His presence and production give the Wild a chance to win every game. The Wild know they have the best player every night, which is a luxury, especially when they collectively aren’t at their best.
“Kirill is on another level right now,” Guerin said. “I still think last year he wasn’t as healthy as he claimed to be. At the beginning of the year, he was still being bothered by that hamstring. But he’s healthy now. He’s special.”
Hynes is maximizing Kaprizov’s impact by giving him more playing time in different situations. That’s just one mark of Hynes’ deft touch in his first full season after taking over for Dean Evason on the fly last season.
A coach’s tactical impact can be hard to gauge, particularly in a sport in which outcomes often get decided by goofy puck bounces, but if we blame a coach when a team struggles, then we should acknowledge a coach when a team thrives.
The benefit of Hynes’ having a full training camp to implement his system is evident in the Wild’s style of play. They play with structure, which creates cohesion on the ice. The pace is fast, the passing and play-making entertaining, and players up and down the lineup are producing in meaningful ways.
No one embodies the fresh start more than Gustavsson, whose struggles last season made him the target of trade speculation. Now he is reminding us that sometimes the best deals are ones that don’t happen.