Minnesota Government Shutdown Affects Many

July 1 is a Friday, and it's supposed to signal the start of a festive summer weekend. The Fourth of July is a wonderful holiday, where we celebrate our nation's independence by lighting fuses that lead to small explosions and pretty colors in the sky.

In Minnesota, however, things will be tempered a bit. Come Friday, the state's government will cease operations, barring a last-minute agreement on a state budget.

There is plenty of blame to go around, but the people most affected by the potential shutdown share exactly zero percent of the blame.

Those people are the ones who suffer, because they lose their jobs. Even if it's only temporary, it's lost income for people who don't deserve to lose their income.

The sports world isn't immune to these problems. Canterbury Park in Shakopee is facing the prospect of shutting down on its busiest weekend of the year.

While entries were being taken for Saturday's nine-race card, Ramsey County Chief Judge Kathleen Gearin ruled that oversight of horse racing is not a core government function, meaning Canterbury would have to close after Thursday night's races if the government shuts down.

But Canterbury and its horsemen have not given up, and they will get a hearing in Scott County District Court on Thursday for a temporary injunction that would keep the track open.

... In Canterbury's track kitchen, on the clocker's stand and at the racing office, most conversations Wednesday revolved around the shutdown. If it happens, Canterbury could not continue racing, because the Minnesota Racing Commission -- which regulates the sport -- would close. But the commission is fully funded by the track and its horsemen, who have paid for its services through July.

Their attorneys argue that because no public funds are involved, the track should be allowed to stay open. Canterbury President Randy Sampson said he was shocked by Gearin's decision, which stated that her authority was limited to core government functions -- and declared racing was not among those. But the ruling grants the horsemen the right to appeal, which they will do.

The reality of this situation is that our politicians continue to pass the buck, refusing to hold themselves accountable for this mess. It's a mess that's been predicted by many for months, largely because we all knew these people couldn't be trusted to provide the leadership necessary to avoid it.

While the politicians pass the buck, real people are being affected. Naturally, our politicians won't lose their jobs. They won't have to give back any of the salaries they've been stealing.

(Why do I say that? Because their primary job this year -- and they've known this since the legislative session began in January -- was to avoid a government shutdown. That was the only thing they had to do. They not only failed, but they have been half-assing the effort to avoid this shutdown. In any other line of work, such a failure to perform the very basic function of the job would result in a nearly-immediate termination. In politics, these people will actually think they're doing a good job and should be re-elected when the time comes.)

It's wholly disappointing to think about all the services that will go away for the Fourth of July weekend.

Of course, it was completely avoidable. Too bad no one was able to look beyond their own interests to actually make the effort.

Andrew Brunette Does Right Thing

This post isn't about gay marriage. It's more about free speech, and the consequences that can be had when we exercise that right.

You may remember the flap created when New York Rangers irritant Sean Avery did a spot where he spoke out in favor of gay marriage.

Avery caught some heat for the spot, but for the most part, he was applauded for speaking out.

Enter Uptown Hockey.

The sports agency, run by Don and Todd Reynolds, represents a number of NHL players, including (soon to be former) Wild forward Andrew Brunette.

The group has an official Twitter account, and after Avery's commercial became public, the Twitter account became the source of incredible controversy.

Very sad to read Sean Avery's misguided support of same-gender "marriage." Legal or not it will always be wrong.

We haven't heard much from Uptown Hockey's clients since this happened, but Brunette has (quietly) made his thoughts known.

According to Michael Russo, Brunette fired Uptown Hockey and hired new representation, citing the Avery controversy as his reason for the move.

No one is saying that the family Reynolds didn't have the right to speak out on the issue. Certainly, they had as much right as Avery did.

However, the problem with being in a position like "sports agent" is that when you speak, you're not just speaking on behalf of yourself. Avery wasn't speaking on behalf of the Rangers. Or the NHLPA. Or the sport. He was speaking on behalf of Sean Avery.

When Don Reynolds, Todd Reynolds, or whoever posted that tweet hit "send," there was a part of them speaking not just for themselves, but also "on behalf" of their clients. For some, the words of Uptown Hockey -- unchecked -- are also the words of those Uptown Hockey represents.

Obviously, Brunette felt this way. Either that, or he agrees with Avery, and wasn't about to compensate Uptown Hockey for helping him agree to a new contract in free agency this summer, when their feelings on this issue are so different.

No matter what, Brunette should be applauded. Uptown Hockey didn't take into account the impact these words would have on others when that tweet went out.

Now, in a small way, Brunette has made them pay the price.

(Tap of the stick: Hockey Wilderness)

Darroll Powe Joins Wild

The jokes are plentiful, and so is the exclamation.

POW(E)!

The Minnesota Wild traded for Philadelphia forward Darroll Powe (rhymes with "How") Monday, adding some -- sorry, Brian Burke -- truculence to a team that sort of needs more of it.

Powe had nearly 200 hits -- which means you have 200 chances to make "POWE!" jokes -- a year ago for the Flyers, and he has contributed 22 goals in his 204 NHL games.

Don't make any mistake. He's not here to score 50 goals. Or 50 points.

He's going to have a very specific role on the 2011-12 Wild. Hit people, skate hard, play two-way hockey, win faceoffs, and kill penalties.

Oh, and if Maxim Lapierre is still irritating NHL teams, he can do more of this.



If Maxim Lapierre wants to get his face beaten in again.

Powe gives the Wild penalty-killing depth, and he is a guy who can play center and wing. He's a heart-and-soul guy who plays with character. Basically, he's a more athletic and significantly younger version of John Madden, who played last season for the Wild and was generally disappointing.

With this move, the odds of the Wild being at all active in free agency took a hit. There is still the need for a veteran defenseman, but the Wild can't be expected to add a whole lot. They'll have some cap room, but it just doesn't make sense to splurge with a youth movement obviously underway.

2011 NHL Draft: Wild Provide Reasons for Hope, Excitement ... Just Not This Year

There are many ways to rebuild, reload, or just flat-out get started on something. For some sports organizations, a complete tear-down is required before anything else can be built. A good example in the present-day NHL is what is happening in Edmonton.

Others can build through their organization so effectively that they are simply reloading whenever someone leaves or retires. The Detroit Red Wings are a shining NHL example of this.

For the Minnesota Wild, the opportunity to do what Detroit has done simply hasn't existed. They've never been good enough to draw the kind of respect the Wings get. It's a respect that makes players want to sign there for less money, and it's a respect that drew guys like Henrik Zetterberg and Johan Franzen into insanely long-term contracts to stay there.

They've also never been bad enough to do what Edmonton has done, which has included having the No. 1 overall pick in the last two NHL Entry Drafts. They've been really bad in Edmonton, and it's helped them get their team into a spot where fans are genuinely excited about the future.

Wild fans have little to be excited about after another non-playoff year and another year where they weren't bad enough to be a factor in the draft lottery. Instead, general manager Chuck Fletcher has been forced to get creative in re-building organizational depth.

He was able to take a big step towards that goal over the weekend at the NHL Draft, swinging a huge deal involving defenseman Brent Burns that netted the Wild an accomplished young forward in Devin Setoguchi, along with two top prospects.

When you look at the team's depth chart for the upcoming season, it isn't terribly impressive, to be blunt. The expectation is that youngsters like Colton Gillies, Casey Wellman, and maybe even much-maligned James Sheppard will vie for big minutes. On defense, Burns doesn't leave a bare cupboard, but someone (Marek Zidlicky?) needs to step into Burns' role as the top offensive defenseman. Perhaps this opens a door for Jared Spurgeon to become a consistent presence on the power play.

Down the line, guys like Mikael Granlund (pictured above), Johan Larsson, Brett Bulmer, Tyler Cuma, and Jonas Brodin will help. But none of these guys should be looked at as answers for the 2011-12 questions. They are future cornerstone players, but they don't provide hope for the present.

They provide hope for the future.

Granlund could be a star ... the kind of player you build a Cup run around. Larsson and Bulmer were great finds outside the first round. Fletcher has signed young free agents like Justin Fontaine and Chay Genoway to help with the depth in the short-term.

There is plenty of reason to have hope that this franchise is headed in the right direction after years of questionable direction.

Just don't look for much this year. The Wild will probably not be all that good, frustrating fans who haven't heard -- or choose not to understand what they year -- about this new direction. It's up to Fletcher, Craig Leipold, Mike Yeo, and others to make this abundantly clear.

To be good in the future, the franchise has to go through some pain now. That doesn't mean they'll lose 55 games, or have the worst record in the league, or anything remotely that bad.

It just means a playoff spot might be too much to ask for right now. And that's the last thing some fans want to hear.

2011 NHL Draft: Brent Burns Trade Signals Real Change for Wild

In his blogging and an online chat prior to the NHL Entry Draft, Minneapolis Star Tribune ace Michael Russo made it clear. The Wild would look to trade defenseman Brent Burns, but it had to be a good deal, or they wouldn't take it.

This was especially true with the draft taking place in front of the home fans in St. Paul. General manager Chuck Fletcher isn't an idiot, and he didn't want to tick the home fans off. The previous season had already done plenty of that, after all.

As it turned out, Fletcher found a way to hit a home run, impressive considering that he was trading a player with one year left before he can walk, and he was not dealing from a position of strength. As Russo noted Friday night, Burns was the team's only tradeable asset, and Fletcher flipped him Friday for more than anyone could have expected.

The Wild traded Burns to San Jose -- along with a second-round pick in 2012 -- for forward Devin Setoguchi, college forward Charlie Coyle (the Sharks' first-round pick in 2010), and a first-round pick in 2011 (No. 28 overall, used on Saint John center Zack Phillips).

In essence, Fletcher moved a player he virtually had to trade (assuming he wasn't going to pay Burns around $5 million a season on a long-term deal), and he still was able to net a goal-scoring forward to put on his team full of pass-first players, along with two first-round picks (granted, one was a first-rounder last year, but it's not like Coyle isn't an important piece).

Setoguchi has proven he can score. He had 22 last season, and added seven more in 18 playoff games. On the Wild, he has the chance to become a star, because he immediately becomes the team's most dangerous scorer. No more second fiddle to guys like Heatley or Marleau (or up-and-coming Couture). He's the guy. And he's signed for three more years.

Coyle had a good season for Boston University, and you can expect him to play one more season there (this isn't a totally safe bet, because I heard from a few people last winter that felt he was ready to turn pro). He had 26 points in 37 games, not bad for a freshman. He also played very well for Team USA in the World Junior Championships. He'll use another year to add to his production while also adding to his bulk, making his body more NHL-ready.

Phillips was one of the better players left on the board when the Wild picked at No. 28. He was highly productive at Saint John, as the Sea Dogs won the Memorial Cup. He has to work on his skating a little bit more, but there's no reason to think he won't be a candidate for the Wild roster in 2012 or 2013. I'd expect him to play in Saint John again this winter, before taking a shot at the Wild roster. If all else fails, he'll head to Houston, and that's hardly a bad place to go.

In the end, this is probably a frustrating day for a lot of Wild fans. I hate to continue invoking the name of Doug Risebrough, but let's face it. He didn't leave Fletcher much to work with. And look at what Fletcher has done in just two years. He's infused this organization with the young talent it so desperately lacked for so long. He's found a way to make the team younger, and the farm system younger, without having the kinds of seasons Edmonton just endured.

Now, after years of spinning its wheels, the Wild finally has a clear and obvious path. There is a plan in place, as opposed to random moves, bad contracts, and a franchise too willing to let players walk in free agency with no compensation.

It might not be exciting to think about another bottom ten finish in the final standings, but there's no way of saying this Wild team will be locked into that fate. Fletcher has just added a major piece that can help the franchise compete now. With no expensive moves expected in free agency, the Wild could simply add some role players and maybe more veteran presence to their NHL roster.

Don't make any mistake. Fletcher might have lost a good player, but he won this trade. And hopefully, he won over some fans as a result of making it.

Kurt Rambis Out as David Kahn Runs Amok

There really isn't any reason to believe that the Minnesota Timberwolves are heading in the right direction, outside of the recent decision of point guard Ricky Rubio to come over from Europe and join the team, two years after he was drafted.

Basically, Rubio's decision justifies the existence of basketball boss David Kahn, who hasn't done much good in his two years at the helm.

He tends to run the team like you or I would run a fantasy team, making random trades that seemingly disregard the idea of having a basketball philosophy.

Two years ago, his first major move couldn't have been more random. After drafting Rubio and Syracuse point guard Jonny Flynn with back-to-back first-round picks in the 2009 draft, Kahn waited two more months, then hired Lakers assistant Kurt Rambis, who wants his teams to run the triangle offense.

Scratch your head. The guy drafted Rubio and Flynn, two anti-triangle point guards, then hired a triangle coach to run the team, and is now prepared to fire the coach before Rubio plays a game for the team.

Oh, and Kahn strung Rambis out for over two months after his second awful season ended.

Because Kahn needed two months to fire a coach who was 32-132.

A coach he never should have hired in the first place, given Rambis' philosophies on offense and the fact that Kahn wasn't building a team to suit those philosophies.

I'm not blaming Kahn for not buying into everything Rambis wanted to do. We all think the game differently, and we all have ideas on how it's best and most effectively played. The triangle offense isn't for everyone, because it hasn't worked much in the NBA when Michael Jordan and Kobe Bryant weren't involved. As the basketball boss in Minnesota, Kahn has every right to build the team the way he sees fit, and then find a coach who does things the way Kahn wants them done. None of that is in dispute.

But when Kahn was hired, he screwed around with former Wolves poobah Kevin McHale before finally letting him go. Then he waited until nearly two months after the draft to hire Rambis, a coach whose philosophies ran counter to those of Kahn and the players he was building the team with.

Then, after 32-132, Kahn decided he needed ten weeks to evaluate Rambis and figure out what to do.

In the meantime, every other NBA coaching job was accounted for, and Kahn is left with a smaller pool of candidates than he would have had. Meanwhile, Rambis is left with virtually no real chance to find a coaching job this coming season, because there really aren't any left. It's not a pity party, because Rambis has made a lot of money, and he'll be handsomely paid for the two years left on his contract. Instead, it's a simple point that Rambis should be the one making the decision about when he will seek another coaching job. In this case, Rambis had that decision made for him by Kahn, a man who has enough trouble making his own decision, much less decisions for another self-sufficient adult.

But that's what we've come to in Minnesota. Kahn is running amok in this basketball operation, with virtually no checks or balances stopping him from doing whatever the hell he wants. It's not a good thing for what few Timberwolves fans are left out there, because before Kahn is done with this team, they'll all be longing for the days of Jack McCloskey and Jimmy Rodgers.

Weather Delay

Efforts at snark, commentary, and other things are hampered by the fact that I haven't seen the sun shine since Saturday.



If only she was right.

On the bright side, it's not snowing.

And it's sad that I have to resort to that "on the bright side" statement in June.

2011 NHL Draft: Ryan Nugent-Hopkins

The NHL Draft is this week in the Twin Cities. While the big story surrounding the Minnesota Wild will be any potential maneuvering that they may attempt (more on that later this week), other eyes are on the top of the draft board.

At No. 1, the Edmonton Oilers have a tough decision. It's not that there is much question about Ryan Nugent-Hopkins' status as the draft's top player. Instead, it's the quintessential question of board versus need.

The Oilers need defensive help, and Swedish prospect Adam Larsson sits there as a very real candidate for the No. 1 pick.

But Edmonton also picks at No. 19, and reports have them trying to flip that pick for a top ten selection, possibly to pick local product Duncan Siemens, a defenseman who has -- to borrow Brian Burke's favorite word -- a lot of truculence to his game. There's also fast-rising Northeastern defenseman Jamie Oleksiak, who is the biggest (6-7) player in this draft.

In the end, I've always been a believer that -- especially in the NHL, where players don't often find their way to the NHL for at least a year or two -- you need to draft the board, not the needs.

It's a mistake I believe a lot of teams made last year, when Cam Fowler inexplicably fell to the No. 12 spot when he should have been picked no lower than fifth. Teams looked at their organizations and didn't think they needed an offensive defenseman who will eventually be able to score 15 to 20 goals a season in the NHL.

And you wonder why the same teams are in the top 10 of the draft all the time.

Anyway, the Oilers need to do the right thing Friday night. And that's not filling the defensive need with the No. 1 pick, unless they truly believe that Larsson is a better hockey player than Nugent-Hopkins.

Here are videos on the two, not that you can tell much from highlight videos. We'll start with Nugent-Hopkins.



Obviously, Nugent-Hopkins has the skills to be a star. He has hands, great hockey sense, and can score goals. His size is a concern, but it's not like he's a munchkin.

(Plus, I think Rocco Grimaldi is going to be a very good pro at some point, and he's appreciably smaller than Nugent-Hopkins. So I'm not buying into that argument.)

Here's Larsson.



Larsson has some advantages, mainly because he's spent a lot of time playing with and against older players. He could be more "NHL ready" than any other draft prospect, but that's not a certainty, and the Oilers probably can get a solid defensive prospect in the first round, even if they have to stay put at No. 19.

In this situation, coming off back-to-back horrific seasons, you simply can't afford not to trust your board. Even if you need someone else more.

Chuck Fletcher Sticks Neck Out

The Minnesota Wild have made it official: Mike Yeo is their new head coach.

The 37-year-old Yeo has an impressive track record for such a young coach, having won a Stanley Cup as an assistant in Pittsburgh, and he ran the Houston Aeros (AHL) to within two wins of the Calder Cup this year.

Mike Russo of the Minneapolis Star Tribune is the best in the business, and he had already made it abundantly clear that the Wild would be risking losing Yeo to another NHL team within a year or two if they didn't hire him as head coach right now.

Apparently, general manager Chuck Fletcher decided that it was not worth the risk, so he decided to take a tremendous risk.

Does that make sense?

As Russo wrote Thursday, Fletcher has more guts than a lot of people, myself included. I thought for sure that he would go the "safe" route and hire an experienced coach like former Edmonton boss Craig MacTavish or one-time Dallas coach Ken Hitchcock.

It's not that I'm a fan of retreads. I just figured that -- with the team about to get younger -- Fletcher would go with a steady, veteran coach who was willing to work and teach this young group, like Edmonton did with Tom Renney.

(Renney has done a very good job in Edmonton, I think. That's an insanely young team, and Renney has worked hard to teach and bring them along slowly, as anyone who watched the "Oil Change" series on NHL Network can attest. I don't know that they'll be ready to compete for a playoff spot this coming season, but they'll be closer.)

For Fletcher, though, it wasn't about avoiding a retread. It was about avoiding a mistake. Fletcher has two years left on his deal as general manager, and there's a very real chance that this could be the final head coaching hire he makes in Minnesota.

If Yeo succeeds, who knows how long he'll be here? He's 37, for crying out loud.

If Yeo fails, Fletcher might be out the door the same time Yeo is.

See, this isn't about Todd Richards, his job performance or his pedigree. Yeah, Richards was a younger candidate, a guy who sported zero head coaching experience when he joined the Wild. But he didn't fail because he was too young. He failed because he wasn't good enough, and he failed because Doug Risebrough scorched this organization and left Fletcher with virtually nothing to build with.

But the fact that Richards was a "no NHL head coaching experience" guy when he came aboard, and he was ushered out the door after two years with no playoff appearances, well, it left some of us assuming. And we know what happens when we assume. Doesn't mean we don't do it once in a while.

Fletcher has two years left on his deal, and it's presumed that if the Wild's new head coach doesn't get the team to the playoffs in two years, neither will come back. It would have been almost easy for Fletcher to eschew Yeo for a veteran.

Instead, Fletcher has the guts to go with the guy he thinks is the right fit.

Friday, they said all the right things. Yeo talked about the Wild playing with aggression, structure, and being smart, things they didn't always do under Richards. At times, they looked tentative, confused, and they did dumb things. For some reason, Richards ended up being a square peg, with the Wild a round hole in some sense.

Fletcher ignored Yeo's age, which is reasonable because Yeo has more coaching experience than most guys under 40. He talked about Yeo coaching a lot of the kids who will be called upon to make an impact with the Wild. No one will know better what positions to put those young players in than Yeo, who just led them to within two wins of an unexpected championship in Houston.

In the end, though, it's still quite a risk by Fletcher. He essentially took his remaining chips and pushed them all to the middle of the table. All he has in front of him now are his sunglasses and card protector.

In two years (or less), we'll have a better clue of what cards will make up the flop, turn, and river.

Game 7 Means Goosebumps

Wednesday night is the end of hockey season (unless your kid is like mine and playing in a summer league). The Stanley Cup will be awarded when the Vancouver Canucks take on the Boston Bruins in Vancouver.

It marks the first time since 1993 that the Cup will be given out in Canada (that year, Montreal beat Los Angeles in five), and the Bruins are aiming to be the first team since the New York Islanders in 1982 to skate the Cup on Canadian soil (the Islanders beat ... Vancouver).

No analysis needed here. It's going to be a grinder, probably low-scoring. Allow a soft goal, and you're doomed. Take a dumb penalty, you're doomed. Fumble a puck in your own zone, you could be doomed.

Penalty minutes will be low. The referees will do everything in their power to "let the players decide the outcome." Hooking, holding, interference, maybe even high-sticking will be let go. Just don't shoot the puck over the glass or get caught with a bad line change. That stuff won't be let go.

In the end, someone's captain -- either Henrik "Thelma" Sedin or Zdeno "No Insulting Nicknames Given Because He Could Kill You With His Bare Hands" Chara -- will hoist the Stanley Cup. If Vancouver wins, expect Henrik to hand the Cup off to brother Daniel, or embattled goalie Roberto Luongo, or mega-tough and highly-respected Manny Malhotra. If Boston wins, Chara really only has one choice for his handoff, and that's goalie Tim Thomas.

(We know forward Nathan Horton made the trip, and it has to be assumed that he will be on the ice with a jersey on if Boston wins. I don't see any way he plays. Too risky. And while it would be a corny moment to see Chara hand him the Cup, Thomas is still the obvious choice.)

And in the end, something special will happen. Maybe it's a relocated franchise treating an increasingly loud and boisterous fanbase to the Stanley Cup on home ice.



Maybe it's the underdog losing Game 5 5-0, facing elimination twice, and going on the road to win Game 7.



It could be the longtime superstar who never got to touch the trophy finally getting his chance.



No matter what happens, it will be a goosebump moment for hockey fans. It will be a special night.

The Stanley Cup has a way of doing that to people.