Minnesota Wild Season Preview

The Wild had a great regular season but with Bruce Boudreau coaching with his limited playoff success, they were bounced out in the first round by the Blues. The team may have gotten a bit
worse over the off season as they had to trade players to get cap space to allow the signings of their young stars. The Wild may not have the same regular season success as last year but they should still make the playoffs as a wildcard team.

Arrivals/Departures

Arrivals: Tyler Ennis, Marcus Foligno, Kyle Quincey, Ryan Murphy, Landon Ferraro, Cal O'Reilly, Kyle Rau, Niklas Svedberg
Departures: Martin Hanzal, Marco Scandella, Jason Pominville, Erik Haula, Darcy Kuemper, Jordan Schroeder, Christian Folin, Ryan White, Tyler Graovac, Nate Prosser, Zac Dalpe, Alex Tuch



Forwards:

Mikael Granlund broke out last season after a disappointing four NHL seasons, doubling his goal total from the year before as well as putting up 69 points. Zach Parise struggled last year and is no longer the 70-plus point producer he once was but he can still be a very good top-six forward. Mikko Koivu has been a solid two-way contributor for years in Minnesota and as the captain he should continue in this role. Charlie Coyle has also turned into a scoring threat on the top six as he finished with a career high 56 points playing with an edge to his game. Nino Niederreiter has also started to live up to the hype that surrounded him when he was drafted as he crushed his career high in points putting up 25 goals and 57 points. Eric Staal rejuvenated his career in his first year with the Wild as he returned to form after some down years. Those will be the top six forwards, the only question surrounding the group is who will play where, as many of them can play all three forward positions. Jason Zucker had the best year of his career in 2016-17 as he finished near the top of the league in plus minus while contributing offensively too. Tyler Ennis was part of the Wild's big trade over the summer; after two injury-riddled seasons, Ennis will look to get back to the form he showed three seasons ago. The Wild's top prospect in the organization is Joel Eriksson Ek and since Erik Haula left via the expansion draft he should replace him as a third-line scoring threat at center. Chris Stewart is a great fourth-line forward as he plays with an edge and can score goals. Marcus Foligno will be the other fourth-line winger alongside Stewart and he also plays physical giving the Wild two very good fourth-line wingers. The fourth-line center spot is open to whoever steps up and takes it; most likely Landon Ferraro but Cal O'Reilly will also compete for the spot.



Defenceman:

Ryan Suter is still one of the best defencemen in the NHL as he shuts down opposing team's best players while putting up points. Suter also finished with a very impressive +34 considering he plays almost every shift vs the other team's top players. Jared Spurgeon will likely be Suter's partner on defence as he too put up a very impressive plus minus with +33. Jonas Brodin will be the staple of the second pair as his game is focused primarily on stopping the other team rather than contributing on offence. Mathew Dumba is the Wild's best up-and-coming defenceman and at only 23 years old, he already plays big minutes and produces points; with Scandella gone his numbers should improve some more. Veteran Kyle Quincey will play on the bottom pair to provide some leadership and to help mentor whatever young defencemen will join him. Ryan Murphy, Mike Reilly and Gustav Olofsson will all compete for the final spot on the defence capping off a very deep and strong defence.



Goaltending:

Devan Dubnyk has turned his career around since joining the Wild after some down years with the Oilers and multiple teams, turning into one of the league's most reliable goalies. If Dubnyk can continue his play, he could single handily propel the Wild to the playoffs. The backup situation could be bad as Alex Stalock's last tenure in the NHL did not go well with the Sharks.

Projected Lineup:

Zach Parise	Mikko Koivu	Charlie Coyle
Mikael Granlund	Eric Staal	Nino Niederreiter
Jason Zucker	Joel Eriksson Ek	Tyler Ennis
Marcus Foligno	Landon Ferraro	Chris Stewart
Kurtis Gabriel	Cal O'Reilly	Christoph Bertschy

Ryan Suter	Jared Spurgeon
Jonas Brodin	Mathew Dumba
Kyle Quincey	Ryan Murphy
Mike Reilly	Gustav Olofsson

Devan Dubnyk

Alex Stalock

Niklas Svedberg

Top 10 Players:

10. Jared Spurgeon

9. Jonas Brodin

8. Nino Niederreiter

7. Eric Staal

6. Charlie Coyle

5. Devan Dubnyk



4. Zach Parise

3. Mikko Koivu

2. Mikael Granlund

1. Ryan Suter

Projected Finish: 99 Points (4th in Central)
Last Year: 106 Points (2nd in Central)

Photo credit for Tyler Ennis goes to https://www.thestar.com/. Zach Parise and Ryan Suter goes to http://www.foxsports.com/. Devan Dubnyk goes to http://www.nbcsports.com/nhl.

Minnesota Vikings Season Preview

The Vikings exploded to a 5-0 start last season thanks to one of the best defences in the NFL but it quickly went downhill and they finished 8-8. The offence still looks like it will be a problem with questions at running back, quarterback, offensive line and wide receiver. The defence will be what keeps the Vikings in the race for a wild card position with teams like the Panthers, Buccaneers, Cardinals and Lions.

Arrivals/Departures:

Arrivals: Datone Jones, Case Keenum, Latavius Murray, Ryan Quigley, Riley Reiff, Mike Remmers, Bishop Sankey
Departures: Audie Cole, Brandon Fusco, Chad Greenway, Mike Harris, Shaun Hill, Jake Long, Matt Kalil, Jeff Locke, Captain Munnerlyn, Cordarrelle Patterson, Adrian Peterson



Offence:

Teddy Bridgewater missed all of last season after his gruesome injury before the season started and he may never play again. Sam Bradford came in and set the NFL record for completion percentage in a season but that was mainly because he checks it down all the time. For the first time in a decade, Adrian Peterson is not the running back as this year it will go to rookie Dalvin Cook or Latavius Murray with Jerrick McKinnon backing them up. Stefon Diggs has shown flashes and should continue to grow as a receiver like Adam Thielen did in his breakout season last year. Last year's first-round pick Laquon Treadwell struggled in his limited snaps catching one pass and will need to improve in his sophomore season. Jarius Wright and Michael Floyd provide wide receiver depth with German Mortiz Boehringer. Kyle Rudolph was good last season providing a big target for Bradford to complement the speedy wide receivers. The offensive line got a makeover with two new tackles in Riley Reiff and Mike Remmers. Alex Boone remains the best lineman starting at left guard and Joe Berger starts at right guard. The center position will be won by either Nick Easton or Pat Elflein.



Defence:

The defence remains one of the best in the NFL and will help a weak offence stay in the playoff picture because of the talent on this side of the ball. Linval Joseph may be the best nose tackle in the NFL as he clogs up rushing lanes. Star pass rushers Everson Griffen and Danielle Hunter will provide pressure of the edges with Tom Johnson playing defensive tackle. The Vikings have great depth at defensive end with Brian Robison and Datone Jones both providing pressure on the quarterback. Anthony Barr had an up-and-down season last year but when he is on form he is one of the best all-around linebackers in the game. Eric Kendricks continues to grow giving the Vikings a good option to captain the defence and Emmanuel Lamur starts at weak side linebacker. Xavier Rhodes emerged as a true shutdown corner last year shadowing the likes of Odell Beckham among others in his career campaign. Trae Waynes is a big risk taker at the other corner spot - either allowing big plays or makes them - while Terence Newman continues to defy age at the nickel spot. Harrison Smith still ranks among the best safeties even after a bad statistic season as he teams up with Andrew Sendejo at the safety position.



Special Teams:

Ever since costing the Vikings in the playoffs vs the Seahawks, Blair Walsh has been horrendous so they got rid of him and brought in average kicker Kai Forbath. Ryan Quigley will be the new punter giving Minnesota a new special teams unit. Marcus Sherels will be the punt returner again but rookie Rodney Adams will take over on kick returns.

Starters:

Offence	Defence
Adam Thielen	Danielle Hunter
Stefon Diggs	Linval Joseph
Laquon Treadwell	Tom Johnson
Riley Reiff	Everson Griffen
Alex Boone	Anthony Barr
Nick Easton	Eric Kendricks
Joe Berger	Emmanuel Lamur
Mike Remmers	Trae Waynes
Kyle Rudolph	Andrew Sendejo
Sam Bradford	Harrison Smith
Dalvin Cook	Xavier Rhodes

2017 Draft:

41. Dalvin Cook
70. Pat Elflein
109. Jaleel Johnson
120. Ben Gedeon
170. Rodney Adams
180. Danny Isidora
201. Bucky Hodges
219. Stacy Coley
220. Ifeadi Odenigbo
232. Elijah Lee
245. Jack Tocho

Top 10 Players:

10. Eric Kendricks

9. Stefon Diggs

8. Kyle Rudolph

7. Dalvin Cook

6. Sam Bradford

5. Everson Griffen

4. Anthony Barr

3. Linval Joseph

2. Harrison Smith



1. Xavier Rhodes

Season Prediction: 9-7 (2nd in NFC North)
Last Year: 8-8

Photo credit for Latavius Murray goes to http://www.sportsnet.ca/. Sam Bradford goes to http://www.foxsports.com/. Xavier Rhodes goes to http://www.vikings.com/. Harrison Smith goes to https://www.si.com/.