Wild fire Mike Yeo, ex-Blackhawks coach John Torchetti named interim

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The Minnesota Wild have relieved Mike Yeo of his head coaching duties effective immediately, the team announced Saturday night.

Yeo was in his the middle of his fifth year with the team. The Wild had lost their eighth straight game prior to his release. The Wild are currently 23-22-10 this season with 56 points, which ranks second to last in the Central Division.

Yeo had a 173-132-44 record in Minnesota. In three postseason appearances with the Wild, the Blackhawks knocked out Yeo's squad all three times. He was 11-17 in the playoffs.

With Yeo's exit, former Blackhawks assistant coach John Torchetti will become the team's interim coach. Torchetti has been serving as the head coach for the Iowa Wild, Minnesota's AHL affiliate.

Torchetti assisted the Blackhawks behind the bench from 2007-2010, helping the team win their first Stanley Cup in 49 years.

Following the Blackhawks' 2010 Stanley Cup win, Torchetti left to become an associate head coach for the Atlanta Thrashers (now the Winnipeg Jets). The following year, he was hired as the new head coach of the Houston Aeros, then the Wild's AHL affiliate, replacing Yeo — who was promoted to manage the Wild.

In 2013-14, Torchetti spent the year overseas to coach KHL's CSKA Moscow. In November 2014, he returned to coach the Iowa Wild, the team's new AHL affiliate.

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