Appreciate Bobby Brink For Who He Is

Image courtesy of Nick Wosika-Imagn Images By Tony Abbott - 58 minutes ago It's easy to get swept away in comparing Bobby Orr Brink to the players he replaced. As the sole fruit born from the withered trade tree involving former top prospect David Jiříček , Brink isn't excellent value for the first-, second-, third-, and fourth-round pick package the Minnesota Wild once surrendered. When you look at his role as a third-line offensive winger, Brink's goal-scoring chops pale in comparison to the 23 tucks Vladimir Tarasenko racked up the previous year. Brink scored the opening goal in Tuesday night's 2-1 overtime win against the Montreal Canadiens. It was just his second tally in 20 games, which isn't quite what Wild fans were hoping for. In Year 4 of his career, there was hope that Brink could build on his career-high 15 goals from last season. His start, combined with the 1.65 shots he's taken per game, suggests that 15 goals might be around his ceiling. Does that make Brink a flawed player? Sure, if that's how you want to put it. But a flawed player isn't necessarily a bad player, and even with the low goal output this year, it's time to declare that Brink is good, actually. With so much focus on what Brink isn't, let's finally turn to what he does well, starting with his playmaking. Brink has excellent vision, which he uses to take advantage of time and space along the boards to find shooters in dangerous positions. Even when those passes aren't converted into goals, they still put pressure on goaltenders and keep defenses on their heels. But of course, Brink has had his hands in more than a few scoring plays over these past 20 games. He's got eight assists, five of which are primary, a number that especially stands out when you account for his ice time. Among the 299 forwards with 200-plus minutes in all situations, Brink's 1.10 primary assists per hour ties for 58th in the NHL. Not too shabby, especially considering he's sitting above quality set-up men like Artemi Panarin (1.05), Mark Stone (1.02), and Matt Boldy (0.98). Brink's acquisition struck many Wild fans as curious, considering Bill Guerin 's reputation for coveting big, physical forwards. It's true that Guerin has a soft spot for the Michael McCarrons of the world, but there's room for the shorties on his team too. Kirill Kaprizov is listed at 5-foot-10, Jared Spurgeon at 5-foot-9, and Mats Zuccarello is listed at 5-foot-8 -- exactly Brink's height. Guerin will value a small player, on one condition. "I don't love soft skill," Guerin said in April 2025 . "Kirill, to me, is... not soft skill at all. He is a high-compete, high-skill guy. Like [Mats] Zuccarello -- high-compete, high-skill." Brink might not be a wrecking ball like McCarron, Marcus Foligno , or Yakov Trenin , but he's not afraid to play the body, either. He's put himself on the line with 13 blocked shots this year, the second-highest rate on the team among Wild forwards. His feistiness also lends itself to strong two-way play. Minnesota's loaded-as-hell top line and McCarron are the only Wild forwards who can claim a better 5-on-5 expected goals share than Brink's 56.8%. Once you divorce Brink from Jiříček in your mind, you'll find that Brink is everything you want in a third-liner. He's on track to score 40 points this season despite getting fewer than 14 minutes a night, which isn't easy. Brink is rock-solid on his own end and plays hard. He has special teams utility, being an asset to the Wild's second-unit power play. That's exactly the kind of depth the Wild need in their middle-six. Brink may not be a 20-goal scorer, and the circumstances that brought him here aren't a shining example of asset management. But that's not Brink's fault, nor is it anything he should be concerned with. What matters is if Brink is helping the Wild win, and he's more than holding up his end of the bargain. By Tony Abbott Think you could write a story like this? Hockey Wilderness wants you to develop your voice, find an audience, and we'll pay you to do it. Just fill out this form . minnesota wild nhl bobby brink