Thomas Vanek acknowledges what we figured about Thomas Vanek
Thomas Vanek has a nightmarish first season with the Minnesota Wild, at least by his standards: 21 goals, 31 assists, a minus-6 in 80 games, followed by the first postseason in which he failed to scored a goal despite playing 10 games. In total, he’s gone 15 playoff games without a goal.
Oh yeah: There was also that off-ice gambling thing that provided a distraction.
This was after signing a 3-year deal, worth $6.5 million annually in the previous summer; an odd signing in the sense that it was practically predestined yet oddly nonessential for the Wild, who had a cadre of young forwards and didn’t necessarily have an ideal fit for Vanek.
So what ultimately went wrong last season, and how can it be rectified this season?
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Courtesy of Michael Russo, we now know Vanek had “two hernias and a detached left groin, injuries that required lots of tape and painkillers to play through.” Vanek says he’s feeling better entering this season, so there’s that.
But the bigger concern for this season is that he’s an ill-fit for the lineup, by his own admission. Vanek is a shooter, and the Wild lack quality set-up men in the middle outside of Mikael Granlund. From Russo:
“If I wanted points and goals, I would have signed with the Islanders and had a center like Johnny [Tavares] and a winger like Kyle [Okposo], but I came back here because I thought we had depth and one of the best defenses in the league,” Vanek said. “Minnesota is special to me and being a former Gopher and winning, I’d like to come back here and contribute to getting a Cup.
“But I knew the goals and points would be harder. They’re not going to be any easier this year just because I feel better. We don’t have maybe the strongest depth in the middle, so I’ll have to find a way again of probably making more plays than shooting and creating chances rather than getting chances.”
Shooting the puck! Novel concept, and one that Coach Mike Yeo’s teams curiously struggle with from time to time. Vanek’s total shot attempts (291) were way down from previous season with the Buffalo Sabres and New York Islanders. He’s never played a season of at least 70 games and had less than 300 shot attempts.
He didn’t shoot as much because no one could get him the puck, and yet the same centers are back this season. From Russo:
“Years past I don’t think I was as much of a playmaker as last year,” Vanek said. “Review my year, I don’t think I had a whole lot of chances from in front of the net or the slot. I was more on the outside trying to create space and making plays. I always felt like that was in my game, but not for every shift. I more find the open spaces and wait for that hole, but last year I was more of a distributor than my 10 years before.”
Yeah, if only the Wild had another playmaking center and $6.5 million to spend on one …
It would be awesome if Vanek finds his game again. He’s one of the most entertaining offensive players in the league when he’s rolling. But that’s going to depend on Vanek shooting more, waiting less for his linemates to create offense for him and not being frustrated by it.
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