Brodziak still waiting to find out future
--We'll know shortly whether center Kyle Brodziak will be getting a rather large payday or an invitation to test the free-agent market come July 1. The team and Brodziak's agent are in preliminary talks about a contract extension. Still, with his future uncertain, but certainly rather bright -- at least money-wise -- Brodziak isn't having a fun time waiting to find out what's next. "I hate it," he said. "That's why I'm trying not to think about it. I've never had to deal with this before, so I don't really like it. I hate the fact of having to think about different scenarios and things like that. It's not really fun for me."
The Wild will play in St. Louis this weekend, which also happens to be the home base for Allain Roy, Brodziak's agent. So there is a chance Roy and Wild GM Chuck Fletcher will have face-to-face talks, and that those talks could accelerate the process. The big date, of course, is Feb. 27, which is the trade deadline. There is a very good chance that, if Brodziak isn't signed to an extension, he would be traded to a team that needs a good two-way center.
Brodziak hopes it doesn't get to that point. "I still love it here," he said. "I hope something can get done."
It appears the Wild would also like to extend the contract of defenseman Clayton Stoner. But, with the Wild plummeting down the Western Conference standings, it looks like the team will likely part with its other free agents, including veteran defensemen Greg Zanon and Mike Lundin and goalie Josh Harding.
--On Monday, Justin Fontaine, a highly regarded Wild prospect playing for Houston of the AHL, was suspended for two games following an offensive tweet he wrote about the Grammys. A number of current and former Houston Aeros players on the Wild roster felt for Fontaine. "It's a tough lesson for a great kid," Warren Peters said. "What's lost in all this is the person that Justin Fontaine is. It's his first year pro and he does it the right way. He appreciates everyday coming to the rink and treats it with a ton of respect."
--Matt Cullen moved Tuesday. Hoping to break Cullen out of a scoring slump, Cullen was moved from center to wing on a line with Kyle Brodziak and Nick Johnson. "I think Cully's been playing well here," Wild coach Mike Yeo said. "The numbers haven't been there for him, but he's doing a lot of good things. As much as anything else, it's about surrounding him with some guys who are capable of helping him take advantage of his skill." It didn't work Tuesday, as the Brodziak-Cullen-Johnson line was shut out.
QUOTE TO NOTE
"We're making goalies look good, I think. We can't get any worse goal-scoring wise. We're not getting any bounces at all. We've got to keep shooting the puck, keep generating chances. Eventually they're going to go in." -- Wild RW Dany Heatley.
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