Article: Wild Make Significant Deadline Trade For Familiar Face

[Mateo3xm]

19 hours ago, mnhockeyfan03 said:

Billy should have been going after Evans and Armia for picks or Ogren if they both agreed to resign for what there are at now. Also needs to be hounding Buffalo for Tuch, Thompson, Jokiharju for Rossi, Boldy, Faber.  This team is going nowhere with those guys and we need some changes. B Nelson for a 4th is ok if he will resign for under 4mm for 3yrs with no trade protection. Get rid of Spurgeon and also trenin for pucks or picks if you have to throw them in.  Also Hartman July 1 gone

You simply can’t get that dumb idea out of your head. They aren’t trading Thompson. It hasn’t even been speculation.

[Mateo3xm]

19 hours ago, Burnt Toast said:

This move makes the Wild better right now, without significant cost to the team over the next few years. I think it’s important for the Wild to make the playoffs this year. They are NOT a lock, especially with injuries to top players. I see this as a smart, measured move. If you want high risk, all in, 2027 might be a better year to do so. Why is making the playoffs important? There’s no better teacher for our players than experience. I think it is important for KK as well. 

I think a 2nd was way too much for a 35 yr old 

[1Brotherbill]

It is doubtful that the Wild will trade for anyone.  Unless they trade a bunch of prospects and I doubt that is what they want to do.  The money just isn't there.   Unless salary is retained this is probably the only deal the Wild make.  

First month under 500 all season was February.  They have a 9 point lead over last out of playoffs.  21 games left to go.  

[Imyourhuckleberry]

I kind of love that they put Nyquist right up on line 1. That move to draw the penalty nearly was a Nyquist goal and Boldy finished the game with 8 shots on goal. The line didn't score, but he gives Boldy some juice on the other side that many of their other wings don't bring to the ice.

[Pewterschmidt]

28 minutes ago, Imyourhuckleberry said:

I kind of love that they put Nyquist right up on line 1. That move to draw the penalty nearly was a Nyquist goal and Boldy finished the game with 8 shots on goal. The line didn't score, but he gives Boldy some juice on the other side that many of their other wings don't bring to the ice.

Yah Boldy probably the biggest beneficiary of G Nyq on the team

[Need4speed99]

On 3/1/2025 at 7:42 PM, mnhockeyfan03 said:

This is not a significant trade.  It’s a non event.  This team needs a big shakup with another 4-6 new players.  To much of the same for years not getting it done.  

And until they stop making the same, damn moves, nothing will change.

At this point, any "rental" will be just that. Bad goaltending, an abhorrent pp kill isn't going to get you far in the playoffs. 

[Need4speed99]

2 hours ago, 1Brotherbill said:

It is doubtful that the Wild will trade for anyone.  Unless they trade a bunch of prospects and I doubt that is what they want to do.  The money just isn't there.   Unless salary is retained this is probably the only deal the Wild make.  

First month under 500 all season was February.  They have a 9 point lead over last out of playoffs.  21 games left to go.  

What good is making  the playoffs only to get wrecked? So if they barely make it they go against the jets... what's their record against them?

[Need4speed99]

12 hours ago, Pewterschmidt said:

I think ogz is used as a sweetener along with 2027 1st+2nd to return a legitimate top 6 forward

 starting to sound like the Chuck Fletcher mortgage the future to save his job?  Yep

Ogy was a guerin pick... and yes, it seems they play him and others on the 4th lines to try and hope they break through to just trade.

[Citizen Strife]

3 hours ago, Need4speed99 said:

What good is making  the playoffs only to get wrecked? So if they barely make it they go against the jets... what's their record against them?

After trading the picks for Jiricek, what would be the point in selling off and tanking?  Guerin didn't want to pay whatever price it would take for vaunted "needle movers" if they were even offered.  Playing to lose games would just help Columbus.

Guerin is doing the tightrope walk he's been doing for years.  I've already accepted the team doesn't really have a chance.  I'm willing to ride things out though, because getting to the playoffs and winning games is what a team is supposed to do.

Edited 10 hours ago by Citizen Strife

[IllicitFive]

I think this is just getting a serviceable warm body in the line up that may have some impact. The 2026 2nd pick was all due to cap space being retained as well as future picks having less weight than current picks from what I was reading as well as an interview with Billy G. The wild have NO cap space. This caused them to send Ohgie (more so to make room for Gus Ny) and Marat (pure cap space per Billy) down to Iowa. Also seemed to have talk about not putting Ek and Kap on LTIR until end of the season which would means they would need to accumulate as much cap space as possible to bring one if not both back during the regular season. It does not seem this is to protect Ohgie and Khus for a future trade or anything else major, just trying to balance a spreadsheet with the hopes of getting 2 of your top forwards back during the regular season.

[M_Nels]

17 hours ago, Mateo3xm said:

I’m not crazy about giving a 2nd round pick for a 35 yr old. That’s way too much in my opinion.

The salary retention raised the price. 

[Imyourhuckleberry]

26 minutes ago, IllicitFive said:

The 2026 2nd pick was all due to cap space being retained as well as future picks having less weight than current picks from what I was reading as well as an interview with Billy G. The wild have NO cap space.

I agree that the cap retention is what moved it to be a 2nd round pick rather than a 3rd. Nyquist could help the Wild in many areas, particularly before Kaprizov comes back, but also as a guy who remains in the top 6 after Kaprizov comes back.

He's also younger than Zuccarello by exactly 2 years, so if the Wild were to trade Zuccarello in the summer, Nyquist could be a decent replacement for him next season.

[OldDutchChip]

whatever happens this year - billy must NOT re-sign nyquist or anyone else with deteriorating skill set and age of 32 and above to a contract. if he wants to sign someone old - go ahead and offer 1.5 mil to bogo and be done. otherwise this is Kap's team on his timeline. please focus on that. 

you have your core top 6, if unchanged, it looks like this - 

• Kap
• Zuccy (until Kap signs - you keep him)
• Ek
• Boldy
• Rossi
• Yurov

say your final goodbyes to MAF, Nyquist and MJ

if you can avoid NOT tying up money for aging has-beens - go after big fish. yes overpay by a million or two on a superstar. To instead sign any of the combo of these 3 - Nelson, Boeser and Nyquist for next year, rather than doing so for Ranty - is moronic.

Move Spurge for a pick to Chicago or talk to your friend at Pitts (who love colleting antiques) or Buffalo (who love collecting MN players) and give that C to Kap already. And along with C offer him 16 MM per this July. 

The above is the best scenario as it does NOT remove any of the current core. It still allows us to keep Rossi using Bridge deal - as i see it a win-win for both sides (wild get him back on the "cheap" and he knows his next contract will be much better). 

 

 

 

[Citizen Strife]

"Don't re-sign Nyquist"

Ok.  Sensible.

 

"move Spurge"

Stopped paying attention.

Edited 2 hours ago by Citizen Strife

[OldDutchChip]

11 minutes ago, Citizen Strife said:

"Don't re-sign Nyquist"

Ok.  Sensible.

 

"move Spurge"

Stopped paying attention.

right .... a 36 year to-be defenseman, coming after multiple injuries, who is also tiny and is known to be somewhat a liability during the POs because of his size and is due another 7.5mm for two more seasons....yeap you right! let's give him a Billy's special (4 more years!) and you and Freddy can celebrate

[RedLake]

Spurgeon for future considerations lol.

[Citizen Strife]

So, you'd rather play Bogo or Jiricek over Spurgeon?  That's rich.  That's what you're proposing.  Spurgeon is still one of the best defenseman the team has (Brodin when healthy is better).  The second injury wasn't even his fault.  He and Foligno have pretty much rebounded from last year's injury BS with their defensive performances.

But whatever.  They don't score for the team.  Oh wait.  Spurgeon has about the same amount of points as Faber does in less games played.  Both are sitting right outside the Top 50 defensemen...so huh.  Guess they aren't doing their jobs either direction.

Spurgeon has a lot left.  Could he end up like Goligoski?  Sure.  But that's a couple years from now.  Hynes's style is predicated on everyone buying into being defensively sound.  Punting one of the best defensemen the team has for an unproven guy they just signed, and a dude barely treading water as a 1st/2nd pair when Spurgeon was out, is not my idea of fun.

[OldDutchChip]

3 minutes ago, Citizen Strife said:

So, you'd rather play Bogo or Jiricek over Spurgeon?  That's rich.  That's what you're proposing.  Spurgeon is still one of the best defenseman the team has (Brodin when healthy is better).  The second injury wasn't even his fault.  He and Foligno have pretty much rebounded from last year's injury BS with their defensive performances.

But whatever.  They don't score for the team.  Oh wait.  Spurgeon has about the same amount of points as Faber does in less games played.  Both are sitting right outside the Top 50 defensemen...so huh.  Guess they aren't doing their jobs either direction.

Spurgeon has a lot left.  Could he end up like Goligoski?  Sure.  But that's a couple years from now.  Hynes's style is predicated on everyone buying into being defensively sound.  Punting one of the best defensemen the team has for an unproven guy they just signed, and a dude barely treading water as a 1st/2nd pair when Spurgeon was out, is not my idea of fun.

what about our rich prospect pool? or that is not "yet" ready?

or what about all world minute muncher Faber? stud Middleton? phenom Zeev? beast Jiricek? rugged muscle man Bogo? all world McDavid deterrent Brodin? 

isn't there such a thing as FA also where you can pick up a D to play 3rd pair? or you don't think 7.5 MM of extra money can help you more than 36 year old injured (slow and tiny) defenseman?

[B1GKappa97]

1 hour ago, OldDutchChip said:

Move Spurge for a pick to Chicago or talk to your friend at Pitts (who love colleting antiques) or Buffalo (who love collecting MN players) and give that C to Kap already. And along with C offer him 16 MM per this July. 

For better or worse, Spurgeon is not getting moved. 

He's at 913 games played. He is going to be in a Wild sweater when he hits 1k. 

[OldDutchChip]

1 minute ago, B1GKappa97 said:

For better or worse, Spurgeon is not getting moved. 

He's at 913 games played. He is going to be in a Wild sweater when he hits 1k. 

unfortunately you are right.