Mikael Granlund was one of the kids that players like Zach Parise and Ryan Suter pointed to as a difference maker in their decision to sign in Minnesota. At the time, Parise and Suter were coming to a Wild team that had a number of prospects ready to graduate to the NHL and Mikael Granlund was the cream of the crop.
It didn’t go as planned early on. Granlund was certainly a hell of a passer, but not a dazzling puck shooter. Now, he wasn’t pegged as a prolific shooter in Finland, but he certainly had, and has, the vision to make things happen on the ice.