Training camps in the Minnesota wilderness are about to begin Thursday, September 18, and everyone is ready for the season. It’s a long offseason and hope the wilderness will be as strong as last season, but keep going. Last season was the first full camp for field head coach John Hynes, a demanding one from start to finish.
Several players have said the camp is more intense than in previous years, but it is a good thing. It would be interesting to see if Hines took the same approach this season and how the players reacted. In this article, we will introduce some storylines to focus on several players from who will surprise everyone.
Wild’s surprise enhancement
Training camp is the opportunity for experienced players to return to the ice after a long offseason and play with their teammates again. It’s also an opportunity for young players who haven’t cracked the lineup to show their skills and have the potential to steal the ball, if they do well enough. This is a difficult thing, but it is not impossible and sometimes it can happen.
As long as all veterans are as expected and ready, there aren’t many attractions on the field lineup. Zeev Buim will have a lot of young players who want to impress, but that one won’t be surprised by how hard he works, which may not be surprising if he becomes the original roster. He always gives 100% speed and he will make more of the defenders on his ice solid.
While the buy may not be surprising, there is another player who is doing well on Tom Kurvers’ potential client display cabinet, which could make it hard for the coaching staff if he does the same in training camp, and that’s Jack Peart. He showed many skills and had many names on the display cabinet. While cracking the lineup on Opening Night will be a very difficult task, it is not impossible, especially when he outperforms others. But if he doesn’t start the roster, it’s no surprise that injuries that happen later in the season will always happen.
Wallstedt wants to prove himself
Filip Gustavsson’s starting point is locked, but his backup Jesper Wallstedt will seek to prove himself and show that he has the ability to enter the NHL. It took him longer to get to the NHL, not what everyone imagined, but they didn’t need to rush him when they had the ability to tandem. But now that the tandem has disappeared, he will have to step up to fill the gap.
Wallstedt’s initial plan was to take over the first place when Cam Talbot continued, but then brought Gustavsson in the wild, who surprised everyone with his performance. Marc-André Fleury was in trouble too, so it took Wallstedt’s debut longer, which again was good because it gave him time to develop more in the American Hockey League (AHL), which young goalkeepers need.
But the time spent on the AHL has passed as the wild needs Wallstedt to step up and become their full-time backup. He needs some time to get used to the NHL, but hopefully after a few games he will find the comfort level and help them win the game.
Kaprisov’s contract extension
Kirill Kaprizov’s contract. It’s all about all offseasons, and in the report that he rejected an eight-year contract worth $128 million, but has never been confirmed. His last contract was signed before the start of the camp, so it wouldn’t be surprising if he did the same thing, but it wouldn’t be surprising if it took longer.
Connor McDavid and Jack Eichel have not signed the extension yet, so it’s no surprise that Kaprizov doesn’t. But it’s great for him and the team to do it early, not later, so they can focus on the season ahead. Sure, they are professionals and know how to focus, but if they say it’s not in their mind, they’ll lie.
Related: Minnesota Wild Can Be Patient to Expand with Kaprizov
Hopefully they can finish as soon as possible, allowing only normal progress throughout the season, rather than worrying about the business side. The wild has said many times that they intend to re-sign Kaprizov, whatever it takes, so at this point it should be only a matter of time.
Apart from who would surprise the lineup, Wallstedt’s efforts and Kaprizov’s contract, it would be interesting to see what’s going on during training camp because there’s always something going on. It would be great if this camp was the start of another strong season in the wild.
