Now that the Minnesota Wild training camp for the 2024-25 season has gotten underway, we’ve been able to see what type of coach John Hynes is when he’s able to train with his team without the added pressure of a started season and also trying to work with a team who’s previous coach was relieved of his duties. That can be an awkward situation, especially if the prior coach was well-liked by his roster. However, it’s part of the job, and Hynes took it in stride.
He gave the team the respect they deserved and worked hard to earn their trust before making any big changes. Some may argue that everyone from the coach to the players is a professional and they have to work together, which is true, but a lot of respect has to go both ways for it to work cohesively. So, by Hynes observing the team first and learning the ins and outs, he showed he was willing to put in as much effort as the players do.
It may be just the start of a very long season filled with early morning practices and late night games, but we’ve gotten a glimpse at what this team can do as well as their coach. In this article, we’ll take a closer look at how Hynes has taken the reins and already demanded results before their first game for points. We’ll start with his intensity and move on from there.
Hynes' High-Intensity Approach
The first thing someone will notice when attending Wild training camp is the intensity level Hynes runs it with. Practice does not feel relaxed; it’s all go, go, go, as an NHL practice should be. The drills he runs also don’t focus on one area, it’s multilayered to ensure they’re working every area they can because a game never goes to plan.
Even if players know where they’re slotting in during the regular season, Hynes expects them to act like their spot is on the line. He wants the best out of them in every practice and wants to see the intensity come out in their practice so it translates to gameplay, especially their special teams. In his post-practice press conference, he talked about how they have a specific mindset that everyone is on the same page about.
“It’s something that we’ve talked with the players about, but it’s also what you emphasize gets done, so it’s understanding what we want to implement; we want a really fit and conditioned team, so we’re working on playing a lot of hockey drills that require the second and third effort deep, so a lot of the things we’re doing require those situations. There’s lots of times too where they think they’re done with the drill, and then there’s something else they have to do so I think it’s that mental and physical conditioning…,” Hynes said.
That includes physicality, just because these guys are teammates doesn’t mean they can’t be physical. Of course no one wants injuries so they need to be careful but they have to be ready for gameplay and also know how to take a hit. These guys train all summer long but typically that doesn’t include physical play so getting some of that in practice will help when it comes to the regular season.
Attention to Detail and Clear Communication
Something that stands out about Hynes immediately is his attention to detail and his willingness to explain everything. Many coaches aren’t big speakers and usually stick to one-to-two-word answers or repeat the same answers, but Hynes is different. He takes the time to explain in detail everything he wants to see and even what they are trying to accomplish during a drill.
On or off the ice, he’s the same way, he takes his time to explain what he wants to see and when running drills he’s not afraid to stop in the middle if he’s not seeing what he wants. Hynes also doesn’t just show the drill and say go, he also details why it’s important to run the drill and what it’s going to help so the players understand what they’re doing and why.
It was also mentioned that Jake Middleton brought up to the media a stat about how rough their puck battles on the penalty kill were last season, which Hynes told him about. Hynes explained how they were working on multiple areas of that to fix it.
“Yeah, it’s a combination; it’s really trying to do a good job of denying entry, forcing the puck; when it does get in there now we have to be more tenacious, harder in the battles, but we’re also giving them structure of where you can get numbers to the battle when we get in those battles, it’s also positioning, who’s where, who takes what wall, who does what and then the natural competitiveness has to take over, so it’s really the combination,” said Hynes.
Embracing Change and Admitting Mistakes
Something that has left an impression since Hynes joined the team last season is he’s not afraid to make changes, and he’s not afraid to admit when the coaching staff has made a mistake, and he admitted that during camp as well. Specifically, he mentioned when he took over the team how they did try to change things, but there was only so much they could do now that he’s had a training camp; he’s making the changes he needs to make without points being on the line.
“So, when you have your opportunity here, we just got back to back days basically over an hour on penalty kill for two days now, you’re implementing that foundation, now you build that foundation, okay now let’s do it, work on this scenario, that scenario, here’s a stick, here’s that. Then we get game situations, then we probably pp/pk scrimmage, then they get another exhibition game then you have the opportunity to practice. Some of it is just, I think, habits and us trying to do a good job of making time in the training camp to have the guys do the reps,..make mistakes but do it right. That’s usually how you get it implemented over the course of two and a half weeks,” said Hynes
New Coach, New Approach
While there weren’t a lot of changes made during the offseason, they did bring in a new coach, Jack Capuano. He’s been running some of the drills in training camp and Hynes was asked about what Capuano brings to the table.
“He’s got a lot of experience, he’s run power plays, he’s run penalty kills, he’s been a head coach, he’s worked on seven different teams, but he’s a real, very tactical type of guy. So we’ve adjusted our forecheck from last year, we’ve adjusted the end zone from last year, and also, I think, the mindset, the details in it, he’s very strong, he and Patty (King) are going to work in tandem, so Patty will kind of front up the d zone part of it that we’ve all worked together, we’re all doing this coaching…,” said Hynes about Capuano and that Capuano is running some drills but it’s an all together effort.
A Look Ahead
After seeing these first few days of the Wild’s training camp, it’s clear Hynes knows what he’s doing. He runs the practices with high intensity and lots of skating to make the team as prepared as possible for the regular season. Hopefully, all of this works out, and the team finds their way back to the postseason.
