LAS VEGAS >> When he was 19, a decade ago, veteran Minnesota Wild defenseman Jake Middleton joked that he was not qualified to run the top power-play unit for his Canadian junior hockey team, the Ottawa 67’s.

By contrast, in the third period of Zeev Buium’s first NHL game, at age 19, the rookie was on the Wild blue line, running the power play during the team’s lone man advantage of their playoff opener — an eventual 4-2 loss to Vegas on Sunday night.

In the game’s final two minutes, with the Wild trailing by one and goalie Filip Gustavsson on the bench for an extra attacker, there was Buium again, showing off the skills that made him one of college hockey’s top players this season as a sophomore at Denver. So much for easing the new guy into the game. In a place that is known for scorching sunshine in the summer, this was a baptism of fire.

It’s a small sample size, to be sure, but the Wild liked what they saw from the San Diego kid.

“He’s going to be fine. He’s going to be great,” Middleton said Monday, meeting with reporters at the team’s hotel on the Las Vegas Strip. “Every shift he goes out there, he looks better and better throughout the game. Roll that over in the next game, these kids now have got so much confidence in themselves and so much swagger that he was ready as soon as the puck dropped.”Following a trend

That’s not just a grizzled veteran ranting about “these kids nowadays.” With his Wild debut, Buium is the latest in a line of young defensemen to step directly from college into prominent roles on the blue line in the NHL.

In 2019, Cale Makar won the Hobey Baker Award at Massachusetts, then went right to the top of the defensive depth chart for the Colorado Avalanche, winning awards for the top rookie in 2020 and for the top defenseman in 2022 and winning a Stanley Cup.

Just two years ago, Minnesota fans saw a similar trajectory when Brock Faber traded his Gophers jersey for a Wild model and seamlessly stepped into a prominent defensive role, playing every game of a first-round playoff series and eventually signing an eight-year, $68 million contract that starts next season.

After one game and the prominent role he has been handed, Buium looks like he could be the latest in that line of young defensemen, which is a pleasant change in approach for some Wild veterans.

“I do not know what he’s going through, what he’s thinking about, but he’s a way better player than I was at that age. It’s kind of crazy,” Wild forward Marcus Foligno said. “He’s 19, but there’s a reason why he was drafted so high and the buzz around him. He’s got a lot of confidence and (is a) great kid, and the skill set he has is amazing. So I think he’s going to be just fine, and you’re going to see the next couple games, him kind of really blossom here.”

Starting out in Southern California, which despite the popularity of the Los Angeles Kings and Anaheim Ducks is still a non-traditional hockey area, Buium took the path many successful players have followed, coming to Minnesota to play prep school hockey at Shattuck-St. Mary’s in Faribault, then skating for USA Hockey’s National Team Development program in Michigan. He earned a national title as a freshman with Denver and finished as runner-up for the Hobey this season before signing with the Wild.

Accelerated timeline

After a few practices where Buium showed off his offensive skills and decision-making, Wild coach John Hynes had no reservations about putting Buium into a prominent role in his first NHL game.

Offering an honest assessment the day after Game 1, Hynes admitted there were “rookie moments” as expected, but overall he gave high marks to the kid who is missing a few college classes to earn an NHL paycheck.

“To me a big thing was just he was competitive. And I thought when he was called upon to defend in hard areas, he worked at that, which I thought was good,” Hynes said Monday. “Like every player, I think it’s more getting comfortable and seeing what he can do. And I thought for a first game, yeah, there were some mistakes. I think every player on the ice made some mistakes, and it gets a little magnified because of his position. But I think overall, he played a solid game.”

The numbers show that Buium’s NHL debut included 13 minutes and 27 seconds of ice time spread over 19 shifts. He had two of the Wild’s 54 hits, attempted two shots on goal and got one of them through to Golden Knights goalie Adin Hill in the third period.

It all began at the start of warmups, when Buium made the traditional solo lap of the rink, with three members of his family, all wearing new green Wild sweaters with number 8 on the back, cheering him on. Buium said he tried to flip a puck over the glass to his mother, and he hoped it landed “somewhere in that section” anyway.

In the postgame locker room, he was a mix of disappointment after a loss, but still exhilaration at the completion of an NHL dream come true. And asked what he would remember from Sunday’s game, Buium offered a quick one-word answer.

“Everything,” he said. “I mean, the crowd was pretty amazing, playing in a game like that. Those are the crowds you dream of playing in. Those are the games you get up for the most. I think just being out there and seeing the atmosphere was pretty amazing.”

And if Game 1 was an indication, there are plenty of amazing things to come.