Devan Dubnyk Saving More Than Season For Minnesota Wild
By Adam Savard
The Minnesota Wild are making a late push for the playoffs because finally they are getting good goaltending. Where it’s coming from is unexpected but shouldn’t be.
What a difference a month makes for the Minnesota Wild. In January there was talk of head coach Mike Yeo being fired after the Minnesota Wild lost eleven of thirteen games. After last nights 4-0 win over the Edmonton Oilers only one point and the San Jose Sharks stand between the Wild and a wild card position. Devan Dubnyk is the primary reason.
Going back to the start of the 2012-13 season it could be argued the Minnesota Wild were dealing with strength in their goaltenders. Nicklas Backstrom and Josh Harding were considered one of the better tandems in the NHL. Injuries took their toll on both goaltenders (one self-inflicted) and what followed was a failed “plug and play” strategy. Since opening night in 2012 the Minnesota Wild have started seven different goaltenders.
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Lucky number seven is Devan Dubnyk and his consistency behind a talented team is making the Minnesota Wild a legitimate playoff threat. Dubnyk has experienced his own ups and down before landing in Minnesota having played most of his career in Edmonton and Arizona, two teams that recent history has proven don’t think very much of playing defense and winning games. Dubnyk took some of the heat for that, but his .910 save percentage in Edmonton and .916 in Arizona would suggest he wasn’t the primary problem.
Now Dubnyk is finding his stride and the Minnesota Wild couldn’t be happier. Dubnyk has lost two of the sixteen games he has appeared in and posted a 1.61 GAA and .938 save percentage with five shutouts and two assists. The happiest man in Minnesota is likely Yeo, whom for some reason after two consecutive seasons of improved playoff results found himself on the hot seat.
Whether the relationship between the Minnesota Wild and Dubnyk continues beyond this season remains to be seen. General Manager Chuck Fletcher faces with a delicate situation as Dubnyk is an unrestricted free agent after this season, and if the Minnesota Wild fail to make the playoffs it could signal changes beyond the goaltender. Dubnyk has certainly earned a raise over his $378,494 salary and Fletcher would have to fit that on a team with nine players set to earn more than $2.6 million dollars and more than one year left on their current contracts according to spotrac.com.
The Minnesota Wild looked like sure sellers approaching the March 2nd trade deadline but the acquisition and play of Devan Dubnyk has changed the narrative on both the season and Dubnyk. Continued stellar goaltending and a balanced offense will put the Minnesota Wild into the Stanley Cup playoffs and give Dubnyk a greater opportunity to earn a bigger contract. If that contract is to stay with the Minnesota Wild we likely won’t be discussing a late surge toward the playoffs. Instead the tandem of Dubnyk and Darcy Kuemper would have Minnesota Wild fans talking about “home-ice advantage.”
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