All Things 2026-207 Minnesota Wild

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Minnesota Wild​

It makes a lot of sense

The Wild will pursue Larkin, plain and simple. After giving up a haul for Quinn Hughes, it’s uncertain if they have enough to get it done. But Larkin controls the process because of his no-trade clause, so if he wants to come to Minnesota, the Wild may not need a package that beats out teams he has no interest in. The Wild need a No. 1 center, love Larkin, have connections to him throughout the organization because of USA Hockey, and he’s got plenty of friends in Minnesota. But he has friends in many places and will generate a lot of interest. — Michael Russo
www.nytimes.com

How sensible is it for each NHL team to make a Dylan Larkin trade?

Larkin’s shocking trade request has led to league-wide speculation about where the 29-year-old center might fit on the market this summer.
www.nytimes.com www.nytimes.com
 


Slim Tubby said:

Minnesota Wild​

It makes a lot of sense

The Wild will pursue Larkin, plain and simple. After giving up a haul for Quinn Hughes, it’s uncertain if they have enough to get it done. But Larkin controls the process because of his no-trade clause, so if he wants to come to Minnesota, the Wild may not need a package that beats out teams he has no interest in. The Wild need a No. 1 center, love Larkin, have connections to him throughout the organization because of USA Hockey, and he’s got plenty of friends in Minnesota. But he has friends in many places and will generate a lot of interest. — Michael Russo
www.nytimes.com

How sensible is it for each NHL team to make a Dylan Larkin trade?

Larkin’s shocking trade request has led to league-wide speculation about where the 29-year-old center might fit on the market this summer.
www.nytimes.com www.nytimes.com
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The article's locked behind a paywall for me, so couldn't read it. I'll throw another name into the mix for centers, Vitali Pinchuck, formerly of the KHL's Minsk Dynamo and recently signed a 1-year deal with Nashville. We have a few Russian speakers on our team, so I'd think that'd be a bit of an attraction for him to come to the Wild, and Nashville certainly could upgrade their goal tending situation.

​

 

Border Gopher said:
Quinn can play with his brothers in the NHL when he is Nick Foligno’s age
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He could also head to NJ, where they have about $11M in salary cap to spend. I'm certainly hoping we get the brothers to come here, vs Quinn going there.
 




TNGophfan said:
Ok, so help me out. Got Brots, a Carlson, Henry Boucha, who are the others?
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1979: Minnesota North Stars defeated the visiting Chicago Blackhawks 4-3 at Met Center to close out the 1979 home-game season. The starting line-up for the home-town North Stars featured an All-Minnesota born line-up (the first time in NHL History this occurred) with Bill Butters, Jack Carlson, Pete LoPresti, Mike Polich, Gary Sargent and Tom Younghans.
 

upnorthkid said:
1979: Minnesota North Stars defeated the visiting Chicago Blackhawks 4-3 at Met Center to close out the 1979 home-game season. The starting line-up for the home-town North Stars featured an All-Minnesota born line-up (the first time in NHL History this occurred) with Bill Butters, Jack Carlson, Pete LoPresti, Mike Polich, Gary Sargent and Tom Younghans.
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Wow. Thanks. I was only 1 for 6.
 




Not sure just how set in stone this is but this is a pretty short list. I don't know about Florida but Vegas is pretty damn deep at Center, and really doesn't have a lot of assets to dangle anyway. I wouldn't support Vegas moving serious assets/capital for a guy who's turning 30 next summer and really doesn't fill a major hole on a roster on the brink of winning the Stanley Cup

The reduced list sure reduces Detroit's leverage in negotiations with someone.

 

Not sure if this is a joke or not, from a guy who covers the VGK.

Not a horrible idea from a practicality standpoint, but some VGK fans would lose their shit. William Karlsson is one of THE original Golden Misfits from Year One.

And Dorofeyev (or Scorofeyev as my VGK jersey says) has become a fan favorite as well, although Dorofeyev is due a MASSIVE contract this summer as an RFA; upwards of $9M AAV.

I suspect Gawlik is playing with people here though; There's a lot of VGK fans that would lose their minds if William Karlsson was moved. They lost their shit when they sent Marchessault packing a year or two ago, which turned out to be ABSOLUTELY the right thing to do as his play has fallen off a cliff with age

 

Ogie Ogilthorpe said:
Not sure if this is a joke or not, from a guy who covers the VGK.

Not a horrible idea from a practicality standpoint, but some VGK fans would lose their shit. William Karlsson is one of THE original Golden Misfits from Year One.

And Dorofeyev (or Scorofeyev as my VGK jersey says) has become a fan favorite as well, although Dorofeyev is due a MASSIVE contract this summer as an RFA; upwards of $9M AAV.

I suspect Gawlik is playing with people here though; There's a lot of VGK fans that would lose their minds if William Karlsson was moved. They lost their shit when they sent Marchessault packing a year or two ago, which turned out to be ABSOLUTELY the right thing to do as his play has fallen off a cliff with age

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that would be an impressively bad move by Vegas pending what dollar amount Dorofeyev is going to go for (and knowing they can recoup a hefty amount of draft capital if someone else takes him).
 

Ogie Ogilthorpe said:
Not sure just how set in stone this is but this is a pretty short list. I don't know about Florida but Vegas is pretty damn deep at Center, and really doesn't have a lot of assets to dangle anyway. I wouldn't support Vegas moving serious assets/capital for a guy who's turning 30 next summer and really doesn't fill a major hole on a roster on the brink of winning the Stanley Cup

The reduced list sure reduces Detroit's leverage in negotiations with someone.

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well florida has like the worst prospect pool in the league, Vegas has no need for him, and MN has minimal prospects

Florida would probably be their 1st this year, sawchyn, and maybe you can swing a guy like Lundell?

If those are really his "3", can see Yzerman telling him to kick rocks like he did to Drouin.
 



upnorthkid said:
that would be an impressively bad move by Vegas pending what dollar amount Dorofeyev is going to go for (and knowing they can recoup a hefty amount of draft capital if someone else takes him).
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There are fewer bigger fans of Dorofeyev than myself (as evidenced by the custom jersey I mentioned) but I know one thing; Dorofeyev is NOT a creator. He's an ELITE shooter, one of the best snipers I've seen, but he needs an elite distributor (like he has in Eichel or Marner) for him to put up those kinds of numbers. He does NOT create his own shots, for the most part.

upnorthkid said:
well florida has like the worst prospect pool in the league, Vegas has no need for him, and MN has minimal prospects

Florida would probably be their 1st this year, sawchyn, and maybe you can swing a guy like Lundell?

If those are really his "3", can see Yzerman telling him to kick rocks like he did to Drouin.
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I wonder just how much flexibility there is when a player says something like this? I mean, sure, he can say these are the only 3 teams I would consider but I would THINK if they were working on something else and asked him, what would you say to Dallas (or pick any other team); I'm sure he can say Yay or Nay to that as well.
 
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Ogie Ogilthorpe said:
There are fewer bigger fans of Dorofeyev than myself (as evidenced by the custom jersey I mentioned) but I know one thing; Dorofeyev is NOT a creator. He's an ELITE shooter, one of the best snipers I've seen, but he needs an elite distributor (like he has in Eichel or Marner) for him to put up those kinds of numbers. He does NOT create his own shots, for the most part.



I wonder just how much flexible there is when a player says something like this? I mean, sure, he can say these are the only 3 teams I would consider but I would THINK if they were working on something else and asked him, what would you say to Dallas (or pick any other team); I'm sure he can say Yay or Nay to that as well.
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i'd imagine he gave the list and if detroit said here's a deal he'd be happy. i assume now they're going to come back and say you're under contract for 5 years, do better with the list or we'll just keep you. If Larkin doesn't budge, I don't think Yzerman backs down knowing his NMC doesn't last as strictly for the duration of his deal (which is why I think they settle on those 10 teams and a deal gets made then)
 

The Athletic weighs in on a potential Wild package for Detroit's Dylan Larkin

  • Detroit gets: G Jesper Wallstedt, F Danila Yurov, F Charlie Stramel
  • Minnesota gets: F Larkin, G Sebastian Cossa
"Minnesota parts with three A-level young assets but gets one back in Cossa, who is a very good young goalie. Yurov and Stramel both project as long-term third-line centers or second-line wingers with different play styles: Yurov is more of a skill player, and Stramel is big and highly physical."

What would the passionate Wild fans here think about this trade?
 

The goalie swap seems a little weird. Presume that Wally is a little further along so considered a slightly safer bet (and hence more valuable)??

Edit: I see Cossa was selected a handful of selections earlier than Jesper in the 2021 1st round…
 

Border Gopher said:
The goalie swap seems a little weird. Presume that Wally is a little further along so considered a slightly safer bet (and hence more valuable)??

Edit: I see Cossa was selected a handful of selections earlier than Jesper in the 2021 1st round…
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Wally has been tested at the NHL level and held up. Cossa has been tested at the AHL level and very good, but still unknown how that looks with NHL shooters. He's basically like 1 year behind Wally with idea he should be in a split time NHL role this year, but should be NHL ready enough the Wild could use him while Gus is getting healthy again
 

upnorthkid said:
Wally has been tested at the NHL level and held up. Cossa has been tested at the AHL level and very good, but still unknown how that looks with NHL shooters. He's basically like 1 year behind Wally with idea he should be in a split time NHL role this year, but should be NHL ready enough the Wild could use him while Gus is getting healthy again
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If need be, I would imagine Cossa could be a serviceable backup in the NHL, provided your #1 is intended to be the primary workhorse, not splitting time evenly; like a 70-30 split or even greater, which you would think Gus could handle.

Expecting much more than that could be very risky?
 

Well, that answers one of the offseason questions. Not a lot of money but that's one helluva duration.

 

The Minnesota Wild are signing forward Michael McCarron to a six-year contract extension carrying an average annual value of $3.3 million, Sportsnet's Elliotte Friedman reports.

McCarron was scheduled for unrestricted free agency after the Wild acquired him from the Nashville Predators at this season's trade deadline for a 2028 second-round pick.

The 31-year-old is set to earn a significant raise from the $900,000 AAV he's made the past two seasons
 

Ogie Ogilthorpe said:
If need be, I would imagine Cossa could be a serviceable backup in the NHL, provided your #1 is intended to be the primary workhorse, not splitting time evenly; like a 70-30 split or even greater, which you would think Gus could handle.

Expecting much more than that could be very risky?
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i think that was exactly the intention with Wally to start the year. He ended up starting 33 games and got more run when it was pretty clear he could handle it. Would be basically trialing the exact same thing with Cossa. Not advocating for it or against it, but Wally had only played 5 NHL starts prior to this year and was overall pretty damn meh in those starts (2-3, 17 GA, Sv% around 89%) with some really good games and some really bad ones
 

TRF Guy said:
The Minnesota Wild are signing forward Michael McCarron to a six-year contract extension carrying an average annual value of $3.3 million, Sportsnet's Elliotte Friedman reports.

McCarron was scheduled for unrestricted free agency after the Wild acquired him from the Nashville Predators at this season's trade deadline for a 2028 second-round pick.

The 31-year-old is set to earn a significant raise from the $900,000 AAV he's made the past two seasons
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This and the pursuit of Larkin/an upgrade at C almost seem to confirm that a couple aging veterans/former core players are likely to be on the move this summer to make cap room for the improvements.
 

GreasyGopher said:
This and the pursuit of Larkin/an upgrade at C almost seem to confirm that a couple aging veterans/former core players are likely to be on the move this summer to make cap room for the improvements.
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I believe Johanson has already decided to leave the team and play in Sweden if I read the article correctly.
 




upnorthkid said:
yeah his contract for producing 49 points was a pretty damn good deal
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Yeah, I was thinking more along the lines of Foligno, Hartman, Spurgeon, Brodin, or Middleton. I wouldn’t be surprised if at least two of those 5 are gone by the start of next season.
 

GreasyGopher said:
Yeah, I was thinking more along the lines of Foligno, Hartman, Spurgeon, Brodin, or Middleton. I wouldn’t be surprised if at least two of those 5 are gone by the start of next season.
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thinking or hoping? with contracts left

Foligno: 2yr, 4m AAV, has NTC; really doubt he's moved as good in community and locker room. I don't love what he produces, but BG clearly has to this point
Hartman: 1yr 4m, has NTC; he'd probably be your prime salary dump candidate given it's an expiring contract, but he's alright, versatile middle 6 guy. Can you get more on that deal in FA? I don't know if he'll fetch much in terms of draft/pick stock other than a later round pick pending which teams he'll allow a move to
Spurgeon: 1yr, 7.5m; he'd be the prime one I'd be fine trading. Think hard part is where he maybe could catch value is at the deadline to a contender who needs a R shot D, but that does not help you when you need to salary freed up which is now. So to move his salary, you're probably going to have to send draft capital with it to get a lower tier team to take on his salary on a guy who's going to retire (likely) after this year and we're already down a 2026 1st, 2nd, and 7th as well as our 2027 and 2028 2nds
Brodin: 2yr, 6m AAV; probably would have the most interest on the market but then you're basically just adding another hole in the 2nd pair. Can you realistic patch that with someone as good at a cheaper deal? I think probably at least equivalent if you can find someone who PKs well
Middleton: 3yr, 4.35 AAV (and he may have a no movement clause but i can't remember for sure); woof at moving that contract. Maybe if he plays well in the first half you could try at the deadline, but his stock is going to be really low right now
 

upnorthkid said:
thinking or hoping? with contracts left

Foligno: 2yr, 4m AAV, has NTC; really doubt he's moved as good in community and locker room. I don't love what he produces, but BG clearly has to this point
Hartman: 1yr 4m, has NTC; he'd probably be your prime salary dump candidate given it's an expiring contract, but he's alright, versatile middle 6 guy. Can you get more on that deal in FA? I don't know if he'll fetch much in terms of draft/pick stock other than a later round pick pending which teams he'll allow a move to
Spurgeon: 1yr, 7.5m; he'd be the prime one I'd be fine trading. Think hard part is where he maybe could catch value is at the deadline to a contender who needs a R shot D, but that does not help you when you need to salary freed up which is now. So to move his salary, you're probably going to have to send draft capital with it to get a lower tier team to take on his salary on a guy who's going to retire (likely) after this year and we're already down a 2026 1st, 2nd, and 7th as well as our 2027 and 2028 2nds
Brodin: 2yr, 6m AAV; probably would have the most interest on the market but then you're basically just adding another hole in the 2nd pair. Can you realistic patch that with someone as good at a cheaper deal? I think probably at least equivalent if you can find someone who PKs well
Middleton: 3yr, 4.35 AAV (and he may have a no movement clause but i can't remember for sure); woof at moving that contract. Maybe if he plays well in the first half you could try at the deadline, but his stock is going to be really low right now
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If they’re going to add salary, those are the players that would have to be moved to make room. Everyone else is either too valuable or makes too little money.

I think they have around 10 mil left and half their 6 is either vacant or in need of an upgrade.
 

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