By Robert Brent -
All eyes in Minnesota are on the playoffs and the arrival of highly-touted prospect Zeev Buium. While getting mixed up in the end-of-season excitement is easy, the off-season will be upon us in short order.
The Minnesota Wild will finally have some cap room this offseason after the Zach Parise and Ryan Suter contracts expire. That financial freedom comes at a pivotal time for the Wild, who have many promising pieces on the roster but are deeply flawed. Minnesota will now have the chance to shore up some weaknesses through free agency.
One option for the Wild's offseason recently emerged when Vancouver Canucks forward and pending free agent Brock Boeser told Sportsnet it was "unlikely" that he would return to Vancouver next season. If Boeser hits free agency, he'll immediately become one of the most sought-after prizes this summer.
With the opportunity to bring in a difference maker, Minnesota should take a good long look at adding Boeser to the team if the price is right. The goal-scoring forward could bring a lot to the team.
The most helpful aspect of a Boeser addition would be that he fills gaps for the team as it's currently constructed. The team sorely lacks depth scoring, with most of the heavy lifting coming from only four players (Matt Boldy, Kirill Kaprizov, Marco Rossi, Mats Zuccarello). Frederick Gaudreau has had an excellent bounce-back season, but he's fifth in scoring on the Wild with only 37 points. Minnesota desperately needs to add scoring to be in serious contention.
Boeser would immediately be one of the Wild's most dangerous scorers. He averages .78 points per game over his career and is one season removed from his career-best season, where he scored 40 goals and 73 points.
While he isn't a strong defender, Boeser's offensive contributions and ability to drive events on the ice far outweigh those negative results. Throughout his career, Boeser has never posted a Corsi-For or Fenwick rating below 50. He has also never had a negative on-ice expected goals% and has been one of Vancouver’s best offensive performers every year of his career.
Source: Moneypuck.com
Boeser should also appeal to the Wild because he’s a powerplay weapon. Minnesota has struggled with extra-skater opportunities this season, ranking 19th in the league with a 21.1% conversion rate. They've even had to get creative with a five-forward unit to kickstart their powerplay.
Adding Boeser would be an immediate boon to that unit. He’s dangerous on the powerplay because he can score from all areas of the ice. Boeser possesses an elite shot as a right-handed forward, but he scores most of his goals in front of the net with the man advantage.
In 2023-24, Boeser ranked seventh in the NHL in power-play goals, tallying 16 times with the extra attacker. It was the third time in his career that Boeser scored double-digit power-play goals. Minnesota needs that kind of power-play weapon.
The Wild need to add players who drive winning. Minnesota hasn’t advanced in the playoffs since 2014-15 and needs to add players who can contribute to a deep playoff run.
At first glance, Boeser may not fit that build. He isn't the stereotypical bruising player who gets to the tough areas who are often associated with playoff success. Still, he's a proven postseason performer. The Canucks haven’t reached the playoffs frequently in Boeser's career, but they make deep runs when they do, and Boeser is a key contributor.
In 29 career playoff games, Brock Boeser has scored 11 goals and 12 assists for 23 points. That’s a .79 points-per-game pace, which makes him a more effective scorer in the postseason than in the regular season.
While Boeser is a good fit for the Wild's lineup, a free-agency move for the forward would include a substantial price tag. Fortunately for Minnesota, they should have plenty of money to spend. According to Puckpedia, the Wild should have roughly $21 million to play with this offseason.
The Wild must work out new deals for Kirill Kaprizov and Marco Rossi (should they choose to keep Rossi), which will eat into that budget a bit. Still, Minnesota has already mostly solidified its roster for next season.
Minnesota has nine forwards from its current who are still under contract for next season. Pending unrestricted free agents Gustav Nyquist, Marcus Johansson, and Justin Brazeau should easily be replaced by prospects like Liam Ohgren and Danila Yurov. The Wild are already set at defense with six current players under contract for next year, and David Jiricek is waiting to return from injury.
Still, the Wild should have plenty of cap space to leverage in a Boeser bidding war. We already have some clues on how much that might run them. Boeser reportedly turned down a contract extension from Vancouver worth $8 million annually over five years.
According to a Nick Kypreos report, Boeser would be looking to make north of $8 million on an 8-year deal. If he hits unrestricted free agency, his number could increase slightly. Still, a 7-year contract for around $8.5 million is likely close to his asking price.
The Wild undoubtedly could afford that, but would it be a sound investment? He fills a huge need for the team. He'd be a significant boon to the team's depth-scoring and powerplay woes. He should be worth nearly $8.5 million at the beginning of the deal, but it may become problematic toward the end of that contract when Boeser is in his mid-30s.
Fortunately, the cap will skyrocket, growing from $88 million this season to $113.5 million by 2027-28. An $8.5 million contract is now worth 9.6% of the cap. By 2027-28, that will shrink to just 7.5% of the cap. That's equivalent to a $6.6 million average annual salary under the current cap. Can Boeser live up to that later in the contract? It's certainly conceivable.
Any unrestricted free-agency signing carries significant risks. You have to overpay players to attract high-level talent. The time is right for the Wild to take one of those risks. The team should look for the final pieces to contend. If they can solidify deals with vital players like Rossi and Kaprizov. Boeser is the perfect piece for that push to the next level.
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