Ache #21: Sergei Zholtok

This isn't a story of a heartbreaking loss on the ice. This is the story of a heartbreaking loss off the ice.

Sergei Zholtok was a fan-favorite with the Minnesota Wild from 2001-04. Although he wasn't a member of the inaugural team in 2000, his impact was felt during the early days of the franchise.

Zholtok was drafted 55th overall by the Boston Bruins in the 1992 NHL Entry Draft. He appeared in 25 games over two seasons with the Bruins before being picked up by Ottawa. He had his breakout season with the Montreal Canadians in 1999-00, scoring 26 goals. He was traded to Edmonton in December 2000 during a down year in which he scored five goals in 69 games between Montreal and Edmonton.

With his value at a low point, he was acquired by the Minnesota Wild for just a 7th round draft choice. The move gave Zholtok increased playing time on the second-year franchise, including playing the point on the Wild's first power play unit.

Zholton averaged just over 16 minutes of ice time with the Wild during his three season with the Wild with 48 goals and 62 assists in 210 career games with Minnesota. He shared the "C" with Brad Bombadir and Matt Johnson during the 2002-03 season in which Wild broke out, won 43 games and made the playoffs for the first time in franchise history.

He was a key contributor as the club made a run to the Western Conference Finals, including recording the assist on Andrew Brunette's legendary OT Game 7 goal against Colorado. Zholtok had 13 points in 18 playoff games that year.

Zholtok became the first Latvian to captain an NHL club

He was traded to Nashville along with Bombadir for draft picks in March 2004. He appeared in 11 regular season games and six playoff games for the Predators.

Throughout his career, Zoltoks had a weird medical history. Zholtok was sent to a St. Paul Hospital after he hyperventilated during a game. After a similar incident in 2003, he was diagnosed at Mayo Clinic with a heart arrhythmia but was cleared to play.

Friend and former Wild teammate Darby Hendrickson told the Pioneer Press in 2004 that Zholtok wouldn't have kept playing if he know is health was at risk. 

With the NHL lockout in 2004-05, Zholtok elected to play in his native Latvia and signed with Riga 2000 (Latvia). He convinced Hendrickson to join him on the team in Latvia. 

On November 3, 2004, Zholtok left a game with five minutes remaining and collapsed gasping for air in the hallway.

Paramedics performed cardiopulmonary resucitation. They attempted to shock Zholtok's heart. Hendrickson saw what was going on and called Wild physician Sheldon Burns, who was familiary with Zholtok's medical history and joined Zholtok as he laid on the floor.

But nothing could be done.

"As difficult as it was, I'm glad I was there. I know he would have wanted me there. I know he would have wanted his father there. He's a guy I loved. I don't relive my final moments with him. I relive the unbelievable moments I shared with him." -Darby Hendrickson

An autopsy determined cause of death was heart failure.

The hockey world mourned the loss of Zholtok. During a game against Minnesota and Nashville, he was honored at center ice in front of a sell-out, misty-eyed Xcel Energy Center. 

Sergei's 16-year-old son, Edgar, is comforted by Wild Captain

Filp Kuba while his father is being honored in 2005

Ache #20: Thaddeus Young

In 2014, the Timberwolves were ready to move on from All Star Kevin Love. They worked out a three-team trade with the Cleveland Cavaliers and Philadelphia 76ers.

In the deal, Cleveland got Kevin Love from Minnesota. Philadelphia got a future first-round pick from Cleveland and Luc Mbah a Moute and Alexey Shved from Minnesota.

The Wolves acquired Andrew Wiggins and Anthony Bennett from Cleveland and Thaddeus Young from Philadelphia.

The Wolves also drafted Zach LaVine with the 13th overall

pick in the 2014 NBA Draft

(LaVine, Wiggins, Bennett, Young)

With Bennett, LaVine, Wiggins all under 20 years old, adding the veteran leadership of Thaddeus Young (a seven-year NBA vet at age 26). Add in other young pieces like Gorgui Dieng, Shabazz Muhammad, a couple vets like Kevin Martin, Corey Brewer, Ricky Rubio and Mo Williams and the return of Flip Saunders to the Wolves bench as Head Coach and you have a foundation for the future.

If the Wolves were going to win out of the gate, they would have to rely heavily on Thad Young.  The 12th overall pick in the 2007 NBA Draft had a career year in Philadelphia in 2013-14, averaging nearly 18 points per game while setting career highs in points, steals, assists, three-pointers and games started. He could score from both inside the arc and from beyond the perimeter. 

Young's biggest strength was his athletic ability. He was excellent in transition. He was a solid defender too. He averaged a career-high two steals per game (third in the NBA) in 2013-14. Without any proven scorers on the team, Flip Saunders hoped that Young and Rubio would click on the court.

The Wolves started the season 2-2, with their two loses coming by a total of five points. It looked like the Wolves rebuild with their young talent was going to come faster than expected. But the Wolves would lose 26 of their next 29 games.

Young was very streaky over his first 48 games, he could poor in upwards of 25 points per game, or he would leave the stat sheet blank. Flip saw what he needed to over the first 48 games. While Flip wanted to keep Young and the core together, he had the opportunity to bring one of his proven leaders, one of Minnesota's basketball legends back home.

On February 19th, less than six months after being traded to Minnesota, Young was traded to the Brooklyn Nets for Kevin Garnett.

"This is the perfect situation...the talent here is endless"
-Kevin Garnett

Young averaged 14 points and five rebounds a game for the Wolves while starting all 48 games he appeared in.

With Brooklyn, Young eventually cracked the staring lineup, starting 20 of 28 games with the Nets. Brooklyn was 21-31 without Young, but finished the season 17-13 without him. At 38-44 and in the weak Eastern Conference, the Nets snuck into the playoffs as the 8 seed and took top-seeded Atlanta to six games in the opening round.

Young was traded to the Indiana Pacers in July 2016, where he has re-established himself as a starter in the NBA and helped lead Indiana to back-to-back playoff appearances in 2016-17 and 2017-18.

Ache #19: Gretzky, Kurri and the 1984 Conference Finals

In 1984, Wayne Gretzky was on his way to becoming "the great one". In his first four seasons in the NHL, the Hall of Fame center had scored 269 goals and tallied 709 points in 319 career games. He had won four consecutive Hart Memorial Trophies (given to the league's most valuable player), three consecutive Art Ross trophies (given to the league's top scorer) and two consecutive Lester Pearson awards (given to the most outstanding player voted on by the NHL)

The one thing he hadn't been able to do was hoist the cup.

Edmonton was swept by Philadelphia in the first round Gretzky's rookie year in 1979-80. In 1980-81, they swept Vancouver in the first round before losing in six games to the New York Islanders, who were in the middle of their run of four straight championships. In 1981-82, they were upset by a 24-win LA Kings team in five games. In 1982-83, they finally reached the Stanley Cup Finals before being swept by the Islanders for their fourth straight Stanley Cup.

But this isn't a blog about Edmonton. This is a blog about Minnesota.

In the 1983-84 season, the North Stars won their second Norris Division championship in three years.
At 39-31-10 (88 points), the North Stars were the only division winner not to win at last 49 games and have fewer than 100 points.

In fact, eight other franchises (Edmonton, Boston, Buffalo, Quebec, NY Islanders, Washington, Philadelphia, NY Rangers) had more points than the North Stars.

If Brian Bellows and the 1983-84 North Stars

had played in the Patrick Division, they would have 

finished in fifth place.

During their Stanley Cup Finals run in 1981, the North Stars were an underdog in almost every series as well. Brian Bellows, Neal Broten and Dino Cicerelli were up for the challenge.

In the first round of the playoffs, the North Stars drew rival Chicago. After losing to the New York Islanders in the 1980-81 Stanley Cup Finals, the Black Hawks had eliminated Minnesota the past two seasons.

The 68-point Black Hawks won Game One in Bloomington 3-1. In Game Two, the North Stars needed some late-game heroics. Tied 3-3 after the second period, Al MacAdam and Willi Plett each scored to give Minnesota a 5-3 lead. A Denis Savard goal trimmed the lead to 5-4 before Neal Brotten scored to make it 6-4. A late Darryl Sutter goal made it a one goal game before Minnesota's defense locked down to give the North Stars a 6-5 Game Two win.

Game Three at Chicago Stadium went to Minnesota 4-1 to give the North Stars a 2-1 series lead. Game Four saw Minnesota lose a 3-2 midway through the third period to lose 4-3.

The North Stars never trailed in the decisive Game Five at the Met Center, winning 4-1 to take the series.

The semi-final round matched the North Stars up against the St. Louis Blues, who had defeated the Detroit Red Wings in four games. The two teams split the first four games of the series. In Game 5, the North Stars shut the Blues out 6-0. St. Louis responded in Game Six by shutting Minnesota out 4-0. A decisive Game Seven was played at the Met Center, and was tied at the end of regulation. A Steve Payne goal gave Minnesota the series win in overtime and a date with the Edmonton Oilers in the Conference Finals.

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Steve Payne

After going 2-0 in elimination games, the North Stars were pretty confident into their tough match up against Edmonton. They'd need more than confidence against a team that featured eight 20+ goal scorers (Gretzky had 87 by himself) and six future Hall of Famers (Anderson, Fuhr, Gretzky, Kurri, Messier, Coffey).

The series wasn't even close. Edmonton outscored Minnesota 22-10 in the four game sweep. Five of Minnesota's goals came in an 8-5 Game Three loss with Andy Moog in net.

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Jari Kurri (above) scored as many goals (5) as
G Grant Fuhr allowed (5) against Minnesota

The Oilers would dethrone the New York Islanders in the Stanley Cup finals, winning their first of five Stanley Cups in the 1980s.

And, just like in 1980-81, the North Stars were once again a footnote of one of the greatest dynasties in NHL history.

Ache #18: Tom Lehman and the 1995 US Open

Minnesota fans have a special place in their hearts for home-grown talent. We love the "One of Us" stories.

Pro golfer Tom Lehman was born in Austin, MN and moved up north to Alexandria at a young age. He golfed collegiality at the University of Minnesota and went pro in 1982.

Lehman, at age 36 in 1995, was still looking for his first Major tournament win. He finished as the runner-up at the 1994 Masters Tournament behind Jose Maria Olazabal. 

Lehman was tied atop the leader board with Greg Norman at the 1995 US Open at Shinnecock Hills (NY) after three rounds after firing a third-round 67.

Greg Norman was also looking for his first career

US Open Championship in 1995

Norman was sitting -5 after Day Two of the event, but a +4 on Day Three brought him to -1 for the tournament, tied with Lehman and one shot ahead of Phil Mickelson and Bob Tway.

Corey Pavin, Nick Price, Steve Stricker, Scott Verplank and Ian Woosnam were all tied for fifth place a +2.

Norman and Lehman both par'd Hole One, but a Norman bogey on Two and a Lehman birdie on Three game Lehman a two stroke lead. Norman played Par Golf through Hole 12. Meanwhile, Lehman bogey'd Four, Ten and Eleven and Double Bogey'd Seven to fall two shots back.

Corey Pavin, who started the day at +2, was now tied with Lehman for second place and two shots behind Norman for the lead.

Pavin and Lehman each shot a birdie on Twelve, and Norman bogey'd the hole to tie the group at +1.

Hole 13 resulted in pars for Pavin and Lehman and another bogey for Norman to move him one shot back.

The group of three each par'd Fourteen. Pavin and Norman recorded birdies on Fifteen, while Lehman shot par.

With three holes left, Corey Pavin had a one shot lead at even par.

Lehman's drive on the Par 5 16th Hole ended in the rough. Lehman had to aim left and play a fade or aim right and hook it back toward the short grass. He chose the hook, only it didn't hook. He then had to chip out of the rough onto the fairway. He later missed a five-foot bogey putt. The double bogey on the hole to move to +3. Norman would bogey Seventeen to move to +2.

Pavin, meanwhile, was still E thru 17 before his second shot from the fairway on Hole 18:

Pavin later described this fairway shot as 

"the best shot of my life"

Pavin would par the hole to win his first Major. Norman finished +2, and Lehman finished +3 after having a two shot lead over Pavin after nine holes.

The 1995 US Open Champion, Corey Pavin

Norman, who was 5 under after 36 holes, was +7 over his last two rounds. He went 32 consecutive holes without a birdie.

For Lehman, numerous missed opportunities with two double bogeys on the final day, unable to overtake a plummeting Norman, yet unable to hold off a surging Pavin.

Ache #17: Twins release David Ortiz

There are very few full time DH's worthy of a Hall of Fame nod. Paul Molitor (3,319 hits), Frank Thomas (521 HR) and Jim Thome (612 HR) are in. Edgar Martinez (2x Batting Champion, 5x Silver Slugger, .312 career average) and Tony Oliva (3x Batting Champion) will likely get in. Then there's a pretty significant drop-off to guys like Brian Downing, Harold Raines, Chili Davis, Don Baylor, Mike Sweeney and Hal McRae.

And somewhere in near the top of all-time great DH's is David Ortiz.

Fans remember David Ortiz (AKA Big Papi) for his clutch hits in the playoffs for the Red Sox and his towering home runs out of Fenway Park.

Ortiz hit .290 with 483 home runs and 1530 RBI over a 14 year career in Boston. He was a 10 time  All Star, and finished in the Top-5 in AL MVP voting four times in four seasons. He helped end the Red Sox 86 year World Series Championship drought in 2004. And, for good measure, led them to championships in 2007 and 2013.

He is the all-time leader in home runs (485), RBI (1,569) and hits (2,192) by a DH. His career batting average in the World Series is .455.

And once upon a time, he was a Minnesota Twin.

And they released him. Flat out cut him.

It was 2002. The Twins had just made the playoffs for the first time since winning the World Series in 1991. Ron Gardenhire had taken over managerial duties after Tom Kelly stepped down after the 2001 season and had inherited a lot of strong, young talent. Guys like Torii Hunter, AJ Pierzinski, Doug Mientkeiwicz, Corey Koskie, and Jacque Jones. These guys had come up through the minors together and would help lead the Twins to back-to-back-to-back AL Central titles in the early 2000s.

Veteran pitcher Rick Reed won 15 games for the

Twins in 2002

The Twins had acquired Ortiz via trade from the Seattle Mariners in 1996, while Tom Kelly was still manager. He got his call-up to the Twins in September 1997 after batting .317 with 31 home runs and 124 RBI combined in the minors (High A, AA, AAA).

As odd as it would seem, Ortiz's bat did not fit TK's baseball philosophy or "The Twins Way". Kelly preferred small-ball tactics and solid defense in his lineup, two things that Ortiz needed to improve on.

After getting his feet wet in the bigs in 1997, Ortiz had his eyes set on the starting first baseman job out of Spring Training in 1998. But, a fractured wrist sent him to the DL and the job went to future Gold Glove winner Doug Mientkiewicz. Ortiz was limited to 10 games that season.

Tom Kelly (and the Twins) preferred Doug Mientkiewicz's

solid glove at first over Ortiz's bat

In 1999, he was the everyday designated hitter, appearing in 130 games. He hit a respectable .282, but with only 10 home runs...due in large part to The Twins Way: make plays in the field, don't give away scoring chances with dumb base running or consistently failing to advance base runners, and slapping outside pitches to the opposite field.

The Twins Way attributed to Ortiz's light hitting and lack of power during his Twins years: a .266 average with 58 home runs over six seasons. Needless to say, Ortiz wasn't a fan of Tom Kelly's strategy. In an interview with Tom Power of the Pioneer Press in 2004, Ortiz said "I'd take a big swing and (Kelly) would be screaming at me: 'hey, hey, hey, what are you doing?' Are you kidding me? You want me to swing like a little girl? I'll swing like a little girl."

Ortiz's best season as a Twin was 2002...a breakout year for the Twins. Despite battle knee injuries and a slow start, Ortiz hit 20 home runs and knocked in 75 runs for the 2002 AL Central Champion Minnesota Twins. In the nine playoff games for the Twins (3-2 series win vs Oakland in the ALDS and a 4-1 series loss vs Anaheim in the ALCS), had 8 hits in 29 at bats (.275) with only 4 RBI and zero home runs.

Ortiz was eligible for arbitration following that season. The Twins could either pay him 1.5 million dollars, or release him.

Remember, but this time, Kelly was no longer the manager. Ron Gardenhire had taken the reigns prior to 2002, but Gardy had been a coach under Kelly since 1991 and the "Twins Way" had been instilled in him, as well as GM Terry Ryan who was the ultimate decision maker.

"Obviously, it's a situation that I watched and I've observed and I see what he's done and I see what he's done and I see what he's meant to the Boston Red Sox. Ok, I screwed it up."
-Twins GM Terry Ryan

Terry Ryan and the Twins decided to release Ortiz in December of 2002. Ortiz finished his career with the Twins with a .266 average with 58 home runs and 238 RBI over parts of six seasons. Ryan decided to cut Ortiz for a number of reasons: he didn't want him to take the Twins to arbitration, he felt Matt LeCroy would make an adequate DH over the next handful of seasons, and he wanted a roster spot for the upcoming Rule 5 draft.

Ortiz signed a one year $1.25 million contract with the Boston Red Sox in January 2003...less than the $1.5 million he was expected to get in arbitration with the Twins.

Matt LeCroy became the full time DH for the 2003 season. He appeared in 107 games for the Twins, hitting .287 with 17 home runs and 85 RBI...numbers that were comparable, if not better, than Ortiz during his time with the Twins (Ortiz hit .288 with 31 HR, 101 RBI and finished Top-5 in the MVP voting for Boston, so there's that.)

Matt LeCroy with the Twins in 2005

In limited action for the Twins from 2003-2005, LeCroy hit .273 with 43 home runs and 153 RBI. Ortiz hit .300 with 47 home runs and 148 RBI...in 2005.

The player the Twins coveted in the Rule 5 draft was shortstop Jose Morbon. They selected him from the Texas Rangers for $50,000.

Literally the only photo of Jose Morban in

a Twins uniform in existance

Morban didn't quite work out for the Twins. He was placed on waivers in Spring Training and claimed by Baltimore. He had 71 at bats for the Orioles in 2003, batting .141 with two home runs and 5 RBI, then never appeared in a major league game ever again.

The justifications/excuses to cut Ortiz were there: He was was below average in the field as a first baseman, limiting him to the DH role. He hit only .205 against left handed pitching and .240 with runners in scoring position. He also went on the disabled list for a second consecutive season with writs and knee issues. 

But mostly, it was a money thing to keep the Twins ballooning salary from exceeding a wile $50 million per year.

Ache #16: Randy Moss traded to Oakland

Randy Moss is, hands down, the most physically gifted man to play wide receiver in the NFL. The 6'4'' 210 lb receiver from Rand, West Virginia had over 9,100 yards and scored 90 touchdowns...in his first seven seasons in the NFL.

He had fallen into the Vikings lap with the 24th overall pick in the 1998 NFL Draft due to character concerns and, on the field, he was well worth it (most of the time).

The Vikings were 36-12 during Moss' first three years with the team, including two NFC Championship Game appearances in 1998 and 200, but a 5-11 drop off in 2001 led to the firing of head coach Denny Green as the reigns of the franchise were handed over to Mike Tice.

The Tice era was underwhelming: four consecutive runner-up finishes in the NFC North and 32-32 record. The Vikings did back into the playoffs with an 8-8 record in 2004 with Randy Moss providing an all-time Randy moment in the win over Green Bay:

Moss had four catches for 70 yards and two touchdowns

in a 31-17 win at Green Bay in the 2004 Wild Card round

2004 was a rare off year for Moss. He missed three games with a hamstring injury, and despite 13 receiving touchdowns in 13 games, he failed to reach the 1,000 yard mark for the first time in his career.

Some of Moss' antics and off-field issues were creating problems too. In addition to his "disguising act" in Green Bay. In September 2002, Moss was driving in downtown Minneapolis and bumped a traffic control officer trying to prevent him from making an illegal turn. A search of his vehicle revealed a gram of marijuana. 

The reason that 20 NFL teams passed on Moss was beginning to show, and in March 2004, the Vikings officially moved on from Randy Moss by trading him to the Oakland Raiders for linebacker Napoleon Harris and Oakland's first round pick in the upcoming draft.

Napoleon Harris with the Vikings in 2006

Mike Tice had his defensive piece with Harris, and with the seventh overall pick in the 2005 NFL Draft the Vikings selected WR Troy Williamson out of South Carolina to replace Moss in the lineup.

Troy Williamson's pre-draft measurables were great...a 4.3 40, 37" vert and a 21 Wonderlic

Harris, a first-round pick by Oakland in 2002, was brought in to help shore up a defense that gave up over 24 points per game in 2004 (26th in the league). Harris played in 15 games (starting three) in 2005 and finished with 18 tackles as he was hampered with injuries. 2005 was better with three interceptions,2.5 sacks and 96 tackles in 14 games. Harris signed a six-year deal with the Kansas City Chiefs after that season. After being released one year into his contract, he re-signed with the Vikings after an injury to EJ Henderson. He finished that season with 32 tackles and one sack in 10 games.

With the seventh overall pick in the 2005 NFL Draft, the Vikings selected WR Troy Williamson out of South Carolina to replace Moss.

Troy Williamson couldn't catch a cold...

Williamson had all the tools to be the deep threat to replace Randy Moss: the size, the speed, the smarts. The one thing he couldn't do was catch the damn ball. He blamed bad depth perception for his poor hand-eye coordination that resulted in 11 drops in 2006, none worse than the one Week 17 against the Denver Broncos.

The Vikings started 3-6, but after five straight wins were sitting at 8-7 and on the verge of an unthinkable playoff spot. A win over Denver, who had a playoff spot in the AFC locked up, would put them in the playoffs for the first time in three years.

Then, Troy Williamson happened. 

First, with the Vikings down 7-3, Williamson dropped what would have been a guaranteed 73 yard touchdown from Tarvaris Jackson:

This is still painful to watch...

The second drop was on a crucial first down later in the game. The game would head to overtime tied at 19-19 before a Tarvaris Jackson fumble at the Vikings' 13 yard line set up a 30 yard Jason Elam field goal to win the game. The Vikings were officially eliminated with Washington's 27-6 win over Dallas as the Redskins grabbed the sixth and final playoff spot in the NFC.

Williamson's Vikings career ended with 1,067 yards and three touchdowns in three seasons. He averaged two catches per game. He was traded to the Jacksonville Jaguars for a seventh round pick in 2008.

Moss, meanwhile, was having a career resurgence. After some disgruntled time in Oakland, he was traded to the New England Patriots, where Bill Belichick sorted him out. Moss scored an NFL record 23 touchdowns for the Pats in 2008, helping lead the way to the first 16-0 regular season in NFL history. Meanwhile, the Vikings have only had two 1,000 yard receivers since Moss was traded (Sidney Rice in 2009 and Adam Thielen in 2017).