Article: Bill Guerin Looks Like He's Going Pick Up A Win In the Marco Rossi Negotiation

[Justin Hein]

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[Kato AK]

And Guerin just lost some negotiation leverage...Frank Nazar signed a 7 year x $6.6 Mil deal. He is younger, produced fewer points and the same size as Rossi. 

[Pewterschmidt]

Instead, this is a master stroke on Guerin’s part. By leaking this information, he’s essentially negotiating through the media.

 Crediting bill with 3D chess skills contradicts what we’ve been watching for seven years   

 

Call it heavy-handed, short-sighted, or a negotiating masterclass. With the dust all but settled, Guerin has won

heavy handed is not illegal and is sometimes just good business and I agree bill has won (if he signs Rossi).  If bill gives him away to VAN for some journeyman grinder and a 3rd , that’s just Bill being Bill

[Imyourhuckleberry]

I don't buy the conspiracy.  Russo has created most of the controversy with his messaging on Rossi, always suggesting the Wild don't love him, and are likely to trade him, and asking about contracts or other free agents they like.

It's Russo's job to report on the Wild, and he does deliver some interesting stuff, but at some point, I think Guerin was tired of Russo suggesting that he doesn't like Rossi and gave the information that they Wild had offered the $5M deal across 5 years as an indication that he wouldn't offer a contract of that nature for a player he doesn't like.

Please note how many 5+ year deals Guerin has issued as GM and let me know if any of them were bad contracts.  Guerin's job is to deliver the best team he can on the ice, and that likely includes getting a good deal on Rossi, not paying top of the market prices to retain a restricted free agent.

 

[0 Stanley Cups]

BG may have the upper hand at the moment in the Rossi negotiations, but the unintended consequences may be free agents not wanting to sign here in the future.  A Tarasenko salary dump was his big addition this offseason.

If BG doesn't re-sign 97, he's fired.  If Wild miss playoffs this season, fired.  Another first round playoff exit, he's definitely in the hot seat, but my gut tells me he would still get one more season.

[Justin Hein]

33 minutes ago, Imyourhuckleberry said:

It's Russo's job to report on the Wild, and he does deliver some interesting stuff, but at some point, I think Guerin was tired of Russo suggesting that he doesn't like Rossi and gave the information that they Wild had offered the $5M deal across 5 years as an indication that he wouldn't offer a contract of that nature for a player he doesn't like.

Please note how many 5+ year deals Guerin has issued as GM and let me know if any of them were bad contracts.  Guerin's job is to deliver the best team he can on the ice, and that likely includes getting a good deal on Rossi, not paying top of the market prices to retain a restricted free agent.

Fair if you think the leak was just a basic announcement to the media. 

However, I think that five years at $5 AAV in this cap environment is much lower than the production Rossi put out in '24-25. Projecting him forward at a $5 MM value for the next five years is an insane haircut given his age, production, two-way ability, and rising cap environment. 

It's clear that the league has a distaste for something in his build or playstyle. 

[Pewterschmidt]

6 minutes ago, Justin Hein said:

It's clear that the league has a distaste for something in his build or playstyle. 

I think it’s more about play style.  And it may be related to how he’s not overcoming his size.  Give me an example P-Brain.  Ok, when he plays against top 6 centers he’s unable to hold his own on the defensive side of the puck.  If Russo knew the game he would have reported this.  Lapanta, carts, king etc are all on Wild payroll so they’re not going to explain this.  Judd AJ are Vikings fans who drew short straw and had to do a hockey show.  Weird that in state of hockey we don’t get to have a hockey writer who can analyze the game

[Pewterschmidt]

6 minutes ago, Pewterschmidt said:

I think it’s more about play style.  And it may be related to how he’s not overcoming his size.  Give me an example P-Brain.  Ok, when he plays against top 6 centers he’s unable to hold his own on the defensive side of the puck.  If Russo knew the game he would have reported this.  Lapanta, carts, king etc are all on Wild payroll so they’re not going to explain this.  Judd AJ are Vikings fans who drew short straw and had to do a hockey show.  Weird that in state of hockey we don’t get to have a hockey writer who can analyze the game

And this is not shade on the HW overlords.   In order to make the determination on Rossi a reporter would need to be at the game watching the play away from the puck which you don’t get on TV.  

[NoJoSux]

The Euro game is generally not a hard, "kill or be killed" mentality. NA hockey has produced the Tom Wilsons, Brad Marchands, Mark Stones, Matthew Tkachuk, etc. 

There's a lot of good players who aren't ever gonna be that kind of guy on the ice. Hard to play against. That is the issue for Marco. This is a big year for him to prove otherwise. I'd take 40 points and more of a well-rounded guy, but the contract timing is now. 

His 60pts is nice, but not as valuable in the big picture compared to an Ek style game and size. Rossi has been durable. 

I think he just needs to get a bridge contract and have another good year. Maybe have a better playoffs and that can be the end of the long debate. For a lot of people, he still has to prove some things. 

[AKwildkraken]

I think Rossi should follow BullyG for a couple of days and learn how to implement some FU in his game.

It seems like he's putting in the effort to get bigger and better.  Now he needs to get meaner (on the ice).

Edited August 21 by AKwildkraken

[Patrick]

BG has signed few decent contracts and a handful of terrible ones.  Its a wash.  He needs to be better if they Wild are going to contend. 

[Imyourhuckleberry]

17 minutes ago, NoJoSux said:

His 60pts is nice, but not as valuable in the big picture compared to an Ek style game and size. Rossi has been durable. 

60 points is nice, but when Hartman scored 65 for the Wild, I don't recall too many people saying he needed to be making more than Eriksson Ek, and certainly nobody was saying he needed more than a million above Eriksson Ek.

The Wild understand that Kaprizov elevates points for everyone around him, and that Rossi's point totals dropped off steeply when Kaprizov wasn't around, just like has happened for Hartman or Zuccarello when they are not playing with KK97.

Chandler Stephenson averaged 62 points per game playing with some of Vegas' top players, but they weren't going to pay him $6m+ because they knew he wasn't driving the scoring for the line. He was a useful player, but not a key piece.  He's how heading into year 2 of a long-term deal at $6,250,000 that nobody thinks was a good investment.

Rossi could develop into more than he's shown, and I hope he does so with the Wild, but let's not pretend that the Wild are treating him unfairly. I like Rossi. When many fans were ready to give up on Rossi, I was here saying you cannot give up on him so early--he still had time to deliver on his promising prospect evaluation. That doesn't mean that I don't think both Rossi and the Wild can come out in a good situation here.

The Wild are going to offer Rossi a contract that pays a lot of money and hope that he outperforms it--like contenders often do. They are not pay top dollar while he's a restricted free agent and just hope for the best, like lottery-bound teams are more likely to do.

[ArizonaWildFan]

Please don't give GMBG credit for any type of masterclass unless it's how to be an arrogant greaseball.

Did Guerin covet the Brocks (Nelson and Boeser) and want to sign one of them? Both Minnesota boys that played college at North Dakota and share the same agent, Ben Hankinson, who is also a Minnesota product. Why didn't the genius get either of them signed? He should have had the inside track. Nelson, who will be 34 on opening night, got 3 years at $7.5M AAV with the Avs and Boeser, who is 28, got 7x$7.25M with the Canucks.

In Boeser's eight full seasons he has averaged 54 points per season. His age 23 season he scored 49. His career high is 73. He is not noted for being defensively responsible or a great two-way player. He is -33 for his career.

Nelson has twelve NHL seasons and has averaged 50 points per season. He scored 42 in his age 23 season. He is +15 for his career. He has scored over 60 points in two of his twelve seasons, 69 and 75. A solid two-way player with a nice career.

That's who Silly G. wanted. Would he have signed the same contract that either of those guys signed? We don't know, but I think so to make a splash and give the fans their Christmas morning. But in his mind Rossi isn't worth what those two are worth? Does a 35 year old declining Boeser sound good seven years from now at $7.25AAV? The Canucks thought so. How about a 37 year old Nelson at $7.5M AAV three years from now? The Avalanche thought so.

Maybe Marco should consider changing his name. Billy would probably sign Brock Rossi to an 8x8!

[Scalptrash]

Billy is damaging his reputation and the team's, as long as he remains the GM. How do you think the prospects feel who are watching this unfold, especially if they are under six feet tall? How are younger free agents going to view MN? He's definitely putting on a master class in mis-management.

Don't be surprised if Kaprizov gets $16M, it would only make sense for the way he manages this team.

[raithis]

13 hours ago, ArizonaWildFan said:

Please don't give GMBG credit for any type of masterclass unless it's how to be an arrogant greaseball.

Did Guerin covet the Brocks (Nelson and Boeser) and want to sign one of them? Both Minnesota boys that played college at North Dakota and share the same agent, Ben Hankinson, who is also a Minnesota product. Why didn't the genius get either of them signed? He should have had the inside track. Nelson, who will be 34 on opening night, got 3 years at $7.5M AAV with the Avs and Boeser, who is 28, got 7x$7.25M with the Canucks.

In Boeser's eight full seasons he has averaged 54 points per season. His age 23 season he scored 49. His career high is 73. He is not noted for being defensively responsible or a great two-way player. He is -33 for his career.

Nelson has twelve NHL seasons and has averaged 50 points per season. He scored 42 in his age 23 season. He is +15 for his career. He has scored over 60 points in two of his twelve seasons, 69 and 75. A solid two-way player with a nice career.

That's who Silly G. wanted. Would he have signed the same contract that either of those guys signed? We don't know, but I think so to make a splash and give the fans their Christmas morning. But in his mind Rossi isn't worth what those two are worth? Does a 35 year old declining Boeser sound good seven years from now at $7.25AAV? The Canucks thought so. How about a 37 year old Nelson at $7.5M AAV three years from now? The Avalanche thought so.

Maybe Marco should consider changing his name. Billy would probably sign Brock Rossi to an 8x8!

Like it or not those were some of the best free agents available.  Others were likely to stay with their teams or, in Mariner's case, were seemingly only interested in a particular destination.  I also think that this is why Colorado and Vancouver offered the contracts they did to keep both of these players - the best chance they could get at replacing the loss of either of them was to re-sign the player even though the contract would age poorly.

I also don't think the Wild would have given either of them contracts of that size or that length.

You're saying all this based on the whole Christmas morning statement and reports that both Boeser and Nelson were interested in returning to Minnesota and that the Wild were open to the idea of bringing in one or both of them.

First of all, the Christmas morning thing was never going to be what fans and reporters made it out to be.  Yes, the Wild would have money to work with, but with the cap going up, there wasn't going to be the kind of gifts under that tree that people seemed to think there would be.  News flash, there won't be next year either.  With the cap going up like it is, you will have to mostly grow your team from within because there is too much competition for the few free agents that are available and the few that are left will be more depth pieces than star players.

Second, if Nelson and Boeser were so interested in Minnesota and Minnesota was so interested in them, why did they re-sign?  Obviously that interest wasn't as high as what was reported or there wasn't an indication that the Wild were planning to pay either of them as much for as long.  It seems more likely that the Wild were open to the idea of one or both players but that they were hoping for some sort of home discount.

Thirdly, if the Wild were looking so hard to make a splash in general, why didn't they go hard after one of the other free agents that were briefly available?  There is no evidence that they really did.  It seems like they assessed the situation, realized there wasn't going to be much and pivoted more towards growing the team internally, understanding that handing out a large contract just for the sake of doing so (even to Rossi) would only hurt their ability to be competitive later.  The only player they are likely to do that with at this point is Kaprizov, unless McDavid starts professing his desire to play here.

Nothing about what you are saying makes any sense.  You're drawing conclusions from click-bait headlines and not surveying the landscape as a whole.  If you look at the entire situation, you don't arrive at the same conclusion.

[mnfaninnc]

We have no particulars yet, but this seems like a short term victory. I do believe Rossi is a useful part of this team, and while maybe not the driver you would want, he is certainly a very high complimentary piece who can play with the best skill on the team.

The hope would be that Rossi would grow in the next year or two as a player (not in height), and would be worthy of a longterm deal, or he would be a piece that could get us an even better player. 

A bridge is the right way to go for him at this time. Many young players used to be bridged, it was just the way they things worked. This is also a good way for GMs to reset, and figure out what capflation means. GMs overreacting and handing out large contracts just because the cap is going up the next 3 years is not the way it should be handled. To the best that they can, they should be letting the dust settle. The GMs that do overreact will be in cap trouble when the cap rise stops.

[Justin Hein]

12 hours ago, Scalptrash said:

Billy is damaging his reputation and the team's, as long as he remains the GM. How do you think the prospects feel who are watching this unfold, especially if they are under six feet tall? How are younger free agents going to view MN? He's definitely putting on a master class in mis-management.

Don't be surprised if Kaprizov gets $16M, it would only make sense for the way he manages this team.

Every GM has the same three word response to this point about reputation: "It's a business." 

[Scalptrash]

1 hour ago, raithis said:

Thirdly, if the Wild were looking so hard to make a splash in general, why didn't they go hard after one of the other free agents that were briefly available?  There is no evidence that they really did.  It seems like they assessed the situation, realized there wasn't going to be much and pivoted more towards growing the team internally, understanding that handing out a large contract just for the sake of doing so (even to Rossi) would only hurt their ability to be competitive later.  The only player they are likely to do that with at this point is Kaprizov, unless McDavid starts professing his desire to play here.

Peterka should have been their hard target. For what Utah gave up to get him, he was very gettable by the Wild. Buffalo had interest in Rossi, they could have easily sweetened that deal. A huge opportunity missed.

It wouldn't have solved their center problem, but a very nice, young upgrade that would have paid many dividends. Then they don't sign Tarasenko and go after another center.

[Citizen Strife]

Peterka would have been nice, but Buffalo said flat out no to Rossi and something else.  They didn't want what the Wild were selling.  No sense adding even more pieces just to solve the issues.  Save that for something better, if that comes.

Besides, given what Utah signed Peterka for, why would the Wild pay him the money yet skimp on Rossi?  Rossi is a far more important positional player with more well-rounded skills.

 

 

Edited August 22 by Citizen Strife

[Scalptrash]

2 minutes ago, Citizen Strife said:

Peterka would have been nice, but Buffalo said flat out no to Rossi and something else.  They didn't want what the Wild were selling.

The cost was Faber and Rossi, which is too much, but who knows how hard they really tried. Sometimes moves like that are necessary if you want to win championships. I still think a deal could have been reached, but Billy is too stubborn (and arrogant).

[Citizen Strife]

If they really wanted Faber AND Rossi, then screw that.  Solving the winger problem doesn't solve the center issue, and doesn't justify weakening the lone strength the team has.  

Faber had a sophomore slump, but not enough to throw him away.  That's the sort of move you make for a Rantanen type trade.

 

Edited August 22 by Citizen Strife

[TheGoosesAreLooses]

18 hours ago, Justin Hein said:

Fair if you think the leak was just a basic announcement to the media. 

However, I think that five years at $5 AAV in this cap environment is much lower than the production Rossi put out in '24-25. Projecting him forward at a $5 MM value for the next five years is an insane haircut given his age, production, two-way ability, and rising cap environment. 

It's clear that the league has a distaste for something in his build or playstyle. 

I think it was less about not liking Rossi and more about Bill lowballing him, then saying outright they were going to match any offer sheet, and having the cap to do it. Even if a team wanted Rossi, why waste time and good will around the league by presenting an offer sheet that was going to get matched.

Smart move by Billy to pull that but it doesn't make him not an asshole. It was a ruthless negotiation tactic and not something you want to pull on a player you see a long term future with. I don't think it is a slight that Rossi will forget anytime soon.

Edited August 22 by TheGoosesAreLooses

[Dean]

Wow Billy is should get gm of the year for hard balling a kid with no arbitration rights. What a tough guy. Then he will piss it away on krill . If Billy was such a tough guy he would get kappy to take a team friendly deal like Florida does with there players.  He hasn’t done shit besides get a broken disgruntled winger after running his mouth about all the stuff he was going to do. Kappy and Rossi s  contracts will be a wash. Nothing gained this summer besides maintaining a weak undersized team that can’t win a playoff round . He can’t trade for crap because his prospects have no value. He can’t get free agents because his team is a laughing stock with it’s annual 1st round exits. 
   I like kappy and he’s worth the money but if the rest of your team is weak than what’s the point. Kappy will be injured every year come playoff time because he had to carry so much dead weight all year long. Billy hasn’t fixed the center situation or got this team any closer to winning a round. To think these kids are goi g to take us somewhere this year is a joke. Just like all the hype last year about these kids doing something. Billy had 6 years to implement a plan. He waited till year 5 to say now he’s got a 5 year plan. He’s a liar and a joke of a gm . Can’t get anything done to make this team better. We are just going through the Fletcher years again . He just replaced the mediocre with mediocre.  
  I will give Billy a compliment on finally getting rid of Fred g. . Thank the lord. 

[Pewterschmidt]

On 8/22/2025 at 7:41 AM, mnfaninnc said:

GMs overreacting and handing out large contracts just because the cap is going up the next 3 years is not the way it should be handled.

Agree.  Fiala got bridged too b/c bill wasn’t sold on him.  Some of these young guns who are getting 6 -7 year deals are gonna be anchors on the roster when they go full NoJo in middle of their careers

[NoJoSux]

18 minutes ago, Pewterschmidt said:

Agree.  Fiala got bridged too b/c bill wasn’t sold on him.  Some of these young guns who are getting 6 -7 year deals are gonna be anchors on the roster when they go full NoJo in middle of their careers

Rossi around 5M for three years is a great result. The timing allows MN to have an asset with a number that could facilitate a trade or be a great value for the team while allowing Rossi to be comfortable going forward.

Guerin's many gaffes and terrible decisions are often highlighted by complainers include mostly statements and attitude, plus stupid marketing vids. The terrible contracts some claim are examples like Trenin or NoJo who I can understand don't make certain fans happy, but Guerin has signed deals that are totally acceptable. None have handicapped or set back the team with horrendous consequences. 

Guerin is a goofbag and not the most likable but I don't buy all the reputation and destination arguments. GMBG has fairly treated plenty of guys and moved on from some of "His" guys as much as those he didn't appear to like. There's currently money available and the worst of the penalties are over while MN has some really good prospects on deck. Jiricek, Buium, Ogie, Yurov, and Wallstedt are almost an entire starting lineup. When you consider and DO NOT under-appreciate Kaprizov, GMBG has done well to get Ek, Boldy, Rossi, signed efficiently, and Sturm came back to MN. That tells me MN is doing fine and the GM is not the big problem, hot-seat, "should be fired" guy commenters say he is. If GMBG offered 5M to begin with times five years and now he got Rossi for 3x5M, that's another win. Keyboard warriors believe Guerin should have been fired from the time he said Fiala was a prima donna and playoff dud, or since he slapped back trash-talk from Talbot's agent and Wife. The record of the team under Guerin and the current scenario with his contract & acquisition batting average shows the GM is justifiably in that position and the commenters comprise the peanut gallery.