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The NHL Has A β€˜Wild’ Problem

πŸ“… Published on: 2024-12-11 22:30:02

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nhl #vancouvercanucks #hockey The Minnesota Wild are the top team in the NHL. Let’s take a look at how they’ve become a …

πŸŽ™ Channel: Hockey Psychology

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πŸ•΅οΈβ€β™‚οΈ Transcript:

this is the Minnesota Wild last year after firing their head coach midseason they missed the playoffs by 11 points and finished 20th in the NHL for a team that has been the living embodiment of average or below for years almost everyone was expecting more of the same this season but this year has been a complete surprise an MVP caliber start for their Superstar Carill capriso combined with outstanding defensive metrics has this team tied for first in the NHL while leading the Western Conference not a lot of people saw this coming and right now the wild have become a problem for all 31 other NHL teams on any given night and when you take a look at how that might be something that may not change anytime soon now for years the Minnesota Wild have been in the mushy middle ask any wild F and they’ll tell you they have nightmares of Patrick Kane they’ve never been nearly good enough to contend and not nearly bad enough to suck and get a lottery pick but what has been a consistent positive for them over the last few years is Kil capriso the Superstar left Winger has scored 40 plus goals for three years in a row and is one of the most dynamic Playmakers in the game he just doesn’t get much love because well he’s on Minnesota and on a team where he’s never really had a slam dunk first line Center he’s put up well over a point per game and is at the core of Minnesota’s offense however this year he’s taken it to a whole other level by being among the league lead in points the more impressive effect is that he leads all players in even strength scoring with 32 points generating offense when even strength is a lot more difficult simply because there’s less space to attack so very best offensive players like capriso do their damage through their timing and awareness in the offensive zone Minnesota plays a 212 structure it’s pretty self-explanatory when you look at it but you got two forwards in deep and the high men as the F3 and your D occupy the points now what the 212 does for most teams is it allows them to work the offensive triangle down low for options place a player like capriso in this system and he’s frequently working off of his linemates to create off the cycle and work the triangle this play here against Florida he is constantly finding that soft spot in Panthers coverage the original pass is bobbled but then Minnesota slips into this 212 and as you can see capriso thrives in these offensive triangles and give and goes as soon as he puts it down lad to zuk gell he attacks the only pocket of space available in between these two checks the rest is incredible Edge work and vision from capriso to set up the goal it’s the same structure that allows him to make absurd no look passes in plays like this while it might just seem like pure luck it’s really capriso being familiar with the system and knowing where his teammates should be capriso as the high F3 here knows that coming out of the goal line the far forward in zuk Carell will likely be in the area he wants to throw this Puck sure enough he’s there for the tap in to have a superstar Talent like capriso is a treat but having the right systems in place so that he he can maximize his skill set is really the most important component of getting the most out of your player and your team as a whole now in the modern NHL we know it’s not just enough to work the cycle down low and rely on your forwards to create offense all five players need to get in the mix and the wild do this incredibly well to create Havoc for teams in their own end here against Philly watch Capri of become a dog on the four Che win a puck battle and then Minnesota again falls into that 212 capriso sends it to the point for Brock Faber and here’s where Minnesota to add some flare both players end up playing a little bit of pitch and catch capriso climbs up to the point while Faber activates into the slot that causes a moment of confusion for Philly on who has who and Capri sends it netfront for a perfect Faber tip in in pretty much all scenarios in the offensive zone Minnesota encourages all five players to play this sort of positionist style of hockey that creates confusion for opposing teams and this isn’t just the superstars either even a lunch paale Defender like Jacob Middleton is encouraged to activate on these types of plays and although this is against a strong defensive team like Winnipeg they still have difficulties defending this style when executed properly last year Nashville was damn good at this style of play this year Well we don’t talk about this year for Nashville however Minnesota’s bread and butter has been their defensive game with them being first in the NHL in goals against and second in five on five team defense it is extremely hard to penetrate the wall that Minnesota creates in their own zone Minnesota is one of the few teams who who play a full man-on-man defense no matter where the puck is the last few Stanley Cup winners have used a hybrid system which has a box plus one when the puck is down low and then Flex out to a Manon man when the puck is up high Minnesota likes to stay aggressive in pretty much every situation so they stay man on- man almost all the time man on- man takes a ton of communication to play but when played properly it can be suffocating while also creating offensive opportunities once again against a damn good team in Winnipeg every Wild player stays aggressive in their pressure while being locked onto a man when a peg is forced to keep the entire play on the perimeter and when they try and get on the interior the wild D is right there to block the shot the beauty of man on man is that when it’s executed the way the wild are doing it there’s just no immediate play that can be made without instant pressure special players and high offensive teams will be able to expose it if they can beat their man but to a man Minnesota is playing incredible defense as of right now now the connecting piece that pulls it all together for the wild is how it translates into offense often their defense will force a turnover which presents a rush chance the other way here is a perfect example of cohesion as a defensive pairing the penguins have a possible four on two here but Middleton does a fantastic job at angling off the play and cutting off the offensive space to virtually in half that makes his partner’s life a whole lot easier the Penguin’s Puck carrier Falls right into the Trap by giving it to his teammate on his same side then the skating and GAP control of Faber just snuffs this bad boy out completely and look what do you know turnover at the offensive blue line and it’s our boy capriso there to jump all over it on the Counterattack the result of course is Minnesota goal and yet another point for Carill Capri off the Wild and their D aren’t shy to jump up in the rush either here Tampa almost does a good job at shutting this down in the neutral zone with some good structure however Broan activates on the far side to give his player an outlet and continue the rush a subtle tap to his wing just to continue the play and he drives down the middle to open up this Lane to Capri off yet again a fiveman offense creates another Capri off opportunity and he’s there to hammer it home when you put guys like brodine and Faber on the ice together they are amongst the best in the NHL in terms of expected goals percentage when you have a defenseman like Jake Middleton leading the NHL in plus minus it just goes to show you how well Minnesota’s playing when even strength finally the piece that puts it all together is Philip gustofson being the leader in goals against and amongst the top in every other goalie category he has been brilliant at hiding any defensive mistakes that Minnesota has had this right here is a shining example of Minnesota slipping up on their man-on-man coverage Ross’s late to his guy capriso gets Puck focused and this duck defenseman is coming through the shoot untouched but gustofson makes a massive stop he anticipates the play beats the pass and is able to set his feet before the shot even arrives having the strong defensive structure that Minnesota possesses makes life easier for guson but you still need to have your goalie to make the big stop guson is doing that on the regular and Minnesota is on fire because of it now when you put all this together you get a Minnesota team that has taken the league by storm one of the League’s strongest defensive teams led by a potential MVP winner has become an unexpected problem for the rest of the league and if they can keep it up they may just be the team to beat out of the West


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