leipold seems to be leading the charge as a fan, not an owner. With all due respect to fans, we don't always know what is best, as we don't always have all of the information on what is behind key decisions and moves. Knee-jerk reactions and decision made on a whim are what kills professional sports organizations. I understand that this may have been the right decision, but the next one is even more important. Please Mr. Leipold, get someone in here that has a proven record and a style that will keep this team a factor for years to come...

Unwatchable syndrome

There was a period of time this season that the Wild were putting out such a bad product that I could not bear to watch. It was their inferior play that kept me from FSN, or whatever channel they happened to be on for that particular game. Today however, I suffer from a different problem, the Wild-less playoff syndrome. The fact that our favorite team is idle because of a few missed opportunities and I find that some of the NHL playoff games are well, unwatchable. You can accuse me of being a bad hockey fan if you want, but I am having a real hard time without seeing Minnesota in uniform. I understand that the playoff brand is the best hockey you will find, and I truly believe that. However, without the Wild, it seems pointless to me. It's a funk that has happened in the past and seems to come and go, but so far this post-season, it is sticking. Hopefully it will be before sometime in October that I take in another NHL game, but the way things are looking right now, I have my doubts.