Can the Wild Stay Focused On Winning In A Season Full Of Ineveitable Distractions?

There is something special about the assembly of elite athletes and specialists joined together under a single crest as they chase a common goal. In the world of professional sports, there should only be one common goal.

You know what it is, right? 

No, it’s not working hard and having fun, Jared Spurgeon.

When the Minnesota Wild drop the puck on Thursday, October 10, against the Columbus Blue Jackets, there will be a single focus for that team for the next six months.

What’s this about?

“This is about F****** winning.” 

Remember that line from Bill Guerin a few years back?

Guerin gave a preseason lesson on culture in a now-famous quote aired during a 2021 episode of Beyond Our Ice. Three years later and only a week away from puck drop, it might be time to send a similar message to a team that needs a lot to go in their favor to make the playoffs in a stacked Western Conference.

Last season, the Wild finished sixth in the Central Division, missing the playoffs for only the second time in Guerin’s six-year tenure. After losing seven in a row and starting 5-10-4, the Wild fired long-time coach Dean Evason early in 2023, and Guerin brought in John Hynes to right the sinking ship. By then, Minnesota was so far down in the standings that they couldn’t recover and make the postseason.

With Zach Parise and Ryan Suter’s dead-cap money still impacting the payroll, the team could do little in free agency this summer to address this team’s shortcomings other than sign Yakov Trenin and trade for Jakub Lauko, respectively. While we are excited about Trenin and what we can expect from the penalty-kill specialist, will that be enough for the team to return to the postseason in 2025?

Trenin’s skill set will certainly help, but a barrage of factors must fall in this team’s favor to prove the doubters wrong and make any run toward the Cup. Doubters include Adam Proteau of Hockey News, who predicts the Wild will finish seventh in the Central.

The team will need Hynes to push the right buttons throughout 82 games to get the most out of a team that needs secondary scoring aside from its top line. The injury bug will surely factor into the outcome at some point, but that’s unpredictable and difficult to control.

Limiting distractions is another factor that must fall in the Wild’s favor this year.

We don’t expect Hynes to be on the hot seat this season. To our knowledge, there are no contract disputes or clubhouse dramas. The rumor that Kaprizov was looking to join the Chicago Blackhawks in the future caused a stir. However, as Tony Abbot recently wrote, “These rumors are inevitable,” and they are here to stay. Those rumors start and end outside the Wild’s locker room, and Abbott is right – there will always be speculation around the Wild star’s future with the team when they haven’t been able to get past the first round with Minnesota.

An 82-game season will bring distractions that can influence outcomes to some degree, and the Wild can’t afford to allow it from within if they intend to win.

I’m looking at you, Marc-Andre Fleury.

When the NHL national television broadcast schedule was released this year, Front Office Sports reported the Wild had 15 nationally televised games this season, tied for second most in the NHL. Why so much attention for a team that people don’t expect to be a bona fide contender?

I’m looking at you, Marc-Andre Fleury.

After signing a one-year final deal with the Wild, the Hall of Fame goaltender will bring the team along on his farewell tour in 2024-25, whether they like it or not.

After 20 seasons in the NHL, Fleury indicated his 21st would be his last, and the Minnesota Wild organization and fanbase are beyond lucky that it’s here in the State of Hockey. But that comes with a price. 

With the universal love felt for Fleury, it’s a sure bet he’ll be the focus of a few minor pregame ceremonies on the road this year.

You didn’t think he could pass through Pittsburgh in his final NHL season with just a quick video tribute, did you?

Fleury may deserve every moment of respect this season, and truthfully, he does. We only ask that it not become a distraction because this is about winning.

Guerin and Fleury share the same mindset, and I imagine the Wild’s GM will deliver a similar message to this team as he did three years ago. He and his goaltender are already preparing to block out the extra noise, making it clear in a recent interview that they aren’t interested in the pregame festivities.

“I don’t want any special treatment,” said the 39-year-old goaltender in a recent interview with Michael Russo. “I just want to go, look around, bring back some memories from my time here, but definitely not looking forward to any special treatment. Don’t need that. We’re good.”

If Fleury is okay with limiting an outside distraction, we should be, too.

“Look, we’re going to be business as usual. This is not a farewell tour,” Guerin told Russo this preseason. “That’s not what he wants. That’s not what we want. We don’t want any distractions like that. We’re just going to go and do our business.”

This is about winning.

“This is not a farewell tour,” he said, explaining the redundancy of Fleury’s storyline. “I’ve been asked that question 20 times already, and it’s just not. We’re not doing it. We don’t want frickin’ video replays and video tributes and things like that. Like, let’s just play the games.”

But some goodbyes are harder than others. Guerin, a veteran of 18 NHL seasons himself, understands that. 

“Of course, if they do it in Pittsburgh, then that makes sense,” he said. “In Vegas. In Montreal. That makes sense. And if they do it, great, nice, but that’s not what we’re all about. We’re going to work.”

With Fleury, Guerin, and Hynes on the same page, they must ensure that the rest of the team follows their routine.

Last season, the Wild played 13 games on national TV and performed poorly in front of an expanded audience, going 4-8-1 in the spotlight. 

The team plays even more games on national broadcasts this year: 15 total, tied for second most behind three teams with 17.

The team will receive a lot of scheduled attention this year, and they have to perform better in the spotlight to win and avoid embarrassing themselves. 

The more the Wild flirt with continued mediocrity, the louder those Kaprizov rumors will get. Embarrassing yourselves on national TV and missing the playoffs for a second consecutive year could impact his decision to resign within the next two years. It could also affect the team’s ability to lure in prized free agents next summer when their payroll is relieved of Parise and Suter’s large dead-money sums.

An 82-game season is as much a mental marathon as it is a physical one - it requires focus, commitment, understanding what’s within your control, and how well you manage it.

Guerin’s said it before and he’ll say it again: “This is about F****** winning.” 

The team will need to adopt that mentality this season to give Fleury a shot at one more Stanley Cup in the final year of his storied career. 

(It would be pretty cool if the Vegas Golden Knights gave Flower a sword, though.)