With bunny in tow, former Wild player Konopka tweets 'YeoMustGo'
Former Minnesota Wild enforcer Zenon Konopka took to social media to vent his frustration with the direction of the club - and he wasn't alone.
Konopka, who played in 73 games with the Wild from 2012-14, put the blame of the sputtering team's recent fortunes at the feet of coach Mike Yeo.
The Minnesota Wild have so much talent. All the pieces to be Stanley Cup champs- wasting years isn't fair to the players or fans #YeohastoGo
— Zenon Konopka (@ZenonKonopka) February 10, 2016
In fact, Konopka followed up that post with another, albeit putting words in the mouth of "Hoppy" - his pet bunny.
I'm not saying Mike Yeo is a bad coach but change is due in Minny #YeomustGo pic.twitter.com/1GsdYh9lvt
— Zenon Konopka (@ZenonKonopka) February 10, 2016
Konopka and Yeo didn't always see eye-to-eye during the former's two seasons with the team, according to Michael Russo of the Minneapolis Star Tribune. The relationship between the pair isn't much better today, judging by Yeo's response to the tweets by Konopka (and "Hoppy").
Yeo on @ZenonKonopka: "I really don't care what he thinks. I was really disappointed to see Hoppy holding that sign." #mnwild
— Michael Russo (@Russostrib) February 10, 2016
After advancing to the second round of the playoffs last season, Minnesota (23-20-10) suffered a 4-3 overtime loss to the Dallas Stars on Tuesday for its sixth straight loss and 10th in the last 11 games (1-8-2). The Wild sit two points behind the Central Division-rival Colorado Avalanche (27-25-4) for the final wild-card spot in the Western Conference.
Yeo: It's very easy right now to find negatives, but nothing easy is going to get us out of this. #mnwild
— Minnesota Wild (@mnwild) February 10, 2016
Minnesota hasn't fared well at home, to boot, losing its last six (0-3-3) at Xcel Energy Center. The Wild's last win in front of the home folks was Dec. 28 against the Detroit Red Wings.
Yeo: I thought our fans were awesome tonight. They stood by us all night. We definitely want to reward them with a win. #mnwild
— Minnesota Wild (@mnwild) February 10, 2016
Konopka scored one goal, set up another and amassed 172 penalty minutes during his time with Minnesota.
The 35-year-old Ontario native collected 12 tallies, 18 assists and 1,082 penalty minutes in 346 career contests with the Anaheim Ducks, Columbus Blue Jackets, Tampa Bay Lightning, New York Islanders, Ottawa Senators, Buffalo Sabres and Wild.
