Is Yeo On The Hot Seat Already?

The Minnesota sports scene has been a minefield of letdowns and missed expectations since I was a young child watching the Twins win the World Series in 1991. The only exception this past year was the Minnesota Vikings improbable playoff run in 2012.

How hot are the Minnesota coaches' respective seats? Let's start this weekly series by looking at Wild coach Mike Yeo.

Minnesota Wild (Current season: 6-6-1) Payroll Rank: 2nd
Coach: Mike Yeo (2nd season, 41-42-12)

Last season the Wild were among the best teams in hockey through the month of December, with a record of 20-7-3 on December 10th. The collapse that followed was equal parts frustrating and epic.

The Wild went into a midseason tailspin and ended going 15-29-8 to miss the playoffs by 14 points.

The Wild committed nearly $200 million to Ryan Suter and Zach Parise during the offseason, and expectations have never been higher. So far the results have not been good. The Wild are averaging just two goals per game and their total of 13 goals is the fourth-lowest in the league.

With the Wild's 6-6-1 start to the season, Yeo is 21-35-9 since the hot start last season. Established veterans Cal Clutterbuck, Devin Setoguchi and even Suter have looked lost for the most part on the ice.

Hot Seat Meter: 8/10. The time to hesitate is through. No time to wallow in the mire. The Wild need an offensive-minded, veteran coach who has handled pressure before. Yeo may eventually succeed somewhere in the league, but his time is running out in Minnesota.