Can the Wild Balance Current and Future Needs With Their Goalie Trio?

Filip Gustavsson trade rumors have circulated all offseason. The NHL Draft and free agency have come and gone, but Gustavsson is still on the Minnesota Wild’s roster, meaning they will start the season with the same goalie duo they had last year. Marc-Andre Fleury will enter his age-40 season, and Gustavsson will be coming off a down year. Both are in the last year of their contracts. 

The Wild also has its goalie of the future playing in the AHL. Jesper Wallstedt came over from Sweden last year and has spent the previous two seasons seasoning in the AHL. Wallstedt is entering his age-22 season and should be the Iowa Wild’s starter next year. 

The Wild’s goalie situation is in limbo. Fleury is set to play his last year in the NHL before retiring after the season. Gustavsson’s future is uncertain, and he must earn a contract extension to stay in Minnesota. There’s a reality where neither Fleury nor Gustavsson is on the roster at the start of the 2025-26 season. 

There is a chance that Minnesota will re-sign Gustavsson or sign a goalie to play with Wallstedt. The Wild won’t have to pay a lot of money for a bonafide starter because they hope they’ll have one in Wallstedt. 

That would leave Minnesota in a tough spot: starting a 22-year-old goalie as a full-time NHL starter. The Wild must find a way to give Wallstedt some NHL experience this season for his confidence and the front office’s in him. 

The only long-term contract the Wild should be giving out is to Fleury as a coach or to Wallstedt to snag him at a below-market rate for a few more years with the expectation that he will be a stud. 

Wallstedt’s stats did not dramatically improve from Year 1 to Year 2 in the AHL, but the team and defense in front of him did. Wallstedt was operating under a new coaching staff and a very young group of defenders. 

In Wallstedt’s first year in the AHL, he recorded a 2.68 Goals Against Average (GAA) and a .908 Save Percentage (SV%) in 38 games while operating as a 1B option to veteran AHL goalie Zane McIntyre. However, Wallstedt was the starter last year and played in 45 games with a 2.70 GAA and a .910 SV%. Wallstedt was voted to the AHL all-star game, capping a solid season for the young Swede. 

The Wild used Dakota Mermis in the NHL for most of the season. That left a young defensive corps in the AHL: Carson Lambos, Ryan O’Rourke, David Spacek, and Daemon Hunt are all under 23. The AHL is a tough league, and defenders can take a while to adjust to the league’s speed and skill. There were many instances Iowa’s inexperienced defenders made life difficult for him. 

Wallstedt played in three NHL games last season. However, his stats are deceiving because his terrible first game against the Dallas Stars was a challenging first NHL experience. Allowing six goals in your first NHL game is not an encouraging sign. Still, Wallstedt only let up two goals over his next two games, including a shutout in Chicago. 

If either Fleury or Gus is injured, the Wild may be forced to play Wallstedt. While no one wants to see a player get injured, it would force the Wild to see what they have in Wallstedt. 

Assuming the Fleury-Gustavsson tandem stays healthy, it makes sense to bring Wallstedt up when Iowa has breaks or when there is a back-to-back that would be convenient for him to play in. Wallstedt better get used to the cornfields off of I-94.

If the Wild are out of the playoff hunt by the end of the season, it would also make sense to allow Wallstedt to play in those games. If the Wild are out of the playoff picture, at least they can learn more about their young goalie. 

Another reason to occasionally elevate Wallstedt to the NHL this season is so that Fleury can mentor him. The future Hall of Famer has a plethora of wisdom, and his presence would be great for a talented young goalie like Wallstedt. Allowing Wallstedt to be around the team so he can learn from Fleury should accelerate his development. 

Who knows, if the Wild need a spark of offense, Wallstedt can even bring a little bit of that, too…

The Wild need to see what they have in their netminder of the future. Fleury has nothing to prove anymore, and not a soul knows how this season will go for Gustavsson. Wallstedt is a crucial part of the Wild’s future, so it's time to see if he’s the player they hope he can be. 

All stats and data via HockeyDB, Evolving Hockey, and Elite Prospects unless otherwise noted.