Minnesota Wild Future

 

The Wild will need rocket science knowledge, patience, creativity and a healthy dose of Good luck to reach an elite level. 

##########################################

Has anyone else been thinking about how the remainder of this Wild season would best play out and/or what would be in the Wild’s best interest??  Should the Wild be willing to abandon the rest of schedule with wholesale changes in players and focus on the future beyond this year???? Unless God drops everything else, there is very little chance the Wild will make the playoffs and if they do they will only be beaten (probably in the first round) once again.  

Here are the Wild options.  

For openers there are only four players that should be considered untouchable.  Kaprizof, Faber, Boldy and Rossi.  Many would include Ericksson Ek, Hartman and Zuccarello.  But if these players have “no trade” clauses in their contracts the Wild will have no real chance of acquiring a player or players that would have any serious, positive impact for the team????  Moving the support players alone will never provide much of an upgrade to the current roster unless the team gets lucky and finds some jewels in the rough.  So, the poorer the team record at the end of the season, the better the draft picks and thus the ability to use them in securing the kind of players they desperately need. 

Next big consideration is the money.  On this front, understanding all the intricacies requires a rocket science education.  To simplify; the Wild salary cap is badly hampered by the remaining obligations to Zach Parise and Ryan Suter. The buyout penalties for both this season and next season are almost $15 million.  That obligation expires in the summer of 2025.  What will remain is a manageable $1.7 million obligation until 2029. This not only shackles any efforts to secure an elite NHL player but also impedes increased salary demands (such as Dumba) from existing players.  

Faber may be the thorniest of the untouchables.  His current market value is $64 million - $8 million over 8 Years.  Even though the Wild have the financial ability to handle this increase, Faber could reject it.  He has one more year on his current contract and could wait to test the open market.  YES – it would be risky for Faber to do that but it would also be risky for the Wild not to sweeten the pot beyond his current value. 

The next option for the Wild is Russia or other foreign countries. To be sure, the Wild got lucky with Kirill Kaprizov.  While this option can pay big dividends it is also very risky and requires great patience. NHL teams have been wary of using premium draft capital on Russian prospects. The Russian player could be under contract to a Russian team and might not be readily available.  In addition, there is always the risk he will not leave mother Russia for the U.S. 

Michael Russo reported the following on the Wild and their current Russian prospect:

“…the Wild may sign Marat Khusnutdinov after his season ends Feb. 25, burn the first year of his entry-level contract and start him right away in the NHL. He has 16 points in 38 games for KHL Sochi (three points a game), can play wing and center and has a ton of pro experience already at 21, so it would make sense for the Wild to get a head start on seeing what they have in him heading into next season." SOOO, is  Khusnutdinov agreeable to showing up on March First??? 

In the final analysis, the Wild are at least two years if not four to five years away from any possibility of becoming an elite NHL team.  What is therefore crucial for us Wild Fans is to develop the mindset that we are watching one of the greatest sports ever conceived and that it is being played by the most talented athletes on the planet. That is where the true thrill of Wild hockey can be found.