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By Bekki Antonelli -
On August 22, the Minnesota Wild announced that they had signed Marco Rossi to a 3-year, $15 million contract. Rossi recorded career highs of 24 goals and 26 assists last year, and the cap is increasing from $88 million to $95.5 million next year and $113.5 million in 2027-28.
Rossi was reportedly looking for $6 to $7 million AAV, which seems like a fair number considering he has had 100 points in the past two seasons. So, why did the Wild offer Rossi a short-term deal of only $5 million AAV, and why did he accept it?
Guerin addressed the rumors that he doesn’t like Rossi on KFAN. Host Dan Barreiro pointed out that Guerin hasn’t been positive about Rossi. However, Guerin countered by saying the rumor was a media narrative. John Hynes placed Rossi on the fourth line because he “didn’t play well for a couple games.”
It’s clear which games Guerin is referencing. The first is Minnesota’s April 9 matchup against the San Jose Sharks. It was Kirill Kaprizov and Joel Eriksson Ek’s first game back off injured reserve, and the oddsmakers favored the Wild by -340 over a last-place team. Instead, Minnesota scraped by with an 8-7 win.
Mats Zuccarello, Kaprizov, and Rossi played on the first line, and all three were on the ice for 3 goals for and 2 goals against. Rossi was on the ice for an additional goal against, while Kaprizov and Rossi were on the ice for an additional goal for.
In their first goal against, Zuccarello and Kaprizov were pressuring Sharks players while Rossi was trying to block lanes out front. Rossi failed to block a pass from William Eklund down low to Tyler Toffoli. Toffoli was then able to shoot around him and score.
Later in the game, a similar play developed where Nikolai Kovalenko was positioned in front of the net with the puck. Rossi wasn’t able to get to him quickly enough, allowing Kovalenko to score.
Rossi had 2 assists in this game, one of which was from batting the puck out of the air at the net, which Joel Eriksson Ek put in the back of the net, and the other was a pass much earlier in the play. While batting the puck out of the air is impressive, it’s not a reliable way to produce points. In neither case did Rossi set up his teammates to score particularly well.
Two days later, Minnesota lost 4-2 to the Calgary Flames with Kaprizov, Rossi, and Zuccarello on the first line again. With 3:35 left in the first, Mikael Backlund is out front. Rossi heads in to cover him, but does not pick up his stick. Backlund picks up a pass and stuffs the puck in the net. Minnesota’s first line didn't score the rest of the game.
The Wild probably expected Kaprizov, Zuccarello, and Rossi to be more productive on the top line. Kaprizov and Zuccarello are the more experienced, proven players. Therefore, Rossi likely is culpable for the line’s mishaps, especially since it was Rossi’s player who scored on multiple occasions.
In response to the San Jose and Calgary games, Minnesota moved Rossi down to play with Gustav Nyquist and Marcus Foligno for 2 games. Rossi played fine, but didn’t score or stand out enough to elevate into the top-6.
In Minnesota’s first-round series against the Vegas Golden Knights. Rossi doesn’t have a single minute of playoff experience, unlike the Wild’s other top-6 forwards.
Despite 2 strong seasons, it makes sense to put him on the 4th line, at least to start the series. Playoff hockey is always faster, more intense, and requires better defensive ability. Hynes and Guerin likely decided to go with players they knew could compete at the playoff intensity, and they’d ask Rossi to improve his defense in the offseason.
However, Rossi scored 2 goals and an assist during the playoffs while playing with Yakov Trenin and Justin Brazeau. Still, he didn’t see more than 12 minutes of ice time in a game for the series.
In the KFAN interview, Guerin credits Rossi for playing really well in the playoffs, but notes that Ryan Hartman was playing “unbelievably well.” He said that the Wild felt they had the talent to replace Rossi on the front lines.
Still, this saga likely impacted Rossi in contract negotiations. Other teams are going to assume there is a good reason that Rossi played significantly less during the playoffs.
They might speculate about issues behind the scenes or agree with Hynes and Guerin that he must improve defensively. Rossi also said publicly that he was “very disappointed” with his ice time, but that he respected the decision. While he was courteous about it, coaches often object to players suggesting they should have had more ice time.
On May 29, The Athletic ranked Rossi 2nd on their list of top trade targets. After a great season with only a couple of mediocre games toward the end, and a great playoff run, Rossi expected a high market value.
The Wild offered Rossi a 5-year, $25 million deal, which he turned down. Rossi reportedly was looking for around $7 million AAV. He might’ve been able to get it if he were an unrestricted free agent, but as a restricted free agent, he had no leverage.
Guerin said that he would match any offer, and every other team knew Guerin would pay at least $5 million AAV. General managers don’t often use offer sheets because they can create tensions with other teams. Even if another team offered $6 or $7 million, the Wild would likely match it anyway. Unless a team was sure Rossi was worth significantly more than $5 million, an offer sheet would only sour relations and be a waste of time.
According to the Worst Seats in the House podcast, other teams attempted to trade for Rossi, but the Wild didn’t like the players that teams were offering in return. They also mentioned that Rossi would not want to be late to training camp, and continuing negotiations would likely mean him missing some or all of camp.
Rossi ultimately signed a 3-year, $5 million deal, which is arguably better than a 5-year deal because he didn’t give up any UFA seasons.
Guerin has stated that he has no issues with Rossi, but the Wild dropped him down to the 4th line because of defensive mistakes in the games leading up to the playoffs, as well as his lack of experience. Still, even when he produced in the playoffs, Minnesota didn’t move him back up. Rossi ended the season on a sour note, and he had less room to negotiate in the offseason.
Minnesota’s decision to keep Rossi on the 4th line became news, highlighting Rossi’s defensive weaknesses. Ultimately, Rossi might be worth more than $5 million AAV, but due to his lack of leverage, Guerin signed him to a lower-value bridge contract. Everyone must decide for themselves whether the tension between Guerin and Rossi is a media narrative.
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