“It’s more complicated than just ‘play the kids’.” [Russo and Smith]
October 13, 2025
“It’s more complicated than just ‘play the kids’.” [Russo and Smith]
10 comments
Excerpt:
The Wild are not in a rebuilding phase like the Chicago Blackhawks or San Jose Sharks. There’s pressure here to not only make the postseason, but also, as owner Craig Leipold put it, “be more than just a playoff team.” Ten straight years without a series win will do that to a franchise.
That’s why, as much fun as it sounds to inject so much youth into a lineup, there’s risk, too. And the Wild can’t just throw them to the wolves.
“It’s balancing this, right?” Hynes said. “It’s just, ‘Play the kids,’ but this is the hardest league in the world. It’s the best league in the world. The difference sometimes between younger players and veteran players. Veteran players, they’ve been around, they know how to play, they know what the game is about. The NHL is a different beast. It’s not college. It’s not junior. No matter how good you were at other levels, you’re playing against the best guys in the world.
“So you have to balance, ‘Are they ready to play?’ If they’re ready to play, we’ll play them. But we also can’t just put nine kids in the lineup and think that all of a sudden, they’re going to be ready to go. We’re not in a rebuilding situation. We’re in a situation where we want to be a competitive hockey team. So it’s going to be a balance. It has to be.”
Thought this might be a good perspective in light of the constant arguments about playing our young prospects vs. the vets we have getting top-6 minutes. Some quotes:
> Hynes: “So you have to balance, ‘Are they ready to play?’ If they’re ready to play, we’ll play them. But we also can’t just put nine kids in the lineup and think that all of a sudden, they’re going to be ready to go. We’re not in a rebuilding situation. We’re in a situation where we want to be a competitive hockey team. So it’s going to be a balance. It has to be.”
> This is not just about keeping the Wild afloat this season. It’s about the health and development of their top prospects.
> “If they’re not ready, we’re not going to force them. That’s it,” Guerin said during training camp. “Through my playing career and then working in player development over the years, you’ve just seen it time and time again: If a player’s not ready, he’s not ready. That’s OK. That’s OK! The worst thing we can do is force-feed a kid in the league, because this league is unforgiving. Young players can lose confidence in an instant, and it can take months to get it back. Or they might not ever.”
> “From top to bottom, our team plays the right way,” Boldy said. “We don’t have anyone that’s on their own page that wants to do their own thing. For young guys to see that, you see guys doing the right things over and over, it just sets the tone. As a young guy, if you can play that way, that’s how you stay in the lineup. Points come, chances come, but that’s the biggest thing.”
Will everyone now be quiet over the Wild not putting Jiricek and Buium on a pairing and not having a line of Yurov, Haight and Ohgren while benching Bogo and Johansson? No, probably not.
We need to remember that many of these kids have been getting scouted and developed for years now. Ohgren and Haight have been in Iowa in our system. Yurov’s been in Russia for years playing against vets. Buium’s been playing in big time NCAA games for arguably the best college program in the world.
The kids have had a lot of time already. They’ll continue to get more time. They don’t need to play every game on L2 or L3 or PP2 or PK1, especially against a time like LAK which expects to be a very good hockey team all around. Yeah, I don’t want Ohgren and Yurov trying to defend Fiala or Byfield or Kopitar or Kempe tonight 5v5 nor shorthanded.
Sean Avery was just ranting about this stuff about young players needing to absolutely master the 4th line/checking stuff, and just about every coach or vet will tell you the same. Because playing this way is how playoff hockey is conducted. Everyone in this league can snipe it top corner with 2 seconds of time and space. Not everyone is willing to dump and chase or do battle in the corner or half-walls to win possession. Younger players won’t learn this by being rewarded with more ice time and responsibility against the best 50% of assignments in the world when they can barely handle guys who will be in the AHL/KHL/lottery team next year.
I don’t like Johansson on L2. The younger forwards should be prioritized. These 2 things can be true, but doing what I wish we *could* do against a team like LAK when we’re starting our 22 year old goaltender coming off a horrible year in Iowa just isn’t it, and I agree with Hynes on that.
I worry that my nephew, who is 14 months old and a future Wild prospect, is being blocked by some of these older guys.
My issue is there is a difference in accountability. When a vet has a dog shit game they stay on the same line. When a rookie messes up once they are scratched or demoted to 4th line. Doesn’t seem like a sustainable mindset of a team needing youth to step up in the next 1-3 years.
No, no it fucking isn’t! Kids make mistakes and Wild coaches send them to purgatory. Wild veterans make mistakes and Wild coaches promote them to top line!
See the fucking difference! Give the kids 10 games straight, just go play without worrying about be sent to purgatory!
A simple thought from a simple mind. Your lineup should always be one that gives you the best chance to win unless you are in “development” mode. If the younger players are not good enough to earn a job, they need to get better. (*GASP*, although is Iowa the place where they would really develop?). I would be all for playing a younger guy over a veteran if there is not much if any of a drop off. And yes, some coaches feel more comfortable with the veteran even if all else was equal. But you can not be blind to upside. Aging veterans beyond their peak that have no upside will be the first to be replaced. Yes, talking about Bogo. Would not be surprised to see him sit occasionally this season. I will be more than mildly disappointed if the likes of Ohgren and Yurov can not crack this lineup in something other than a bottom 6 role. Not saying this year or even next, but our best prospects should be top 6 worthy at some point otherwise that speaks volumes about our drafting.
I hope Johansson scores tonight just to shut people up.
It’s actually really simple. These vets will get you a first round exit. If you don’t want that you have to do something different. I don’t really care if the kids aren’t ready because I know the ceiling of Mojo on the second line and it’s not worth it. Kaprizov is signed. Gus Bus is extended. I’d rather potentially miss the playoffs and have a good idea of who should be here long term than 1st round exit again and have no idea because they all played 8 minutes a night on a 4th line carousel. Hynes and Billy G are out here trying to keep their seats from getting hot rather than developing the young guys they need to keep their jobs long term. If you can’t trust them in the top 9, send them to Iowa so they can actually play.
10 comments
Excerpt:
The Wild are not in a rebuilding phase like the Chicago Blackhawks or San Jose Sharks. There’s pressure here to not only make the postseason, but also, as owner Craig Leipold put it, “be more than just a playoff team.” Ten straight years without a series win will do that to a franchise.
That’s why, as much fun as it sounds to inject so much youth into a lineup, there’s risk, too. And the Wild can’t just throw them to the wolves.
“It’s balancing this, right?” Hynes said. “It’s just, ‘Play the kids,’ but this is the hardest league in the world. It’s the best league in the world. The difference sometimes between younger players and veteran players. Veteran players, they’ve been around, they know how to play, they know what the game is about. The NHL is a different beast. It’s not college. It’s not junior. No matter how good you were at other levels, you’re playing against the best guys in the world.
“So you have to balance, ‘Are they ready to play?’ If they’re ready to play, we’ll play them. But we also can’t just put nine kids in the lineup and think that all of a sudden, they’re going to be ready to go. We’re not in a rebuilding situation. We’re in a situation where we want to be a competitive hockey team. So it’s going to be a balance. It has to be.”
Thought this might be a good perspective in light of the constant arguments about playing our young prospects vs. the vets we have getting top-6 minutes. Some quotes:
> Hynes: “So you have to balance, ‘Are they ready to play?’ If they’re ready to play, we’ll play them. But we also can’t just put nine kids in the lineup and think that all of a sudden, they’re going to be ready to go. We’re not in a rebuilding situation. We’re in a situation where we want to be a competitive hockey team. So it’s going to be a balance. It has to be.”
> This is not just about keeping the Wild afloat this season. It’s about the health and development of their top prospects.
> “If they’re not ready, we’re not going to force them. That’s it,” Guerin said during training camp. “Through my playing career and then working in player development over the years, you’ve just seen it time and time again: If a player’s not ready, he’s not ready. That’s OK. That’s OK! The worst thing we can do is force-feed a kid in the league, because this league is unforgiving. Young players can lose confidence in an instant, and it can take months to get it back. Or they might not ever.”
> “From top to bottom, our team plays the right way,” Boldy said. “We don’t have anyone that’s on their own page that wants to do their own thing. For young guys to see that, you see guys doing the right things over and over, it just sets the tone. As a young guy, if you can play that way, that’s how you stay in the lineup. Points come, chances come, but that’s the biggest thing.”
Will everyone now be quiet over the Wild not putting Jiricek and Buium on a pairing and not having a line of Yurov, Haight and Ohgren while benching Bogo and Johansson? No, probably not.
We need to remember that many of these kids have been getting scouted and developed for years now. Ohgren and Haight have been in Iowa in our system. Yurov’s been in Russia for years playing against vets. Buium’s been playing in big time NCAA games for arguably the best college program in the world.
The kids have had a lot of time already. They’ll continue to get more time. They don’t need to play every game on L2 or L3 or PP2 or PK1, especially against a time like LAK which expects to be a very good hockey team all around. Yeah, I don’t want Ohgren and Yurov trying to defend Fiala or Byfield or Kopitar or Kempe tonight 5v5 nor shorthanded.
Sean Avery was just ranting about this stuff about young players needing to absolutely master the 4th line/checking stuff, and just about every coach or vet will tell you the same. Because playing this way is how playoff hockey is conducted. Everyone in this league can snipe it top corner with 2 seconds of time and space. Not everyone is willing to dump and chase or do battle in the corner or half-walls to win possession. Younger players won’t learn this by being rewarded with more ice time and responsibility against the best 50% of assignments in the world when they can barely handle guys who will be in the AHL/KHL/lottery team next year.
I don’t like Johansson on L2. The younger forwards should be prioritized. These 2 things can be true, but doing what I wish we *could* do against a team like LAK when we’re starting our 22 year old goaltender coming off a horrible year in Iowa just isn’t it, and I agree with Hynes on that.
I worry that my nephew, who is 14 months old and a future Wild prospect, is being blocked by some of these older guys.
My issue is there is a difference in accountability. When a vet has a dog shit game they stay on the same line. When a rookie messes up once they are scratched or demoted to 4th line. Doesn’t seem like a sustainable mindset of a team needing youth to step up in the next 1-3 years.
No, no it fucking isn’t! Kids make mistakes and Wild coaches send them to purgatory. Wild veterans make mistakes and Wild coaches promote them to top line!
See the fucking difference! Give the kids 10 games straight, just go play without worrying about be sent to purgatory!
A simple thought from a simple mind. Your lineup should always be one that gives you the best chance to win unless you are in “development” mode. If the younger players are not good enough to earn a job, they need to get better. (*GASP*, although is Iowa the place where they would really develop?). I would be all for playing a younger guy over a veteran if there is not much if any of a drop off. And yes, some coaches feel more comfortable with the veteran even if all else was equal. But you can not be blind to upside. Aging veterans beyond their peak that have no upside will be the first to be replaced. Yes, talking about Bogo. Would not be surprised to see him sit occasionally this season. I will be more than mildly disappointed if the likes of Ohgren and Yurov can not crack this lineup in something other than a bottom 6 role. Not saying this year or even next, but our best prospects should be top 6 worthy at some point otherwise that speaks volumes about our drafting.
I hope Johansson scores tonight just to shut people up.
It’s actually really simple. These vets will get you a first round exit. If you don’t want that you have to do something different. I don’t really care if the kids aren’t ready because I know the ceiling of Mojo on the second line and it’s not worth it. Kaprizov is signed. Gus Bus is extended. I’d rather potentially miss the playoffs and have a good idea of who should be here long term than 1st round exit again and have no idea because they all played 8 minutes a night on a 4th line carousel. Hynes and Billy G are out here trying to keep their seats from getting hot rather than developing the young guys they need to keep their jobs long term. If you can’t trust them in the top 9, send them to Iowa so they can actually play.