On today's episode of Locked on Wild, we review the year 2023 from a Wild perspective! We start with the 2022-23 Minnesota Wild hitting a few rough patches in January and February, before finding their stride into March. We discuss the emergence of Matt Boldy in March with Kirill Kaprizov out of the lineup, and Filip Gustavsson carrying the team with dominant performances all season long. We discuss Kirill Kaprizov's pursuit of 50 goals before his season was unfortunately injury shortened. We discuss the role that injuries to Kirill Kaprizov and Joel Eriksson Ek had on the Wild heading into the postseason, and the frustration that followed a disappointing playoff series loss that mirrored the previous year's loss to St. Louis almost too much. We discuss the dreadfully slow start to 2023-24 which led to Dean Evason being fired, and the decisions in the offseason regarding extensions that led to the pressure mounting into the year. We finish by discussing the hiring of John Hynes, how he has righted the ship, and the emergence of Brock Faber and Marco Rossi as key components with the calendar flipping to 2024. All in all it was a VERY eventful year for the Minnesota Wild!

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On today's episode of Locked on Wild, we gear up for a massive weekend against the Winnipeg Jets with the possibility that Jared Spurgeon will be back in the lineup as soon as today. We discuss a possible "changing of the guard" with Brock Faber excelling so much that he can (and should) continue to draw top assignments even with Spurgeon back. We also discuss the possibility that Faber gets moved off the top Power Play unit and where he can still improve. We take a look at how the Jets shifted the entire direction of their franchise after looking like they were going to take a step back in the offseason. We look at how they have managed to keep winning despite losing Kyle Connor, and how Connor Hellebuyck has bounced back to his usual form. We discuss how much of a bump the Wild would get with a win in their playoff chances, and update the Wild Card standings ahead of today's action. We also dive into today's keys to the game, which include:

1. Stars need to shine bright in the biggest games. The Wild need a strong game from Kaprizov-Boldy and Eriksson Ek to set the tone
2. Let the physical players answer Winnipeg's physicality
3. Get to the front of the net to get past Connor Hellebuyck

Make sure to join us after the game for a Locked on Wild POSTCAST breaking down all of the action!

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On today's episode of Locked on Wild, we gear up for a return to action for the Minnesota Wild tonight against Detroit! We start by looking at the latest injury updates for the Wild, with Ryan Hartman returning to the lineup, but Jared Spurgeon not yet ready to come back. We also look at updates for Jonas Brodin and Mats Zuccarello, with both still being a ways off from game action. We preview tonight's matchup against Detroit, with the Red Wings facing a ton of injuries, including both of their regular goalies being out of action. We look at the return of Patrick Kane, and what he has been able to give Detroit so far since he signed. We go through our Keys to the Game, which include:

1. Start the post-Christmas stretch off strong
2. Don't let Patrick Kane take over
3. Can Kirill Kaprizov continue his hot stretch?

We also finish discussing the World Juniors, with Liam Ohgren leading the way for Wild prospects competing in Sweden. We discuss Servac Petrovsky lighting things up so far and how Team USA has done in the early part of competition!

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Merry Christmas from everyone at Locked on Wild! We hope you are enjoying the Christmas weekend with friends and family! Seth and Alex discuss the week ahead, hand out some presents to various Wild players and get you ready for two big games against the Winnipeg Jets while also discussing the fact that no one ahead of the Wild in the standings will lose, which is problematic for climbing back into the playoff picture. PROGRAMMING NOTE: This episode was recorded before the Boston game due to travel for the weekend! But the info discussed is still extremely relevant today!

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On today's episode of Locked on Wild, we look at some subtle things that John Hynes continues to do well, including his communication with players and just allowing the players that should be leading this team to do their things. We look at some of his recent comments regarding Kirill Kaprizov, and also Brock Faber and Marco Rossi, and how some of these exact same things fell by the wayside when the going got tough under Dean Evason. We define the "Hynes Core" the players who have frequently put the team in position to win games, and that core is exactly who you would expect: Kirill Kaprizov, Matt Boldy, Joel Eriksson Ek, Marco Rossi and Brock Faber. We look at how this differs from even earlier in the season. We finish by previewing tomorrow's game against Boston and what the Wild need to do to beat Boston again, including:

1. Keep the Battle Level Consistent all game
2. Clean up the Careless Penalties
3. Attack the DIRTY AREAS!

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On today's episode of Locked on Wild, we get a bit of injury clarity on Jared Spurgeon and Mats Zuccarello. We discuss the differences between LTIR and standard Injured Reserve in Zuccarello's case and how much time he could miss. We discuss Spurgeon's aim for Saturday's game, and how the D pairings could look when he returns. We move to tonight's game against Montreal and look at how the Canadiens have done recently as well as who to watch from a Canadiens perspective. We finish with 3 Keys to a win tonight, which include:

1. Avoid a trap game! Starting slow could lead to having to play catch up against a Montreal team that has only 6 regulation wins so far this year.
2. Power Play needs to take advantage of a beatable Canadiens PK
3. Can the bottom six get the best of Montreal's bottom six tonight?

Make sure to join us after the game for another Locked on Wild POSTCAST breaking down all of the action!

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On today's episode of Locked on Wild, we go full Christmas Spirit with our rendition of the 12 Days of Christmas, which include:

1st Day: A season full of inconsistency

2nd Day: 2 head coaches

3rd Day: Hat Tricks for Dewar and Hartman

4th Day: JON MERRILL IS STILL HERE

5th Day: 5 goals for Middsy

6th Day: Dakota Mermis Sightings

7th Day: Brock Faber is unreal

8th Day: 8 goals allowed vs Dallas

9th Day: 9 one goal losses

10th Day: 10 goals for Rossi

11th Day: 11 points for Moose

12th Day: 12 games from Calen Addison

We move to my wishlist for the team as the season continues and handing out some lumps of coal for the first part of the season!

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On today's episode of Locked on Wild, Alex Micheletti joins us to recap a big win against Vancouver. We discuss the need for overtime changes after an Overtime in which both the Wild and Vancouver seemed content to head to a shootout! We talk about the trio of Brock Faber, Jake Middleton and Zach Bogosian stepping up with Jared Spurgeon out of the lineup. We discuss Faber's impressive weekend which included a TON of minutes and playing in every critical role and situation and handling them all well. We look at the upcoming week for the Wild, including a quick two game road trip to Pittsburgh and Boston, and then two home games against Montreal and Boston again!

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