Slowly but surely, John Hynes is putting his fingerprints on the Minnesota Wild, who are 3-0 in three games with him as head coach.
As Brandon Duhaime said after Saturday’s practice, Hynes is slowly adding tactical changes to get the Wild to play faster and to get their defensemen more involved by being quicker coming out of their own zone and supporting in the offensive zone. There haven’t been many systematic changes yet, though.
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That’ll come.
Besides changing practice times at home from 10:30 a.m. to 11 and game-day morning skates at home from 10 to 10:30, we haven’t seen giant changes yet other than in the win column.
Hynes has had some early impressions of the team and certain players:
On Kirill Kaprizov, who has 21 points in 22 games this season and one goal and two assists, six penalty minutes and five shots in three games under Hynes: “Very impressed with Kirill. The thing that impressed (me) the most: coaching against him, you know about the talent and the skill. As an opposing coach, when he comes over the boards, you know something is going to happen. But his love of the game, his competitive spirit, his fitness level. The way he practices. He’s a superstar and a huge engine. He’s been very impressive.”
On Joel Eriksson Ek, who leads the Wild with 11 goals, including six on the power play, in 22 games and scored the first goal of the John Hynes era: “He’s one of those players that’s a glue to a team. He plays every situation, he’s got a huge engine on him. He’s smart. He can check. He plays the game so solid. What he means to the team and the style of player he is, he’s a guy you can win with.”
𝗧𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗱𝗶𝗱𝗻’𝘁 𝘁𝗮𝗸𝗲 𝗹𝗼𝗻𝗴! 𝗟𝗶𝗴𝗵𝘁 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗹𝗮𝗺𝗽!!
🚨🚨🚨 #MNwild pic.twitter.com/Q4913UrwsM— Bally Sports North (@BallySportsNOR) November 29, 2023
On rookie Brock Faber, who leads all NHL rookies with 23 minutes, 10 seconds a game, has 10 points in 22 games and is plus-7: “Very impressive. His skating, his hockey sense, his physical ability. To handle as a D-man, you’ve got to play in confrontational situations, box outs, corner containment, D-zone coverage. He has the ability to do that. I’ve been really, really impressed with his skating, the way he can move is what you need in today’s NHL. He can join the rush, he can close gaps, he can recover. I’ve been really impressed. The other part is, he’s mature. He’s a good, solid young guy that has a maturity about him that allows him to be a player that can deal with all the things that go on in the NHL.”
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On Marcus Johansson, who has one goal in 22 games and had been coached by Hynes in New Jersey: “(Johansson) is a good skater. He can really play with pace. He’s got good hockey sense. He can distribute the puck. He’s a smart player. I’ve seen that. A couple clips we talked about this morning, not just with him, but with our team, I think he can use his speed more off the puck to demand it more. He’s a guy who can play through the neutral zone with speed. He can attack off the rush. I’m just trying to give him and the team (opportunities), where we can play faster, back the ‘D’ off, allow us to have some entries.”
On Jonas Brodin, who has nine points in 22 games and is plus-8: He’s as solid as a defenseman as I’ve seen on both sides of the puck. Very good skater, smart, plays both sides of the puck.”
On Marco Rossi, who is second among NHL rookies with eight goals and is tied for second with 14 points in 22 games: “He can think the game with (linemates Kaprizov and Mats Zuccarello). He can play with the pace that you need to create offense. I’m impressed with his hardness on the puck.”
On the Wild as a whole: “They are really tight. They’re hungry. They’ve been very receptive to me, committed. The thing that impresses me the most is that it’s a tight-knit group. They’re happy for each other, they want to see each other succeed. That helps. It’s a really good hockey team, and there’s a lot of good things going on. You don’t have to change a lot of things. It’s a mindset, belief.”
Fleury humbled by $35,100 auction price for his mask
Marc-Andre Fleury, who defied league rules and wore a Native American Heritage Night mask custom-designed for him in warmups on Nov. 24, was overwhelmed by the generosity of a bidder who purchased his mask for $35,100.
He knows one reason the mask went so high is because of the publicity it generated when the NHL didn’t allow him to wear it and he opted to anyway.
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“Very generous,” Fleury said. “It’s for a good cause, which is the main reason why I wanted to wear the mask. You can wear the mask for 15 minutes and raise a good bunch of money to help people.
“To me, I just thought it was the right thing to do. I’m not someone that likes to go against rules. My mom was surprised that I wore it, but it just made no sense to me. Like, I’ve had four paint jobs on my masks this season, so I could have worn this mask all season and nobody would say a thing. It’s just such a small thing to do. but it meant so much to the people we’re raising money for and the person, Cole (Redhorse Taylor), who designed it.”
Marc-Andre Fleury’s mask was designed by Dakota artist Cole Redhorse Taylor from the Prairie Island Community. (Courtesy of Treasure Island Resort & Casino)
The mask meant a lot to Fleury because his wife, Veronique, is of Abenaki and Mi’kmaq descent.
In addition to the mask, specially designed Native American Heritage jerseys and a custom, hand-beaded Wild necklace made by Taylor were up for bid. In total, the auction raised $66,605 in support of the Minnesota Wild Foundation and the American Indian Family Center.
To thank Fleury for wearing the mask, the Prairie Island Indian Community will match the donation of the mask to a charity of the Fleurys’ choice.
Hartman on slew-foot: ‘Not intentional’
It was hard to recognize Ryan Hartman the past few days, with the veteran center sporting a freshly-shaved face and a shorter haircut.
“I thought about changing my number and coming back sooner,” he joked.
Hartman was talking about a two-game suspension he served for a slew-foot on Alex DeBrincat in last Sunday’s game in Detroit. He returned to the lineup Sunday against the Chicago Blackhawks, starting on the fourth line with Duhaime and Connor Dewar.
Hartman slew foots DeBrincat – no call on that play, but Detroit is penalized for DeBrincat’s retaliation. #LGRW pic.twitter.com/BIa34xj7Jv
— Ryan Hana (@RyanHanaWWP) November 26, 2023
“It was not intentional,” Hartman said. “I’m not trying to go out there and slew-foot anybody. It’s not my intention at all. I made my case to the league and they made their decision.”
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Hartman said he knows he’s on the league’s “radar a little bit more” because of his history. This was his third suspension. He’s been fined six other times and warned a handful of others. But Hartman said that’s not something he thinks about during the game, as he’s most effective when plays physical and on the edge.
“There’s a lot more other things to really think about when I’m on the ice,” Hartman said. “It’s not really on my mind. I’m trying to play the game the right way and play hard. Stuff happens, it’s a fast game. To say it’s intentional, maybe they thought it was. It’s a matter of opinion.”
Faber launches exclusive eyewear line
In an idea developed by Alexander Aigen, the marketing and business manager for NHL defensemen Adam Fox and Charlie McAvoy, and Faber’s agents, Brian and Scott Bartlett, Faber teamed up with Twin Cities-based Huxley Optical to launch an exclusive collection of glasses.
The “Fabes” eyewear line comes in maroon and gold — the colors of his University of Minnesota alma mater — and red and green, the Wild’s colors. There’s also a women’s line that comes in sky-blue crystal and top-shelf tortoise to pay homage to his older sister, Paige.
Brock Faber’s “Fabes” eyewear line. (Courtesy of Alexander Aigen)
Faber thinks it’s funny that the basic black frames that he wears off the ice get such attention.
“I don’t really understand why everyone talks about my glasses so much, but I don’t mind it, especially when it’s for a good cause,” Faber said.
Five percent of proceeds will be donated to The Hendrickson Foundation and Minnesota Special Hockey, where Paige plays.
Fans who pre-order frames at huxleyeyewear.com will be entered into a lottery to meet Faber at an exclusive signing on Dec. 11.
Jake ‘Midstrom’ strikes again
Jake Middleton — the Wild’s more defensive defenseman who leads with four goals this season and is nicknamed “Midstrom” by his teammates as an ode to Hall of Famer Nicklas Lidstrom — scored a highlight-reel goal that amounted to the game winner in Nashville on Thursday.
MIDSY WHERE MOM HIDES THE COOKIES #MNWILD | #NHL pic.twitter.com/5QyG05CM8O
— Bally Sports North (@BallySportsNOR) December 1, 2023
“You could (put) pylons on the ice and no goalie and I don’t think I could pull that off again,” Middleton joked.
(Top photo of John Hynes behind the Wild bench: George Walker IV / Associated Press)
