Listening to Minnesota Wild GM Chuck Fletcher at the 2011 NHL draft, one could hear the seeds of the Dany Heatley trade taking root. Maybe not for the player himself, but for a player with his offensive skills.
He wouldn't confirm if he discussed Heatley with the San Jose Sharks when the Wild traded defenseman Brent Burns for Devin Setoguchi, top prospect Charlie Coyle and a first-round pick. But while discussing his desire to stockpile young talent, it was clear Fletcher wanted to add something else: snipers.
"I believe we were the worst shooting team in the league last year," he said at the draft. "We didn't shoot the puck a whole bunch, and when we did shoot it, we didn't shoot it particularly well."
He's half right. The Wild were last in the NHL in shots on goal with 2,148, 40 shots behind the Edmonton Oilers. They did have a 9.5 percent shooting percentage, which was eighth in the NHL. But that only resulted in 203 goals, 26th in the NHL.
The mantra from Fletcher after the Setoguchi trade: "We needed to add talent."
Say what you will about Dany Heatley — and lord knows there's enough to say — but he's still an elite talent on the offensive end, in the eyes of the Wild.
"He's still one of the better scorers in the league," said Fletcher during a media call on Monday. "I think his track record speaks for itself. He's a proven goal-scorer, and a player we expect to score goals for us next year and going forward."
Last season, Heatley managed 217 shots and a 12.0 shooting percentage, hampered by a broken hand. In 2009-10 with the Sharks, he led the team with 280 shots on goal and had a 13.9 shooting percentage in scoring 39 goals.
Havlat, in contrast, is more of a playmaker. True, he had 229 shots in 2010-11 with a shooting percentage of 9.6 in scoring 22 goals. But in the previous season, he had 169 shots and a 10.7 shooting percentage. Heatley's shots per game that year was 3.4; Havlat's was 2.3.
"Our lack of goal-scoring is well-documented. Our inability or unwillingness to shoot the puck is well-documented. We wanted to change the mindset of our forward group," said Fletcher.
"Some of our better offensive players were probably players who prefer to pass than shoot," Fletcher said. "For us to compete and do a better job next year, we felt we needed to score more goals."
Fletcher said the Wild have two great set-up men at center: Mikko Koivu and Pierre-Marc Bouchard; the latter having posted a 50-assist season and the former having notched seasons of 45, 49 and 47 assists in his last three years.
"I'm going to go wherever they put me. Mikko's one of the best centermen in the game today," said Heatley.
When it comes to Heatley, the questions never end inside the rink. He's a controversial figure, both in being on his fourth team (not commonplace for an NHL star at his age) and for the perception that he's a problem in the locker room.
"Dany's a quality person and someone that'll fit well in our room," Fletcher protested.
"Some hockey players fit into some teams better than others."
That's the key with Heatley and the Wild. He's a sniper they lacked, an offensive star they haven't had since Marian Gaborik bolted for the Rangers. Provided he spends the summer working on his skating — something the Sharks were reportedly critical of in his postseason discussions with coaches and management — and heals up, he's the prototypical sniper Fletcher wanted to add.
But from an emotional standpoint, Minnesota isn't in the same pressure cooker San Jose is when it comes to challenging for a Cup.
Make no mistake: The fact that Martin Havlat has performed in previous postseasons at a level Heatley did not in San Jose was a driving force behind Sharks GM Doug Wilson pursuing this move, and something even Heatley acknowledges led to his departure.
"When I was traded there, we were all brought in to win. We had a lot of salary tied up into three forwards, and we didn't get the job done those two years. From that aspect, I knew going in what the situation was. I knew this was a possibility and it happened," he said.
Heatley came to San Jose as a player who could bring a Stanley Cup to the franchise for the first time. It didn't happen. He comes to Minnesota with different expectations: He doesn't have to turn the Wild into Cup contenders, he has to make them a playoff team. He doesn't have to win the Conn Smythe, he needs to find his offensive game and challenge for the Richard Trophy.
Then, gradually, Dany Heatley will have another opportunity to perform in the playoffs in a way he simply didn't in San Jose.
"You always want another opportunity to prove people wrong," he said.