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AHL boss on prospect Coyle: “He’s going to make an impact on the Wild”

Charlie Coyle

If John Torchetti is right, Charlie Coyle will play a big role in Minnesota this season.

“He’s going to make an impact on the Wild for two reasons,” said Torchetti, who’s currently coaching Coyle in AHL Houston. “He’s no-maintenance, high-character and he is so good, so willing defensively.”

Torchetti knows what it takes to be successful in the pros. He’s been a head coach in both Florida and Los Angeles and an assistant in Tampa Bay, Atlanta and Chicago, winning the Stanley Cup with the Blackhawks in 2010.

In Coyle, Torchetti sees a player primed to make an impact in the NHL this season (whenever it begins.)

The 20-year-old center is lighting it up for the Aeros, leading the team in scoring while being dubbed the “most consistent, complete forward night in and night out since the start of the year.”

The Wild acquired Coyle from San Jose in last June’s Brent Burns-Devin Setoguchi trade. A year earlier, San Jose made Coyle the 28th overall selection of the 2010 NHL Entry Draft, then watched him score 26 points in 37 games as a freshman at Boston University.

Sharks GM Doug Wilson was loathe to move such a highly-skilled talent, but knew he had to give to get Burns.

Here’s more, from the Sporting News:

When Wilson alerted Coyle that he’d been dealt, he handed the phone over to Sharks director of scouting Tim Burke, one of the NHL’s best talent evaluators. He’s probably the guy in the organization who knows Coyle best, and there was real emotion on the other line as Burke relayed the reasoning behind the deal.

“They were saying, ‘This is pretty emotional. We don’t want to do this,’ ” Coyle told Sporting News.

The Wild are glad they did.

Head coach Mike Yeo and Aeros GM Jim Mill told the Minnesota Star-Tribune that Coyle has a major chance of making the Wild if/when the lockout ends.

“He’s adapted to the pro game so quickly,” Mill said.