System this, system that

The catch phrase being thrown around this season, 'new system', seems to be taking on a life of its own. New Wild and rookie head coach Todd Richards was to bring his brand of hockey to the Wild, which was supposed to be an uptempo style that theoretically results in a more exciting game to watch. This new system, although new to fans who have watched the Wild in seasons past, is nothing new to the players, who have played hockey throughout most of their existence. And since the Wild have not gotten out of the gate as quickly as a Jacques Lemaire coached team has as in previous years, the 'new system' seems to be the catch phrase as to one of the major reasons the team has struggled early. The idea that installing a different fore-check, new circumstances when to pinch, and different defensive assignments on the ice for example, are all things that good teams can adapt to. The problem we have here is that this team is just not that good.

Coaches all over the league want to brand their team, make a footprint on their squad. I have no doubt that Richards is eager to do that with the Wild. However, one has to consider what hand they have been dealt before making a play or move. Minnesota's hockey club is far from a team that has the ability to open things up to the point where they rely on out-scoring their opponents with offensive skills. Sounds funny because that is how you win at this game, scoring more goals than the team you are facing. But consider that teams also win in this league because of a defense that allows fewer goals than the opponent. Remember the phrase that I am sure all of you hockey players heard growing up, 'a good defense is a good offense'? What we have here is a collection of mostly mediocre offensive players who have been asked to extend themselves beyond their scoring abilities, thus their defensive responsibilities have suffered.

I will give this team the injury factor benefit of the doubt, as right from the get-go, the Wild have suffered some key losses to some of the teams better players. Unfortunately though, the weakness because of this has been exposed...lack of depth. I read earlier from a respected writer that Minnesota has some of the best depth in the league at the forward position. I don't see it. Not only is the team thin up front, an argument can be made that we don't even have a legitimate complete top line of forwards. A few of Minnesota's rostered centers, for example, would better suited for the minors...a bad way to have set your lineup. And until GM Fletcher can make a move to solve their center problems, this team will never be able to find wins on a nightly basis.

Now to this mysterious system that the players seem to be having a hard time grasping...one that should have been picked up before the season started because after all, it's just hockey folks. The stories have gone something like, 'the team was drilled so long with a Lemaire defensive system that it is taking a while to de-program them'. Hogwash, plain and simple. These are professionals who have been trained to play the game. It's not rocket science and there is no doctoral training being introduced. It's basic X's and O's that are being missed, not learning a new system, plain and simple.

from the in-box

Hockey Unplugged - The next Wild Hockey Unplugged will take place Tuesday, Oct. 20 at 7 p.m. at Champps located at 1641 Plymouth Road in Minnetonka. Fans in attendance will have the opportunity to participate in an open ‘mic’ question and answer session and receive an autograph from Martin Havlat and Petr Sykora. Autograph tickets for each player will be distributed on a first-come, first-served basis.