2023-24: 39-34-9 6th in Central Division, 10th in Western Conference, 20th in league
The Minnesota Wild are a 2000s expansion team, which means existing has not been easy for them. Like the Thrashers and Blue Jackets, they lack a history of success. They had an accidental appearance in the 2002-03 WCF, which ended with them scoring the fewest goals in a playoff series with only 1, and they didn't have an even strength goal that series. They are merely a token team in the NHL, one that the NHL can live with or without. They have 8 consecutive playoff series losses to call their own, and have not made the 2nd Round since 2015. They were thought to be a playoff team again this year, even with Dallas and Colorado at the top. Many also assumed Nashville would start to rebuild with Barry Trotz as GM, and that the Jets would struggle due to having an atrocious blue line and no forward depth, but their goaltending provided a cover for their issues and Nashville was a surprise team. St. Louis also played spoiler to decrease Minnesota's playoff chances this year despite not making it. Just simply existing has been a challenge for the Minnesota Wild, as they also tried out a jersey with the old North Stars colors, so I believe it's safe to say there's been an identity crisis in development despite Bill Guerin's accomplished resume as a player. He seems like a great guy who knows about winning, but he hasn't yet developed a team around Brock Faber and Kirill Kaprizov.
The Wild got off to a rough start that saw their coach of the past 3 seasons, Dean Evason, get fired after a month, and even though John Hynes cleaned up the defensive mess enough to get them in the right direction, it was too little too late. With a 2nd pair like Jacob Middleton and Jon Merrill, you have someone who's a little too offensive-minded, and another who's over the hill. Zach Bogosian did well for having been acquired for a 7th round pick, but Frederick Gaudreau dropped to 15 points after seasons of 44 and 38 with Minnesota before. Filip Gustavsson was also a failure this season after carrying the Wild last season with a .931 save percentage, which was 2nd behind Linus Ullmark's .938. Not having a single goalie with a save percentage above .900 will hurt anyone, but it's especially embarrassing with Fleury on the team, because for how many Stanley Cups he cost Pittsburgh, he was still good in the regular season, but he couldn't even do that this year. I thought last year was a good time for him to retire, but now that he's fallen this far I think it's best that he calls it quits as soon as possible.
I can see Minnesota being competitive if Filip Gustavsson can marginally improve, and if the Wild don't get hit with injuries, but they're out of the hunt for this year. I think they will finish 40-34-8, 6th in the Central Division, 11th in the Western Conference, and 20th in the league.
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