The Minnesota Wild were rather quiet heading into the NHL trade deadline on Monday. Which, after a few days, I have come to terms with and completely agree with the decision. After reading into GM Bill Guerin’s decision to not make any moves, it actually shows a lot about his confidence in his team.
Preparing For the Draft
The Wild have a slew of early-round draft picks in their pocket. Using them to obtain a player now with the risk of either not landing a re-sign at the end of the year or missing a chance at getting a draft prospect wouldn’t be ideal. Minnesota has been working on building a franchise team for the past few seasons and making a decision like that could set them back big time. Although they are getting close to having that dominant team they’ve been working towards, they are still missing a few integral parts. Picking someone up in the draft early, saving much-needed money in the process, is a much smarter plan than grabbing a rental player for the remainder of the season.
Guerin’s Confidence in His Team
The Wild are sitting comfortably in the third spot of the Western Division. Because of that, Guerin is confident that his team can do well in the playoffs, and why wouldn’t he be? Over the season, the Wild have given the top two teams in their division a run for their money, giving them all or more reasons to feel confident heading to the end of the season. He wants to see what the team can do and, honestly, so do I. They may not hoist the Cup this year, although crazier things have happened. But it’s good to see what you have so far so you know what to get in the draft before next season.
