Mailbag: Answering your questions about all things Wild

In this edition of 'You've got questions, I've got answers,' Wild.com's Dan Myers chats about the upcoming trade deadline, the Wild's slick new Reverse Retro sweaters and just how good the Wild might be now and in the future:

As of right now, I don't think Bill Guerin is actively shopping any of his pending UFAs this summer, a list that includes Nick Bonino, Marcus Johansson, Ian Cole and Brad Hunt.
The main reason why is because the Wild have put themselves in a position in the standings where they are not expected to be sellers at the deadline, and it's sellers who are often trying to move pending UFAs for whatever assets they can get.
That's not to say something couldn't change. If the Wild unexpectedly tumbles down the standings over the next few weeks or if Guerin gets an offer he simply can't refuse, then of course one of those guys could get moved. But Bonino and Cole serve as Stanley Cup-winning leaders in a dressing room with lots of young players and Johansson probably has the most value playing out his deal with Minnesota at this point. The hope is that he returns from injury soon and can serve as a sort of in-house rental of sorts. Hunt is a good soldier, a locker room favorite and an important depth piece on the back end.

I don't think Marcus Foligno's injury has any effect one way or the other on what the Wild does with Matt Boldy, who was named a finalist for the Hobey Baker Award on Wednesday.
What the Wild will take into account is if they feel Boldy is ready to be an NHLer, what his role would be if he signed with Minnesota, is there room on the roster, and if they want to burn a year of his entry-level deal by having him sign and play during the back half of this truncated season.
There's also the important question of whether Boldy himself wants to leave college and turn pro.
All of those things will weigh more into the decision than Foligno's injury. It's entirely possible that Foligno is healed and back in the lineup by the time BC's season is wrapped up.
Of course, it's possible the Wild believes Boldy is ready, signs him and finds him a role. If you're in the camp that is eager to see Boldy play, the good news is, the delayed start to the NHL season means that even if Boston College goes all the way to the national championship game, set for April 10 in Pittsburgh, the Wild will still have a month of regular season hockey remaining ... where under normal circumstances, the regular season would be over by then. Certainly something to keep an eye on as the college hockey season winds down and Minnesota State hoists the national championship trophy (\wink\)

This is a tough question to answer, because so much of this is out of the Wild's control. The belief is, we'll be back to a more normal-looking NHL next season, with the Wild back in the Central Division and the schedules resembling a typical routine.
But in terms of the Wild, I'll say this. It has one of the very best defensive cores in the League top to bottom. Will it look the same next season, after free agency (Cole and Hunt are UFAs this summer) and the Expansion Draft?
Cam Talbot and Kaapo Kahkonen are playing outstanding, and if this is the level of play Wild fans can expect for the foreseeable future, no issue there.
Up front, I think even Guerin would admit he'd like to add a high-end counterman to the mix. He's said it before, and I don't think anything has changed. Joel Eriksson Ek has added more offense to his already elite defensive game, and that's a huge development. I think Nico Sturm has a great future and wouldn't be surprised to see him move back to the middle someday soon and occupy a bottom-six shutdown/PK role for years to come. Marco Rossi certainly has the pedigree, and the Wild believes it drafted a special talent with the No. 9 pick in the draft last fall, but we won't see him until training camp.
This offseason will be a big one for the Wild. It'll have some critical guys to re-sign (Kirill Kaprizov and Kevin Fiala will need extensions, to name a couple), but Minnesota will have some flexibility and will have a full complement of draft picks to play with, including two first rounders. It'll be a fascinating (and really short, by normal standards) summer for sure.
So to finally answer the first question: I think Guerin has done a great job rebuilding on the fly, so to speak. I think a really nice foundation has been laid and it appears the Wild has some honest-to-goodness star power in its midst. Now it'll be about putting the right puzzle pieces around those guys to take it to that elite level.
Also, haven't heard anything about a return of red jerseys. My personal opinion, the Wild has some of the best sweaters in the League right now, and toss in those Reverse Retros, which might be the best in the NHL and you don't need any more red jersey.
It sure looks like there's a decent chance the Winter Classic will be rescheduled for 2022, and teams have traditionally had another jersey for those games. We'll have to see what happens there.

Sort of the same question here, so I'll lump them together.
I personally would love to see it. As stated above, for my money, they are the best Reverse Retros in the League and frankly it isn't close.
But from an organizational standpoint, I'm not sure it's ever going to be a permanent thing. The Wild is the Wild, it isn't the North Stars. Two very different brands, histories, eras, etc. And that's OK. I think that's what makes the occasional Reverse Retro appearances even more special.
It helps that the Wild's road whites (which I wish were the home whites, but that's a different argument for a different day) are some of the best in the NHL as well, and they got the home greens right with the redesign a couple of years ago. All in all, the Wild are a pleasant team to look at, no matter which uniform set it's wearing.
Tweet from @ElDrifte: Any trade/potential new acquisition rumors going around the Wild?
Not a bunch, but that could change with one phone call. I get the sense that Guerin isn't interested in mortgaging the future for a rental now, for a couple of reasons. It's a weird, shortened season, for one. Quarantine rules can often delay the arrival of that addition. Plus, the Wild currently has nine picks in July's NHL Draft (could be eight, depending on how many games Nick Bjugstad plays). This is still a young team on the rise, and Guerin is keenly aware of where he believes this team is big picture. He hired Judd Brackett, one of the NHL's top young talent evaluators, last summer to run his drafts, and giving Brackett maximum flexibility to work his magic is a smart, prudent plan for where the Wild is right now.
But I preface all of that by saying ... it can change with one phone call. If there is one thing Guerin has shown is that he's not afraid to make a trade, and if the right offer came along, I'm sure he'd be interested.

Doubtful. If the Wild wanted to dip its toe into the rental market, it probably has the space (or could create the space) to do something. I get the sense that a big-time add isn't on the way and that the Wild will go with the crew that has brought them this far.

This is a good question, but there are so many unknowns right now. First, we don't know how many of those guys will even be available to be put in Iowa. Sam Hentges is just finishing his junior season at St. Cloud State, and has a year (or two, if he wants) of eligibility remaining. Same with McBain at Boston College. A guy like Nick Swaney at Minnesota Duluth is finishing his senior season, but will have the option of returning for another season because all college athletes were granted an extra year due to the pandemic.
I would expect Alex Khovanov to be a guy who competes in training camp for a roster spot in Minnesota/Iowa, but there's always the chance he decides to stay in Russia for a couple of years.
Guys like Adam Beckman and Daemon Hunt, draft picks who made the AHL debuts this season before heading back to junior, will also be in that mix full-time next season.
And as always, I would expect the Wild to be in the mix on several college free agents. I've heard a couple of names, but out of respect for those guys who are still finishing their college seasons, I'll keep them to myself for now.
The bottom line: I would expect the trend of Iowa moving from the veteran free agent-laden team it was a few years ago to a younger, more homegrown club to continue in the future. And there are some good prospects on the way too, so that should be a fun team to watch.

I'll be honest and say I don't know, simply because this year, because of the pandemic, I haven't been in the locker room a single time. It's strange too, because for the four seasons prior, I lived in the dressing room and was there almost every day. And for the five seasons before that, I was there about half the time. When you are, you see those dynamics behind the scenes and how they can change on a daily, weekly and monthly basis.
I will say that, from what I can tell and from what I hear, the dressing room has been pretty easy and care-free this season. Not sure that has anything to do with the transition from Koivu to Spurgeon, but that's at least my sense.
Winning helps a lot, of course. The influx of young talent, with guys like Kaprizov, Fiala, Jordan Greenway and Joel Eriksson Ek taking the next steps in their careers, changes that dynamic too. So does the addition of guys like Bonino and Cole, who have been to the top of the mountain, a couple of times.
Dean Evason's leadership, and that of the entire coaching staff, also changes the dynamic. I think players have truly bought into Evason's day-by-day, even-keeled approach.
All of those things make a difference. I wish I could be in the middle of it to answer your question more specifically, but that's what I've got for ya.

I don't think you're off-base, and I think Evason is ready to try anything at this point. It really is remarkable how the Wild has been able to have the success it has with a power play ranked dead last in the NHL to this point. It really is a testament to how great it has been at 5-on-5 and on the penalty kill.
Statistically, I don't see any way the power play doesn't improve. If/when it does, watch out. Minnesota is 11th in the NHL with 3.19 goals per game right now, and that's with a PP that's offering little. If the power play were just league average, the Wild would be one of the three or four highest-scoring teams in the League.
Combine that with a club that is tied for fifth-best defensive team in the NHL (2.37 goals allowed per game), and that's a recipe for a special, special club.
I haven't asked Evason specifically about why he has Kaprizov at the bumper position on the power play. I would suspect that he wants Kaprizov in position to hunt down rebounds and be in prime scoring positions when the puck is on his stick.
I think the Wild has enough guys that are effective playing the point on the power play, but I don't mind your suggestion of having him along the half-wall. I think he'd be good there, and I suspect that if the power play doesn't make strides in the coming weeks, he may eventually get a chance there.