Lack of depth at C is killer

Mikko Koivu, who has done everything asked of him by the Minnesota Wild, went down awkwardly against the Oilers yesterday and apparently did some damage to his knee. The official word from the Wild is that Koivu had an MRI performed today and that he will be held out at least a week, possibly longer, depending on the results of the test. This is not good news...

In a season where the Wild are trying to scratch and claw their way into the post-season, losing the #1 center is the last thing that this team needed and is a recipe for how not to make the post-season. Unfortunately for Minnesota, Koivu is not easily replaced and there is no one on this roster that can even come close. Get ready for a huge dose of James Sheppard...

So the question that has plagued this organization for almost two seasons is why have the Wild and GM Doug Risebrough not addressed the teams lack of depth at the center position? Everybody in the hockey world saw this teams shortcoming before last seasons trade deadline and were sure that this would be dealt with then. Fans literally screamed for Risebrough to trade for a decent center but instead we got a seldom used thug in Chris Simon. Then after the teams early exit from the playoffs, the attention turned to off-season moves. Surely the Wild will acquire a center, right? Not so fast because the need apparently became not one, but two offensive, puck-moving defensemen (who by the way, have become real defensive liabilities).

I give Risebrough credit for a few of his off-season acquisitions. He brought us current players Brunette I & II (although part II is not as good as part I), Foster, Skoula, and former players Roslton, Demitra...to name a few. But it seems his deficiencies lie in the fact that he may not be a good evaluator when it comes to his teams top needs. For the past 2 seasons he has failed to beef-up the middle at a time when this team has had a real hole down the center. It was almost laughable last season, when you knew that the Wild were poised and ready for a good playoff run, when nothing happened to meet the shortcoming at the center position. That chuckle turned to maddening when zilch was done this past off-season.

Now we sit with no real option up the middle, as Koivu is likely down for the remainder of the season.

Russo radio goes television

Not only does Wild beat writer take the time to indulge fans with chat sessions and a weekly Russo Radio gig on KSTP am 1500, he also takes his act on the road as well. Our favorite Wild writer made an in studio appearance on NHL Live, a daily XM Radio broadcast, this afternoon . But for those of us lucky enough to have Directv, the show is also aired on the NHL Network, complete with in-studio cameras. Russo, in the New York area to cover the Wild's upcoming trip against the Rangers & Islanders, did a short segment today with host Don La Greca and E.J. Hradek.

You be the judge...

Comments from Minnesota Wild GM Doug Risebrough regarding his philosophy when dealing with pending unrestricted free-agents seem somewhat puzzling to me. Rather than get something for the asset, the unrestricted free agent, he contends that he is not afraid to let them go for nothing in return. Consider that this is the same GM who admitted that he made a 'mistake' when he allowed Andrew Brunette to walk following the NHL lockout, where Brunette had previously netted 49 points for the Wild during the 2003-04 season. And more recently, last seasons pair of Pavol Demitra and Brian Rolston were also shown the door when the team elected not to re-signed them. Interesting to me is the line Risebrough gives concerning losing Demitra and Rolston...'has had no bearing on our season'. Why don't you be the judge...

The Wild currently have 65 points in the standings, with a record of 30-26-5. Last season, after the 61 game mark, the teams record was 34-22-5, good for 73 points. Total goals scored a season ago, using the same 61 games played, was 169 for and 166 against. So far this season the Wild have a league the fifth worst offense, scoring only 2.48 GFA, for a total of 155 goals. On the defensive side, the team is the second best in goals allowed, 2.33 GAA, for a total of 144 allowed. And as for the two big names let go after last season, season totals for the pair had Rolston netting 59 points while Demitra put in 54 points. And at the rate the Wild scores, we'll be lucky if we have two players reach the 50 point mark by seasons end and Mikko Koivu is already over, with 56 pts.

To be fair, one has to consider that Marian Gaborik played a full season last year and had career marks goals, assists, and points. But on the flip side, you also have to take into consideration the fact that Pierre-Marc Bouchard has fallen off his pace of last season when he had career numbers in assists (50) and points (63), with Rolston his linemate the majority of the season. So take a look at the numbers and decide for yourself. I have done so myself and the one thing that keeps coming back to the front of my mind is that this team currently sits in 10th place in the Western Conference and last season they won the Northwest Division.

NHL Network free preview

Don't forget about the preview that started today and runs through Saturday. There are many great shows that air, including a 3 hour trade deadline special that runs on Wednesday. Apparently the preview is offered to over 34 million subscribers of various distributors, that include both satellite and cable providers. So chances are that if you don't already have this network, you should be able to have a look for yourself.