wild/nhl

This organizations drama queen tactics are almost hilarious. The bottom line is this: Yeo's not hurting anyone. Instead, he's scratching the Wild's highest paid defenseman, perhaps indefinitely. Now, how utterly stupid does that look, considering the guy's under contract for another year? At some point, someone and something has to give, because this is a joke, making Zids out to be Jeffrey Dahmer here.

Drama queen? It's a rational decision based on the concept of team cohesion. I don't know if you play hockey, but I don't want a player on my team, on my bench, on my shift who has mixed allegiances. You might interpret Yeo as having an immature or petty impulsive response to Zidlicky, as though he's trying to get back at Z or something. But I think that's just your interpretation.

Yeo is doing what is best for the team. Zidlicky is the one who floated a trade to the Devils. Fletcher has been absolutely consistent in saying he has not sought and has not received a waiver of Zidlicky's no-trade clause. Sorry, bobo, but Fletcher and Yeo are being the adults...Zids and his agent are the ones who are out of line in this scenario. What Zids and his agent are doing in reality is driving down his trade value (making Fletcher's efforts to trade him for something of value much more difficult) which will probably get him out of here eventually but will also be a big negative mark next to his name for whatever time Zids has left as an NHL player. Oh, and anybody who wants to talk about misuse of an offensive-minded player like Zidlicky, do a little bit of review and see how much whining Dany Heatley has done this season about playing in a defense-first system. Answer; none. And Heatley didn't exactly come to town with the most solid team-first-guy reputation in the league.

It's addition by subtraction to unload this guy. The cap space gained is value enough in my opinion, so then why is Zidlicky still on this team? If you're going to bench a guy because he is not all in then TRADE him. I am sure Feltcher has an obligation to get "maximum" value but honestly I do not think we want contracts back, I honestly think the best value is a bag of pucks that doesn't impact or cap figures for the upcoming Parise sweep stakes.

Lindy, You are correct. These folks make a pretty good wage. However... since the sports system seems to be broken when it is set up in such a way that even after a player signs a contract there is no guarantee how the player will perform when he gets on the ice. Zid is an altogether too common example of being guaranteed a hansom salary while not producing. I find it very disappointing that is acceptable practice to not honor a signed contract simply for the reason that it does not please the player 100% of the time. In Zids case, he seems to have made the decision that he will contend what is asked of him from the coach, demand a trade asap, not produce to a level that is expected from him by management and the team and generally be a distraction. That is simply not living up to his end of the contract. Unfortunately, because of the large wealth these contracts afford the players, the players are able to cop these attitudes with no risk at all to their lifestyle. Very sad and selfish way to conduct business.

I understand the frustration with Zids, and it is obviously well founded. My question is why do you sit him after probably his best game in a month? If Yeo is doing it to prove a point, then I think he's actually hurting the team for his own ego. Just my opinion.

Lundin looked truly awful last night and Schultz looks like he's ready to move to coaching. Still, I think Yeo is right in not playing the guy who doesn't want to be here.

Yeo is a young coach who believes in a lot of cliched ways to motivate young players. He is going to have to learn how to manage players at this level. My way or the highway often does not work. Any coach can do the X's and O's. Managing players with multi-million dollar incomes is the real talent. You can't park a veteran on the bench without a good explanation and always expect them to buy in. Having said that, turnover always occurs whenever there is a regime change. Zids wants to play. Apparently he just doesn't know how to play Yeo's way. That doesn't mean either of them are wrong. In hindsight, it would have been better to recognize the mismatch sooner and work a behind the scenes trade earlier. Zids and his agent got tired of waiting and lit a fire under the situation. Perfectly understandable.

Lundin doesn't look ready for the NHL just yet. And Shultz is starting to slow. Zid played a good game on Tuesday, but he still made plenty of the mistakes that the fans find frustrating. He keeps hesitating his way out of shots, and his handling of the puck on the blue line on the power play that led to a turnover was atrocious. It's pretty well established that the New Jersey rumors were from the Zidlicky camp, so if Yeo wants to retaliate for that, I really don't have a problem with the scratch. But it is too bad, Lundin didn't really make a good case that he's ready to be a regular NHL guy yet.

@holdsteady If Fletcher passed on any offer he had a few weeks ago, I imagine he is regretting it big time right now. I find it perfectly conceivable that none of the 29 other GM's want to make a deal for Zidlicky, the Wild may end up stuck. At which point do they go the Parrish route and buy him out before Free Agency?