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Published May 24, 2012, 07:15 AM

Wild excited about Finnish standout

Mikael Granlund’s arrival in Minnesota has been eagerly awaited by frustrated Wild fans looking for more star power and offensive skill on a team stuck in mediocrity since entering the NHL 12 years ago. If the 20-year-old forward turns out to be as good as advertised, he could wind up sharing a spotlight with the likes of Adrian Peterson, Ricky Rubio, Jared Allen, Joe Mauer and Kevin Love.

UNDATED (AP) — Mikael Granlund’s arrival in Minnesota has been eagerly awaited by frustrated Wild fans looking for more star power and offensive skill on a team stuck in mediocrity since entering the NHL 12 years ago.

If the 20-year-old forward turns out to be as good as advertised, he could wind up sharing a spotlight with the likes of Adrian Peterson, Ricky Rubio, Jared Allen, Joe Mauer and Kevin Love.

Diamond said Granlund has become Finland’s “most-Googled” athlete, and there are no search results more fitting than the clips on YouTube of his lacrosse-style goal during the World Championships last spring.

He picked up a puck behind the net and lifted it into the air as if it were super-glued to the blade, using a sling-shot move from the side of the net to sneak it in for the score. Each version of the videos on YouTube has been viewed hundreds of thousands of times.

The ninth overall pick in the 2010 draft wanted to finish his schooling, his required military service and another season for Finland’s national team and HIFK Helsinki in his country’s top league before finalizing his first NHL contract.

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