The 2014-15 Minnesota Wild: Mike Yeo

Photo: Chris Humphreys/USA Today

If Mike Yeo had any hair at the beginning of last season, it probably would all be gone by the time the season ended. Thankfully, he did not have any to begin with.

2013-14 Season In Review: Mike Yeo

Photo: Sherri LaRose-Chiglo/Pioneer Press

A review of the head coach, Mike Yeo.

Mike Yeo Gets His Awaited Contract Extension

Photo: John Autey/Pioneer Press

This afternoon, the Minnesota Wild announced that they have agreed to a new multi-year contract extension with their head coach, Mike Yeo.

Exclusive: Transcript of Dany Heatley's Exit Interview

Photo: Getty Images

The Team of 18,001 was able to get this exclusive transcript of Dany Heatley's exit interview with Wild head coach Mike Yeo.

(Warning: This contains very strong language)

First Order Of Business

Mike Yeo is due for a contract extension. Photo: Jeff Wheeler/Star Tribune

Lets take a trip back in time. The date is June 17, 2011. Wild General Manager Chuck Fletcher is two months removed from firing the first head coach under his tenure, Todd Richards. Fletcher knows he has to hit on this head coach, otherwise his job will start to come under scrutiny because his boss (Wild owner Craig Leipold) wants to win badly.

Mike Yeo and the Final 10 Games

Mike Yeo has a difficult ten games ahead. Photo: Carlos Gonzalez/Star Tribune

It has been no secret in the first two years of Mike Yeo's tenure as Wild head coach: The Wild tend to falter down the stretch.

A Refresher

Photo: Sherri LaRose-Chiglo/Pioneer Press

The Olympics are over. The NHL returns tonight. There is a slight feel like this is a second opening night, due to the disconnect we experienced from the Olympic break.

But now that the NHL is returning, lets take a little refresher course on the Wild, as they get set to begin the stretch run.

Is There A Place For Jason Zucker?

It has been a up and down two seasons for Jason Zucker. Photo: Harry How/Getty Images

Yesterday in the post on "whether or not the Wild should go get Ryan Miller", a guess was ventured as to the prospect the Wild would send back to Buffalo in a potential deal for Miller. The prospect was Jason Zucker.

Time To Take Charge

Photo: Andre Ringuette/NHLI via Getty Images

This is not a post that comes easy to write. But in the wake of one of the more gut wrenching losses of the season and a mob out there ready to bash heads, it was time to let this one loose.

Tuesday Thoughts

Photo: Zumapress/mvphotos.com

Taking The Foot Off The Pedal

Photo: Hannah Foslien/Getty Images

Last night, the Wild closed out their three game homestand with a 2-1 victory over the Winnipeg Jets. The win gave the Wild a sweep of the homestand, and was their fourth straight victory overall.

Splitting Up Koivu and Parise

Could Koivu and Parise be on different lines soon?-Twincities.com

This morning, Paul Allen of KFAN did one of his "Vox in the Box" shows from the Xcel Energy Center penalty box during the morning skate. It has become a popular show (given the fact that there really are no big daytime radio shows in this town that focus on hockey) for the Vikings play by play voice, as he puts a quality show together featuring Wild coaches, players, analysts, etc.

Sunday Morning Thoughts

In the wake of a 5-1 rout of the Stars last night, the Wild are now 2-1-2 and head out on a four game trip through the Atlantic Division. Here are some thoughts from the past week and for the week ahead.

3-On-3: Minnesota Wild After Three Games

Today we are going to try a new segment here on the site called 3 on 3. We take a topic, in this case its the Wild as a whole, and give three positives and negatives related to that topic. Now before we dive in please watch the video below and take its advice to heart.

The 2013-14 Minnesota Wild: Mike Yeo

Two summers ago, Mike Yeo was the new bench boss in Minnesota. He was brought in after pitching to GM Chuck Fletcher his plan to give this team an identity, make them more aggressive, and get them to push for higher goals (like winning). This coming after his predecessor on the bench, Todd Richards, seemed to lack the aforementioned aspects.

Jonas Brodin and Mike Yeo Join NHL Live

Yesterday Wild defenseman Jonas Brodin and head coach Mike Yeo joined NHL Live after practice at Xcel Energy Center. ICYMI, here are the videos:

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Preseason Thoughts: New Fourth Line?

Last night the Wild, with what would appear to be their opening night roster, took down the St. Louis Blues 4-1 in the final home exhibition game. The Wild are now 4-1 on the preseason, the only loss being the 3-1 defeat to Columbus in the opener.

Being Positive

Last night, the Wild suffered their worst loss of the season, losing 4-1 to the Calgary Flames, in an almost must win game. The Wild came out strong, peppering the Calgary net, but could only get one shot past Joey MacDonald.  The team has lost eight of eleven games in April, and are now tied for the 7th seed in the West, with the red hot Columbus Blue Jackets.

There was much negativity on the internet following the game. The "Fire Yeo" squad was out in force last night. Folks don't seem to think the Wild will win another game this year and will miss the playoffs.

So instead of joining the crowd, I'm gonna take the high road here and give you some positive notes today:

• There are three games left in the season. Two of them are at home, and two of them are against teams who sit at the bottom of the NHL standings.
• If the Wild can get four points in the last two games, they are a lock to make the playoffs.
• Mikko Koivu finally found the scoresheet last night, ending a streak of not registering a point in nine out of his previous ten games played.
• If Minnesota can consistently get 36 shots on net, like last night, good chance they win some games with that kind of shot total.
• Mike Yeo is the head coach of this team, and will be behind the bench to start the 2013-14 season. The front office has total confidence in him, and you should too.
• Niklas Backstrom has been playing well in net. He has been the unfortunate victim of some bad bounces and some sloppy defensive play lately. If the Wild can clean that up, Backstrom will have the numbers to back up his good play.
• Jason Zucker and Mikael Granlund were sent down today. They will greatly help the Houston Aeros in their playoff run. They will get their games turned around, and will be back to help the Wild in their playoff run.
• The Wild WILL make the playoffs. Just do yourself a favor and say that out loud and see how that sounds, compared to the "They are finished" which has been uttered several times in the past day.

Be positive folks.

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Rest For Backstrom

As the Wild come down the stretch for the final 11 games of the season, one thing is quite clear: Niklas Backstrom needs some rest.

Backstrom has started the last 16 games for the Wild, including a pair of back to back games, the most recent of which, he was pulled after 2 shots in a 3-0 loss to Los Angeles in game 2 of those back to backs. In those 16 games, he has posted an 11-5-0 record with a 2.82 goals against average and a .903 save percentage.

But in the last 6 games, Backstrom has shown signs of fatigue. He has a GAA of 3.90 and a save percentage of .860, in those 6 games, which saw the team lose their 7 game winning streak, and are now on a 3 game losing skid.

At 35 years old, Backstrom showed great poise for his age early on in the season. That great poise, was taken advantage of night after night by Mike Yeo, and who could blame him when Backstrom was playing so well. But now that poise has appeared to have worn off, as Backstrom plays night after night without a rest.

So the solution to the problem is plain and simple: Give Backstrom some games off. With Matt Hackett gone to Buffalo and Josh Harding still on IR, Darcy Kuemper will be the backup for the remainder of the season. Kuemper has done well so far on the year with the Wild, posting a 1.98 GAA and.923 save percentage in 5 games. So there should be no reason why Kuemper doesn't get a start in 3-4 games to finish the year.

With the playoffs on the horizon, the Wild will rely on Backstrom in every game they play, should they get into the big dance. So it makes a lot of sense to give the 35 year old some rest now, before they get there (Yes, I am aware that the Wild are in a extremely tight playoff race). Allowing Kuemper 3-4 starts in the last 11 games will: A) Give Backstrom the rest he needs and B) Keep Kuemper sharp enough to perform adequately in those 3-4 games (The Wild have allowed their backups to just sit on the bench and get rusty way too much this season).

You may remember a few weeks ago, I talked about how the Wild should bring Backstrom back next season. I still support that notion. But, I also believe that he is a bit old, and needs to be given adequate rest to perform at that high level he is capable of playing at.

Should Mike Yeo go with Backstrom for the last 11 games, he will run his #1 goalie into the ground, and will destroy any chance of the Wild making the postseason.

So please, let the man rest for a few games.


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Wild Starting To Get National Attention

Last night, while I was looking up to see how my march madness bracket was doing (Yes, I filled one out) on ESPN.com, I figured I would click on the NHL tab and see what ESPN had going on. And to my surprise, one of the main tabs on the ESPN/NHL homepage was labeled Minnesota Wild.

And I stumbled upon a post by Pierre LeBrun, which hails the Wild as the team we all thought they would be back in July, and a video from the pride of the ESPN NHL department, Barry Melrose.

An excerpt from LeBrun's post:
"Right now, [Fletcher] sees this a total team effort. Of course the star free agents, Suter and Parise, have been terrific, but everyone is contributing. The goaltending has been strong, the blue line rock solid and the offense -- yes, the offense ! -- has been clicking. 

The key has been the arrival of a second line, mainly featuring Setoguchi and Matt Cullen. While Setoguchi has been on fire, with six goals in his past five games, old man Cullen has been a great story, with 11 points (1-10) in his past 11 games."




Also, the Wild are starting to pick up some notice in Yahoo's Awards Watch, with Suter and Brodin getting nominations for the Norris (League's Best Defenseman) and Calder (League's Best Rookie), respectively.

And finally, Mike Yeo and Chuck Fletcher made appearances on NHL Network this past week to discuss the Wild's current success.

After 5 years of futility, it is finally nice to see the Wild: A) Winning and B) Getting some national coverage. Now that the team had a highly successful 3 game road trip, 2 games coming in places they haven't won since 2006 (Detroit) and 2009 (Vancouver), there will be a lot more eyes watching them. And perhaps, we will continue to read about the Wild on a national level more frequently as well too.

Its kind of a good feeling isn't it?


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