The Wild are 31st in goals conceded per game this season (3.95), ahead of only the San Jose Sharks (4.14), and are last in penalties converted (66.7) . They sit in seventh place in the Central Division, two points ahead of the last-place Chicago Blackhawks.
“Seven in a row is unacceptable, especially with this team,” Wild forward Pat Maroon said after Sunday’s loss. “We should be [angered] right now and we should be [angered] when we play the next game.
“We have to understand what this is about. We’re losing points by the bag.”
Hynes, 48, was fired by the Nashville Predators on May 30 and replaced by Andrew Brunette the next day.
The Predators failed to qualify for the Stanley Cup Playoffs last season for the first time since 2013-14 (42-32-8) when they trailed the Winnipeg Jets by three points to clinch the Western Conference’s second wild card. They had qualified for eight straight seasons and reached the 2017 Stanley Cup Final, a loss to the Pittsburgh Penguins in six games.
“Like Billy said, we have a shared history,” Hynes said. “And I think that’s important. … I think when you look at the squad you can see the quality of the players. Not just their talent on the ice, but in my opinion the character of the players. There are some great young players. “There are huge benefits ahead. I think there’s a great group of veterans. The team leadership is excellent. And I know firsthand that I have the opportunity to coach against this team for several years, just the identity that they can play with, the talent on the team, the character of the team. It’s really exciting.
Hynes led Nashville to the playoffs in his first three seasons and had a record of 134-95-18 after replacing Peter Laviolette on January 7, 2020. He was fired as coach of the New Jersey Devils on December 3, 2019, one season after leading them to the playoffs for the first time since 2011–12.
He has a 284-254-63 record in 601 regular season games and a 4-15 record in 19 playoff games.
“There are small changes here and there. But I think I know this team really well,” Guerin said. “I know these players really well. Their buy-in level is also very high. I think they’ll listen to John straight away and then, like I said, it’s hard because it carries a difficult message, a difficult decision. It’s a new chapter.
Evason, 59, has posted a 147-77-26 record in five seasons since replacing Bruce Boudreau on Feb. 14, 2020. He went 8-15 in the Stanley Cup Playoffs, qualifying for each of his four previous seasons, but Minnesota never got past the first round. On November 12th, the Wild lost 8-3 at home to the Dallas Stars, conceding five power play goals and two shorthanded goals.
Evason is the second coach fired this season. The Edmonton Oilers replaced Jay Woodcroft with Kris Knoblauch on November 12th.
NHL.com independent correspondent Jessi Pierce contributed to this report