Wild 2014-15: Sick, Sad Season

Alternate logo since 2003. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

First the good news.  The National Hockey League announced that there will be three outdoor games in 2016.  The Winter Classic, to be held on New Year's Day in Foxborough, Mass., would pit the Boston Bruins against the Montreal Canadiens.  The Stadium Series will have the Minnesota Wild hosting the Chicago Blackhawks at the University of Minnesota's football stadium on February 21, to be followed by the Detroit Red Wings taking on the Colorado Avalanche at Denver's Coors Field February 27.

A Stadium Series game, which is one rung below the Winter Classic in terms of prestige, wasn't what the Wild had wanted.  But since they have neither the history nor the star power that the Blackhawks, Bruins and Red Wings do to host a Winter Classic, the Wild are just happy they got anything at all.

Meanwhile back on the ice, the Wild are on the brink of disaster after so many expected them to improve on their playoff performance of last season.  They are dead last in the NHL's Central Division with a 20-20-6 mark at the All Star break.  That adds up to 46 points, meaning they're at least ten away from the last playoff spot in the decidedly tough Western Conference.

Much has been made of the goaltending situation, in which Niklas Backstrom and Darcy Kuemper somehow lost their ability to keep the puck out of their net, and to keep Minnesota in the game.  But there have been other factors:  A lineup depleted due to injuries, illness (one of several NHL teams with players having the mumps) and death (the fathers of Ryan Suter and Zach Parise, who were both hockey legends in their own right, passing away within months of each other).  Uninspired play, resulting in coach Mike Yeo going nuclear on his players during a practice session, causing rumors of a coaching change if things didn't improve.

Wild owner Craig Leipold has spent the equivalent of a small country's GNP to sign free agents with local connections such as Suter, Parise and Thomas Vanek.  Look where it's gotten Leipold so far.  The Wild still struggle to make the playoffs year after year, and they might not get that far this year..

They did get some goaltending help in the person of Devan Dubnyk, who they acquired from the Arizona Coyotes in exchange for a draft pick.  He won his first two games in a Wild uniform before reverting back to the form we've become accustomed to.  Granted, Dubnyk is a nice short term solution.  But they need a real goaltender, and that won't become available until the off-season.

So maybe the NHL had the right idea in scheduling the Minnesota Wild for a Stadium Series game.  It would be hard for NBC (or NBCSN) to justify showing off a team that's made so many headline-making moves off the ice, only to see them fizzle on it.  In the State of Hockey, they expect better than that.

Ohio State: THE National Champion

''Ohio State Buckeyes men's soccer athletic logo'' (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Ohio State University has won or shared college football's national championship five times (the last in 2002), whether it was done on the field or in the polls.  Monday the Buckeyes won their sixth, plucking the University of Oregon's duck feathers 42-20 at the inaugural College Football Playoff championship game in Arlington, Texas.

For Buckeyes coach Urban Meyer, this is his third title.  The first two came at the University of Florida, and the stress that went along with it nearly killed him.  So Meyer took a break and became an ESPN commentator before going back on the sidelines in his native Ohio.

The fact that OSU got this far is amazing considering that they struggled through the Big Ten conference schedule with two quarterbacks, both of whom ended up injured.  Then along came third-string quarterback Cardale Jones, and things seemed to fall into place. 

The Buckeyes rolled over Wisconsin in the Big Ten championship game.  Then they upset Alabama in the Sugar Bowl, which served as one of the CFP's semifinals.

Oregon, the Pac-12 champion, won the other semifinal at the Rose Bowl over Florida State.  Thus ended the controversial college career of Seminole QB Jameis Winston.

The Ducks, other than being known for their prolific offense led by Heisman Trophy-winning QB Marcus Mariota, are also known for making fashion statements with its (paid for by Nike) uniforms.  On this night, they wore gray over white.  But they made a different statement on the field by giving up four touchdowns and 246 yards to OSU running back Ezekiel Elliot, as well as committing a number of penalties and turnovers.

The generically-named College Football Playoff, which was designed to settle arguments rather than create new ones, was rather prescient in its inclusion of Ohio State, as it turned out.  The folks at Baylor and Texas Christian might not agree, but their Big 12 conference currently doesn't have a playoff.  So look for more teams to participate in the CFP in future years.

Just because the Buckeyes happened to be the team that won the national championship, this does not change the perception that the Big Ten is a considerably weaker conference than the SEC, which has been dominating college football for the last decade.  Call it a fluke, if you must.

So the good folks of Columbus, Ohio get to celebrate another national championship college football team.  Then come September, that team will be asked to do it again.  If they don't, then let the arguments begin once more.

Minnesota Football '14: Promise of a New Day

Florida Citrus Bowl in Orlando, Fla. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

As the calendar changes to 2015, the Minnesota Vikings and University of Minnesota Golden Gophers have ended their seasons on a more-or-less positive note after being in the headlines for the wrong reasons.

Gophers:  Sour Citrus Mars Season

The Gophers lost to Missouri in the Citrus Bowl at Orlando 33-17.  It wasn't a surprise that they lost another post-season game (they haven't won one since the 2004 Music City Bowl, and have dropped seven since), or that coach Jerry Kill has yet to win one (he's 0-5, and that includes his previous stop at Northern Illinois).  Bad decisions by Kill, five fumbles and the second-half domination by SEC-tested Missouri made sure of that.  It's just that it happened on New Year's Day, when it seemed the entire state of Minnesota (and a few other souls) were tuned in to ABC to witness something that hasn't happened in over 50 years.  It's kind of like watching the Vikings on Super Bowl Sunday, expecting a different result.

The Gophers finish at 8-5 (5-3 in the Big Ten Conference), with a much tougher schedule on tap in 2015.  With the usual comings and goings of players (Sophomore Maxx Williams, who scored a "Sportscenter"-worthy touchdown in the Citrus Bowl, is headed for the NFL), it's always a question of how Kill will mold what talent he's got to compete.  If the Gophers ever expect to be invited back to another of those big-deal bowl games, they'd have to play a lot better than they did in Orlando.  Or Nashville.  Or Houston.  Or Tempe.  Or . . .

Vikings:  No More Drama?

The Vikings completed their first full season at the college stadium that's named for a bank with a 7-9 record, good for third in the NFC North.  They defeated the last-place Chicago Bears 13-9 for their only division win of the year.  There would have been more victories had the Vikings held on to the lead late in some games.

They come away from the experience with Teddy Bridgewater as the undisputed Number One quarterback, leaving Matt Cassel (whose season-ending injury ushered in the Bridgewater Era much sooner than anyone anticipated) and Christian Ponder in the background and wondering about their futures.  The defense has improved to the point where no one misses Jared Allen (now with the Bears) any more.  But the offensive line left a lot to be desired.

Coach Mike Zimmer did well in his first season, considering all the challenges he faced.  Injuries.  No Adrian Peterson.  Cordarrelle Patterson seemingly checked out.  Mistakes made in play-calling, which cost the Vikings some games.  You know, the usual.

The major question going into next season, besides improvements on the offensive line, is what to do about Peterson.  He's due to come off his NFL suspension in April, and all signs point to him leaving the Vikings (and possibly football) because he's suddenly become a major PR liability.  But Zimmer and most of his players want Peterson back, if only to goose their record beyond seven wins.  With or without Adrian Peterson, the Vikings aren't ready for a playoff spot yet.  But they'll be a lot better off than they were before this season.

A Couple Other Things . . . 

• Minnesota Governor Mark Dayton recently let it be known that he's tired of having to get up early just to watch the Gopher football games, some of which started at 11 a.m. this past season.  So he wants a law that bans kickoffs before noon.  Doesn't the Governor know that the University of Minnesota doesn't control the start times for games, but ESPN and the Big Ten Network do?  Besides, in spite of their success this season, the Gophers aren't considered "elite" enough to warrant a better time slot against the likes of Ohio State or Wisconsin.  So forget the law, Governor, and start setting your alarm on Saturday mornings.
• Is anyone else as surprised as we are to see Ohio State and Oregon in the national college football championship game?  It means that, for a change, the Midwest and Pacific Northwest are the epicenters of the sport.  Not the Southeast.
• Our preliminary Super Bowl matchup:  New England vs. Seattle.