Whether adding or subtracting players, Wild GM Bill Guerin makes decisions with conviction

What struck you was how calm he looked, and how casual he sounded.

On July 13, 2021, Wild General Manager Bill Guerin walked into a meeting room at the team's headquarters in St. Paul and stood in front of a semicircle of reporters and team representatives.

Because he was standing, and because he was alone, and because reporters could call out questions from any angle at any time, the news conference felt unusually relaxed.

Guerin announced that the Wild would buy out the contracts of their two veteran stars, Zach Parise and Ryan Suter. Nine years after the Wild signed the two to dual 13-year, $98-million contracts to essentially save the franchise, the two were being treated as nuisances.

What was most notable about Guerin's delivery was that he could have been ordering a burger at a takeout window. He said what someone in his position probably should say, but he did not sound saddened by having to make the decision.

He didn't even sound worried.

Now we know why.

Even those of us who celebrated the decision after years of hearing of the duo's backroom lawyering couldn't have guaranteed that six months later the Wild would have the third-best record and second-best goal-differential in the Western Conference at the end of January.

At worst, Guerin's decision would weigh down the franchise until it could get past paying Parise and Suter.

At best, theoretically, the Wild would remain competitive while building a good young team.

What has happened instead is a testament to the value of sporting intangibles. With Parise and Suter out of the way, the Wild's best leaders and players have stepped forward.

Kirill Kaprizov has established himself as the team's top star. Marcus Foligno and Jared Spurgeon have established themselves as admirable leaders.

Probably just as important, Guerin and coach Dean Evason are free to make whatever decisions they want without worrying about pushback from Parise, or worrying about Suter running to owner Craig Leipold.

This is a far better team without Parise and Suter, and the Wild were reminded of that this weekend, when they completed a New York sweep by beating Parise's Islanders 4-3.

This season, Parise has played in 37 games, producing 12 points and a zero plus-minus rating.

Without Parise on the roster, there was plenty of room for Matt Boldy to make his debut. In nine games, he has produced nine points and a plus-8 rating.

Dumping Paris and Suter was addition by subtraction of division.

General managing in pro sports is difficult, because it requires seeing around corners. When deciding what to do with Parise and Suter, Guerin went to Google Maps. He took in the entire landscape, and made the right decision.

On July 13, Guerin said, "These are two guys who gave their heart and soul to this organization. But we have to make tough decisions and keep trying to turn the page, keep trying to get better and reach our ultimate goal and long-term goal of winning a Stanley Cup.''

As linguists say, you can ignore the part of any sentence that precedes a "but."

Guerin made this decision because it gave the Wild a far better chance of winning a Stanley Cup someday. What few of us could have guessed is that it could have worked out so well this quickly.

"Those years will be tough," Guerin said then of managing the salary cap for the three seasons following the duo's release.

Monday, the Wild announced they had signed forward Jordan Greenway to a three-year, $9 million deal. In a Zoom news conference on Monday afternoon, Guerin talked of having "character" and players who are "characters" in the locker room. He praised Greenway's progress and personality.

Two other relative bargains have emerged: Center Joel Eriksson Ek and winger Ryan Hartman.

Hartman signed a three-year, $5.1 million deal and is performing like a star. Eriksson Ek signed an eight-year, $42 million deal, an acknowledgment that for a franchise desperate for centers, Eriksson Ek's emergence has been vital.

Guerin was right about Parise and Suter. Just as important, he was right about players such as Hartman and Eriksson Ek, so it wouldn't be surprising if he wound up being right about Greenway.