Have you heard of Minnesota Hockey Believers? Did we all collectively sigh in exasperation after the Wild were mathematically eliminated from the 2023-24 playoffs?
It was an interesting season, to say the least. Injuries to key players. Average goaltending. He signed with raised eyebrows in the offseason. They have no wins against the top three teams in the Central region. This is a coaching change. The mysterious decision to let Jesper Wallstedt leave after giving up seven points in his first NHL game.
However, the season wasn't completely lost. Marat Husnutdinov joined the team after signing an entry-level contract and everyone cheered every time he won a face-off in his first game with his team. Vladislav Fastov has returned to the club and is currently playing at Iowa. Riley Hite is having a great time in the WHL, scoring 117 points in 66 games. He signed Liam Ogren, also at Iowa.
On Wednesday, the club promoted him to St. Paul. Danila Yurov played in 62 games in the KHL this season, scoring 49 points. Will we see him in development and tryouts with the Wild this summer? i hope so. Wohlstedt earned his first win with a shutout win against the Chicago Blackhawks. He is the first Wild goaltender to win his first shutout. Marco Rossi also showed he belongs in the NHL.
All good stuff, to be sure.
While researching for this article, I noticed something. I'm curious if anyone else has noticed this. This past offseason, while fans around the hockey world were surprised by these eyebrow-raising contracts, I found out that the contracts of Marcus Foligno, Ryan Hartman, and Freddie Gaudreau were subject to no-movement clauses (NMC). We saw a switch to limited non-trade clauses from (LNTC) in 2025?
In fact, Gaudreau's contract is entirely LNTC. That's interesting. It's the first season after arch cap hell, so the contract is off the books. Hmm. I feel like my faith in Bill Guerin is back. Was he thinking this? Now, with $14 million in cap space back, could they also pick up an additional $10.1 million by moving these three?
The Wild have 11 players under contract for the 2025-26 season. They have a $54 million contract, but we know that cap will rise to $85 million next season. With the same cap in 2025 and Guerin moving those three contracts, Minnesota would only have $43.9 million on the books with eight players. That would give him a maximum of $41.1.
Moving these three contracts also opens the gate for children to come in and fill the empty slots. perfection! If what people are saying is true, the Wild could field a team with top-six forwards on the first three lines. And what about the 4th line that includes the 3rd/4th/specialist? Who wouldn't want that? That's called depth, right?
Is it easy to put together a group? No, that's the downside of having a talented prospect pool. Rather, a good GM will be able to maintain depth while leveraging that talent to make smart trades. That's why they get paid so much money.
But we did get to see a front group of Kirill Kaprizov, Joel Eriksson Ek, Baldry, Rossi, Husnutdinov, Yurov, Fastov, Hight, Mason Shaw, Ogren, Sammy Walker, and Rasmus Kumplainen. Defensively, the Wild will have Jared Spurgeon, Jonas Brodin, Brock Faber, Zach Bogosian, Dakota Mermis, Carson Lambos, and Walstedt and Gustafsson in net.
Kaprizov and Rossi need contract extensions and Faber needs to be paid. Rossi did everything Wilde asked him to do, including skipping his sister's wedding. Now let's reward him. By signing Faber and Rossi, the Wild will have eight of the 18 players listed above on contract. Could you please sign the remaining 10 tickets? I think so.
Kaprizov's contract extension won't be completed until the 2026 season, when Zach Parise and Ryan Suter are released from their contracts, giving the Wild an additional $10 million in cap space. Faber could sign a similar contract to Cale Makar or Quinn Hughes, in the $9 million to $10 million range. Rossi could get something in the range of $5 million to $7 million, similar to what Boldy got. Of the $41 million, it would cost $17 million to sign Faber and Rossi, leaving $24 million for 10 to 12 players. Is it an average of about $2 million per player? I think Guerin can do that.
There is also the issue of Wallstedt. He is under a minor league contract until next year. If he blossoms in the 2024-25 season (which I think he will), how much money will he make? He will be a restricted free agent in 2025, so the Wild have a bit of control there. However, a fair contract over five years would be the best-case scenario. If that happens, he'll reach his 28th birthday, which is when goaltenders really come into their own and can earn more money, which the Wild should be able to do in 2030.
So, my friends, I think we can all breathe a sigh of relief instead of being exasperated. The future is bright for Minnesota. The Wild's depth would make them a strong contender. let's have fun.
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