Different teams, different crossroads

The trade deadline, fast approaching in Major League Baseball, is often about patching up holes as teams make runs at the playoffs, while lesser teams try to get lucky with a prospect or draft pick, rather than letting their better players go. In the summer, the teams are interested in retooling for the long haul.

This is where the biggest trades tend to happen, when franchise cornerstones are moved. There haven't been too many big moves this off-season, given how so many teams are using the Vegas Golden Knights to alleviate salary cap issues, but I suspect that will change in the next few weeks.

The Wild have a stated goal of getting at least one more NHL quality pivot after they flamed out, unable to score nearly as much as they needed against the St. Louis Blues and Brian Elliott. The Wild are very nearly at the talent crest of their core, and after extending Nino Niederreiter and Mikael Granlund, would do well to ensure that whatever piece they do lock up will be one that will help them win in the near term.

The Wild have already attempted to free up some space under the cap, and have added physical wingers in Tyler Ennis and Marcus Foligno, but they would do well to explore trades with teams that are still up and coming. With a deep, young defensive unit, dealing a defensemen in order to add a center would seem like a good investment.

The Toronto Maple Leafs are one of those up and coming teams, and they have the talented James van Riemsdyk entering the final year of a contract on a team with a young core that is still a couple of years away. This is a team that could use a more stable presence on the blue line in support of all the firepower at the forward positions. Van Riemsdyk spends his offseasons in Minnesota, and would undoubtedly appreciate a move to the Wild, if one came about, and the Leafs, lkely to lose him anyway, would appreciate some sort of return, especially the type that the Wild could offer.

These are two teams, the Wild and Maple Leafs, that are reaching a critical juncture. The Wild need to get over the top, while the Maple Leafs need to tool up to continue their momentum as the team develops and gets better. Both may pair up at some point in the off-season, though even if a move for 30 goal scorer van Riemsdyk doesn't happen, you can be sure both teams are working hard to achieve the goals that such a move would achieve.

Following the Compass is getting going for 2017

This year's Following the Compass games, for those that don't remember, are tightly packed on the calendar, as well as on the map. I'm only going to attend one, but the first is tomorrow in the Bronx. For the first time, the game will be an MLS game, and it will be the home opener for NYCFC against DC United. It's only the second game of the season, so there isn't much tape on either team. DC drew 0-0 with Sporting Kansas City in their first match of the year while NYCFC lost 1-0 to Orlando. DC is usually a strong contender, with a roster based on MLS veterans, while NYCFC likes their veterans of European leagues, and relies on big names like David Villa and Andrea Pirlo to hold up their end of the bargain.
The other game on our calendar is a hockey game on April 3rd. That will be between the Toronto Maple Leafs and Buffalo Sabres, the first NHL game that Following the Compass has drafted. I will, in fact, be going to Buffalo for the game at the First Niagara Center. Each team has an exciting stable of young players. The Maple Leafs are coming together and appear to be a playoff team, with players like Auston Matthews, William Nylander and Mitchell Marner excelling. They have gone all in on the season, acquiring Brian Boyle for the stretch run. The Sabres haven't quite jelled like their rivals from Toronto. They made big moves in free agency and on the trade market anticipating a turn to respectability, with Kyle Okposo and trading for Evander Kane to play with top choice Jack Eichel.
This is going to be a fun game, because the rivalry between the two teams is so thick, and hockey games are, unquestionably, the best example of games that you need to watch in person.
I will be chronicling my experience at Barry Melrose Rocks when I head out to western New York. I will be tweeting along with NYCFC and DC United tomorrow afternoon, so please follow me @RhinoandCompass.