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Minnesota Wild will benefit from hiring Scott Stevens

By Nathaniel Reeves

Mar 8, 2015; Newark, NJ, USA; New Jersey Devils captain of the 1995 Stanley Cup champion Scott Stevens (4) waves to the crowd before the game between the New Jersey Devils and the Philadelphia Flyers at Prudential Center. Mandatory Credit: Ed Mulholland-USA TODAY Sports
Mar 8, 2015; Newark, NJ, USA; New Jersey Devils captain of the 1995 Stanley Cup champion Scott Stevens (4) waves to the crowd before the game between the New Jersey Devils and the Philadelphia Flyers at Prudential Center. Mandatory Credit: Ed Mulholland-USA TODAY Sports /
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The Hall of Fame defenseman will join Bruce Boudreau’s staff with the Minnesota Wild.

Just a month after being hired as the new head coach of the Minnesota Wild, Bruce Boudreau is already making a positive impact on the organization.

Since starting his head coaching career in 2007, Boudreau has had great success in the regular season with the Washington Capitals and Anaheim Ducks, but was fired from both stops after failing to advance to a single Stanley Cup Final. Looking to make a culture change after an up-and-down season, the Wild scooped up Boudreau shortly after he was dismissed from Anaheim.

Boudreau has already made a few hires to an entirely new staff in Minnesota, His latest addition may be the most impressive, as the Wild announced that former NHL defenseman Scott Stevens would be Boudreau’s top assistant next year, per the Associated Press via ESPN.

Stevens spent 22 years in the NHL with the Capitals, St. Louis Blues and New Jersey Devils, becoming one of the most physical and respected defensemen the game has ever seen. The Hall of Famer racked up 430 points with a career +/- of 282 and helped New Jersey to three Stanley Cups.

Before taking a year off to serve as a television analyst, Stevens got some initial experience as an assistant coach with the Devils. As expected, the Wild’s move to hire Stevens has been met with overwhelmingly positive reactions so far.

Boudreau has done a great job making an initial impression on his new team, as players are already going to be familiar with Stevens and will respect him. As ferocious as Stevens was on the ice, players in New Jersey have said that his humility helped him be a great assistant coach.

After previous head coach Mike Yeo’s reign was filled with turmoil that included a major rift between veterans and younger players, leadership figures like Boudreau and Stevens will help a talented roster play more towards its potential.

Star winger Zach Parise already shared the bench with Stevens earlier in his career, and has indicated his excitement at the hiring. However, where Stevens will really help the Wild is on the blue line.

Stevens is expected to be in charge of the defense and penalty kill for the Wild next season. Given that Minnesota ranked 27th in the penalty kill, Stevens should only be able to help the team improve.

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With Ryan Suter leading the way, the unit certainly has the potential to be better than what we saw under Yeo. Stevens brings Hall of Fame credentials to the bench, which could have a major positive impact on young defensemen like Matt Dumba and Jonas Brodin.

Few players have more experience playing the game than Stevens, so Boudreau deserves credit for the home run hire so early in his tenure. In addition to the respect Stevens brings, he can help the Wild improve in the area where they need it most.

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