Article: Is There Any Reason To Fret Over Signing Kaprizov For Eight Years?

[Tony Abbott]

View full article

[Scalptrash]

Yes, he's now injury prone after Logan Stanley broke him. I've said it a few times here, I'd look to trade him this summer. Tage Thompson and Jiri Kulich? Take the risk out of him not re-signing here and don't overpay him to stay.

[MNCountryLife]

This will undoubtedly be the MOST important signing for the Wild this year and the duration of the contract.  It will dictate just about every financial move going forward while that contract is in place... Just like the Parise/Suter signings did.  Other teams and players will also be paying attention.  Do it right and we will have a contender.  Do it wrong and we will have a pretender.  Good luck GMBG.  Your negotiation skill will likely keep you around or negatively impact the next GM as well.  

Unless you sign Nojo... in which case I want you fired no matter what.  🤡

Edited Wednesday at 04:32 PM by MNCountryLife

[Patrick]

16 x 8 is a joke right?  Can you imagine the Wild paying 16 million a year for 65 points at the end of the deal.  Please no. 

[Up North Guy]

27 minutes ago, Scalptrash said:

Yes, he's now injury prone after Logan Stanley broke him. I've said it a few times here, I'd look to trade him this summer. Tage Thompson and Jiri Kulich? Take the risk out of him not re-signing here and don't overpay him to stay.

May be true, may not be true. No one knows if kk will be healthy or not, same as all the players. That said, there is no chance that he gets traded unless he does not sign a new contract. I am not sure of his contract situation whether he has trade protection. I would assume he does judging by all the other contracts on the team.

[ArizonaWildFan]

The next big step in KK's development is seeing, sensing and feeling defensive pressure better and sooner and learning how to react to that pressure quicker. I think Kap is a fantastic player and one of the top 10 or 15 in the league. However, with the contract amount and term that he will sign for, I'd like to see him become a top five.

I think Kirill's Achilles is letting one-on-ones become two and three-on-ones too often. He has terrific skating, puck handling and passing skills, but those skills are difficult to use when there are two or three NHL-level defenders on you. The lesson is that when you have two or three guys on you, there should be two or three of your guys open somewhere on the ice.

Part of the problem could be that teammates are not moving and getting in a position to help relieve pressure on Kap. I can recall more than a few occasions when linemates get caught puck watching rather than moving when KK is on the move. Either way, Kaprizov and Co. need to learn how to deal with defensive pressure more effectively to get him to the next level. It may also increase his durability and longevity if he can take fewer hits.

[Mateo3xm]

58 minutes ago, Scalptrash said:

Yes, he's now injury prone after Logan Stanley broke him. I've said it a few times here, I'd look to trade him this summer. Tage Thompson and Jiri Kulich? Take the risk out of him not re-signing here and don't overpay him to stay.

You obviously have no idea how injury prone Thompson is..

[Kato AK]

57 minutes ago, Scalptrash said:

Yes, he's now injury prone after Logan Stanley broke him. I've said it a few times here, I'd look to trade him this summer. Tage Thompson and Jiri Kulich? Take the risk out of him not re-signing here and don't overpay him to stay.

KK has a NMC, so he can only be traded with his approval. Do you think it would help extension talks to say "oh yeah, is there any teams youre willing to waive your NMC for?"

[raithis]

39 minutes ago, ArizonaWildFan said:

I think Kirill's Achilles is letting one-on-ones become two and three-on-ones too often.

Most of the team does that, so I think it may be a system issue.

Even when it's 1v1 or 2v2 in the offensive zone and the rest of the players from both teams haven't gotten back yet, there's a tendency to hold up and wait for the rest of the team.  Of course the other team is more likely to get back first, leading to turnovers or pressuring an ill-advised pass that causes the team to extend a lot of energy to maintain possession.

I'd like to see everyone on the team attack more often in those situations.

One of the few who does is Boldy, but it depends on whether he is in power forward or sniper mode for that game.  Hynes needs to get him to toggle that switch over to power forward and glue it there.  He's a lot more dangerous when he isn't standing still trying to be a sniper.

Hartman is also good about this.  He recognizes that space and open ice can be his ally.  Players like Johansson, Nyquist, etc skate up the side and then just stop.  If the skate any further it is around the back of the goal.  The first thing they do is look to pass the puck away rather than to attack.  We need people who are looking to attack at least 50% of the time there is an opportunity to do so.

[Dean]

Reading a yahoo article about possible Rossi trades , they brought up some interesting analytics. Fred g is an was the worst analytics player in the entire playoffs .  He did nothing offensively or defensively. The weakest player in the entire playoffs an yet he still was given more opportunities than Rossi . The idea a healthy wild team put him out there as 2 nd line center is  a dereliction of duty .  Billy cries about having his hand tied because of cap penalties yet keeps giving  fred g opportunities. Fred g ties the teams hands with his sheepish play , wasted opportunities taken from others an a roster spot Rossi an others sit behind so he can be the worst analytical player in playoffs.. 3 more years of him and the wild making excuses for him. 
   So I guess what does it matter what kappy signs for when Billy employs dead weight like Fred g. How can you be a contender when you can’t even evaluate your own players?  Fred g needs to be gone to really believe the wild are serious about winning. If you want to build a contender. Start by getting rid of dead weight that has no value . 40 point fred half of which were empty netters a the other half against Chicago.  Billy is a fraud. 

[Wild for Wild]

Just coming out of the shadow of the Parise Sutter cap disaster, I'm in the "no" camp. Already has history of lower body injuries, latest requiring surgery. 8 years isn't 13, but a long term commitment. 

[TCMooch]

3 hours ago, Scalptrash said:

Yes, he's now injury prone after Logan Stanley broke him. I've said it a few times here, I'd look to trade him this summer. Tage Thompson and Jiri Kulich? Take the risk out of him not re-signing here and don't overpay him to stay.

I would love to see what we would get in return if we sign and trade him (like in an NHL game I mean not real life come on) Can we even do that? He’s an unrestricted free agent so probably won’t get crap or much in a trade.

Edited Wednesday at 08:02 PM by TCMooch

[Pewterschmidt]

32 minutes ago, Dean said:

Fred g is an was the worst analytics player in the entire playoffs .  He did nothing offensively or defensively.

He’sa bubble nhl’r. Always has been.  His breakout year with Dean and his shootout skills has created a mirage that Fred is a competent nhl C.  He’s defensively ‘responsible’ but not effective. Offensively impotent.  

[FredJohnson]

“In 2012, the State of Hockey celebrated the Minnesota Wild signing two coveted free agents to 13-year, $98 million deals.”

Kiril is a lot better than Parise or Suter were back then (plus he’s just one player not two taking up all the cap). Don’t forget that Penguin Bettman gave us the prison shower treatment when he implemented the cap recapture rule that made the Parise-Suter deals so dangerous. Unless 8 year deals get punished like those 13 year ones were, we’ll be fine.

 

[BrianPatrick]

Marner will get 14-15 million probably 7 years so Kaprizov should get the same. Hey Wild fans, would you trade Rossi for Cam York and Philadelphia’s last first round pick 25’ ?

[ArizonaWildFan]

Feedback requested. McDavid and Draisaitl; who's Batman and who's Robin? Would McDavid be McJesus without Leon and vice versa? Throw Zach Hyman, who is a good but not great NHL'er, in with those two and he often looks spectacular.

The reason for the questions is trying to figure out how the Wild could build a line like that around Kirill. To me, KK could be the Draisaitl. Hartman could be the Hyman. McDavid? Not Ek, Rossi or Gaudreau (obviously). Do you bring Yurov in and tell him that you are going to do everything possible and give him every opportunity to become the Soviet McJesus? I would. Don't bury him in the bottom six, let him succeed and fail and learn and improve.

Think of what you could do with your second and third lines with Boldy, Ek, Rossi, Zuccarello, Foligno and maybe an Ohgren. You have to believe that Kap would do everything possible to make Yurov successful and I have to believe Hartman would up his game consistently playing top line like he has done in the past. To me, Hartman works and plays harder further up the lineup as opposed to being bottom six.

Throw Danila into the fire from Day 1. He and the team will get burned every now and then, but he may also be the fuel that feeds the fire. Treat him like the Blackhawks did with Bedard or the Sharks did with Celebrini. If the Wild do, he and KK could be our Batmanov and Robinov for years to come.

[Sam]

19 minutes ago, ArizonaWildFan said:

Would McDavid be McJesus without Leon and vice versa?

Have you paid any attention or seen any highlights of McDavid? He is the epitome of a one man wrecking crew. He McDangles threw 3 or 4 guys with ridiculous speed. Yes, I am somewhat of a fanboy, but it’s hard not to be. Leon is really good too, no doubt. 
 

[ArizonaWildFan]

28 minutes ago, Sam said:

Have you paid any attention or seen any highlights of McDavid

I think McDavid is the best player in the league and is a generational talent. I love watching him play, even against the Wild. He's playing 5 on 5, PP and PK. Reminds me of Michael Jordan. MJ was very good, became great, and when he started to prioritize defense he became the GOAT.

[Beast]

It’s the price you pay for a player of that caliber.

I’m not saying they should or shouldn’t, or that Kaprizov is that guy.  But, if you want a high end point scorer, it’s how life works.  And those guys tend to be pretty important when it comes to winning.  

Steven Stamkos, used as an example in the article, won multiple cups during his prime.  If a player like him comes up for a contract at age 27, you’re going to have to pay him in his mid 30s for the benefit of owning the rights for the seasons in his 20s.  Tarasenko, used an example, also won a Cup in his relative prime.

I’d gladly pay Kirill in his age 34 season for  a Cup in his age 29 season.  What I don’t know is if Geurin is capable of icing a team capable of that, or if he’ll continue to surround him with mediocrity.

[ArizonaWildFan]

1 hour ago, Beast said:

I’d gladly pay Kirill in his age 34 season for  a Cup in his age 29 season.

Completely agree, Beast. Very good point.

[Enforceror]

13 hours ago, ArizonaWildFan said:

Batmanov and Robinov

🤣

[MNCountryLife]

14 hours ago, ArizonaWildFan said:

The reason for the questions is trying to figure out how the Wild could build a line like that around Kirill. To me, KK could be the Draisaitl. Hartman could be the Hyman. McDavid?

As good as Kirill is he is still probably only top 15 in the league.  McDavid and Draisaitl are both arguably better than Kirill.  McDavid is the best in the league.  That is the best line in hockey and they ride that 1 line to the cup.  Pretty amazing ... and I would think rare. 

Building a team like Florida, Vegas or Carolina seems a lot more viable.   Those teams have depth and structure.  Toronto tried to build a line like Edmonton... but they don't have the best player in the league.... Yeah.. I'm a fan of McDavid as well.  You have to appreciate what that guy does on ice.  He is on another level.  Matthews is a great player.. but not on that level.

Edited 10 hours ago by MNCountryLife

[Imyourhuckleberry]

20 hours ago, TCMooch said:

He’s an unrestricted free agent so probably won’t get crap or much in a trade.

Kaprizov is not an unrestricted free agent. He is under contract for next season and if the Wild were to consider trading him, they would get a major return.

I think they'll want to avoid that situation and keep him with a nice extension, then continue to build around him. The defense looks pretty nicely set and they have a chance to add some offensive talent to help take another step.

[bean5302]

Kaprisov is a top 5 point generation talent in the NHL. He's a game changing talent which turns a team from a playoff caliber organization to a Stanley Cup caliber organization. You pay him because guys like Kaprisov get you Stanley Cup trophies. He's what Marian Gaborik could have been. Speaking of Gaborik, the oft injured forward managed to play very well through age 32, and I think Gaborik is kind of a worst reasonable case for Kaprisov.

As far as the amount of the contract, I wouldn't expect it'll be much higher than $14MM AAV. Enough to get him the biggest contract should be enough, IMHO.

The cap has been increasing, on average, by about 4.4% annually. In 8 years, the cap would be expected to be $121MM or so. Depending on the way the contract is structured, the Wild should be able to remain competitive even if Kaprisov declines in the final couple years of an 8 year deal.

[Up North Guy]

15 hours ago, ArizonaWildFan said:

Feedback requested. McDavid and Draisaitl; who's Batman and who's Robin? Would McDavid be McJesus without Leon and vice versa? Throw Zach Hyman, who is a good but not great NHL'er, in with those two and he often looks spectacular.

The reason for the questions is trying to figure out how the Wild could build a line like that around Kirill. To me, KK could be the Draisaitl. Hartman could be the Hyman. McDavid? Not Ek, Rossi or Gaudreau (obviously). Do you bring Yurov in and tell him that you are going to do everything possible and give him every opportunity to become the Soviet McJesus? I would. Don't bury him in the bottom six, let him succeed and fail and learn and improve.

Think of what you could do with your second and third lines with Boldy, Ek, Rossi, Zuccarello, Foligno and maybe an Ohgren. You have to believe that Kap would do everything possible to make Yurov successful and I have to believe Hartman would up his game consistently playing top line like he has done in the past. To me, Hartman works and plays harder further up the lineup as opposed to being bottom six.

Throw Danila into the fire from Day 1. He and the team will get burned every now and then, but he may also be the fuel that feeds the fire. Treat him like the Blackhawks did with Bedard or the Sharks did with Celebrini. If the Wild do, he and KK could be our Batmanov and Robinov for years to come.

Interesting off season ideas. Of course, no one knows what Yurov will be like in the NHL so it is an academic exercise. The team still needs another front line forward, in case Yurov needs more cooking in the A. Ek, Moose and another banger would make a great 2 or 3 line. Rossi, Zucci and Ohgren would also make a solid 2-3 line.