Marat Khusnutdinov, We Hardly Knew Ye

“Asset Management” is something of a hockey-writer buzzword. Usually, it’s a euphemism writers use to say they didn’t like something a GM did. 

In this case, that’s partly true. However, along with that perspective, the Marat Khusnutdinov trade seems to be a failure of patience. In the interest of maximizing playoff chances this year, management just sold an asset that was about to mature. 

The trade is not without its benefits. The Minnesota Wild sent out Khusnutdinov, Jakub Lauko, and a sixth-round pick for Justin Brazeau, a 27-year-old right-handed winger with a solid two-way game. Brazeau’s offensive impacts are much better than Khusnutdinov or Lauko’s this year.

For a team ranked 26th in five-on-five goals per minute, that’s a significant impact. Between Nyquist replacing Lauko and Brazeau replacing Khusnutdinov, that could be an extra one to four goals over a playoff series. 

It’s also helpful for the Wild to consolidate a long list of bottom-six wingers before the trade: Lauko, Nyquist, Marcus Foligno, Vinnie Hinostroza, and Yakov Trenin can’t all play on the bottom two lines. On top of that, the Wild had three bottom-six centers in Khusnutdinov, Ryan Hartman, and Freddy Gaudreau. Shipping out two of those players for one better player makes sense and still leaves Minnesota an extra forward in case of injury. 

On the other hand, the Wild traded away center depth. That’s typically a strength of teams who make a deep playoff run. 

Brazeau’s size makes him a natural fit for Hynes’s penalty kill system, which is predicated on denying zone entries rather than in-zone defense. Faster, smaller players such as Khusnutdnov and Lauko are better for in-zone defense when the opponent has the puck on their stick, but Brazeau’s 6-foot-5 frame gives him the reach to stand at the blue line and prevent zone entries. It’s also better suited to battling in the corner to win and clear pucks, another of Hynes’s priorities on the PK. 

Jakub Lauko and Marat Khusnutdinov have had good isolated impacts on the penalty kill already -- especially Khusnutdinov. On the other hand, that’s only an 81-minute sample at four-on-five, so analytics should take a backseat to the opinions of Minnesota’s coaches and pro scouts. Also, the Wild’s penalty kill hasn’t been good overall, so perhaps Brazeau’s scheme fit will buoy the success of the rest of the unit in a way not captured by his measured analytical impacts. 

There’s no question that the purpose of this trade was to fill out Minnesota’s depth scoring and hope that Brazeau and Nyquist can help the PK more than Lauko and Khusnutdinov. The question is, will this all be worth it? 

Minnesota is paying a high price for Brazeau. For starters, the Wild sent the Boston Bruins a bottom-six replacement in Lauko and a sixth-round pick to grease the wheels. More importantly, they’re parting with the most valuable long-term asset in Khusnutdinov. 

There’s no reason to expect Khusnutdinov to be a more effective player than Brazeau in the near future. While he’s a measurably inferior player in his rookie year, Brazeau is 27 and has only played 76 NHL games. Research from HockeyViz.com indicates that players’ offensive and defensive impacts peak years before age 27, so Brazeau’s chances of improving his current performance rely on bad luck in small samples. 

On the other hand, Khusnutdinov is only 22. The odds of him continuing to progress at the NHL level are very reasonable. While his 2024-25 offensive numbers are at or below replacement level, he’s performed the basic functions of a bottom-six center -- typically a role reserved for veterans -- as a rookie. In his first year playing on North American-sized ice sheets, stepping into a shutdown role and taking faceoffs is extremely admirable. 

Given an offseason and training camp to focus on his offensive game, it’s easy to project an improvement in his dismal offensive performance without sacrificing his defensive acumen. 

There are already signs of an offensive uptick peeking through this season. Plays like Khusnutdinov's assist against the New York Islanders show he's more comfortable with the puck on his stick in the offensive zone. 

In this case, he finds a way to use his skating to pull defenseman Tony DeAngelo (NYI No. 4) out of position. It’s a flash of offensive skill from the Russian centerman despite the limited space on the NHL ice sheets compared to those in the KHL. 

Just because he had an assist a month ago doesn’t mean he’s turned a corner offensively. Still, his edgework and vision are signals of untapped potential. 

Khusnutdinov’s defensive game is already effective. With a year or two to adapt to the limited space and superior talent in the NHL, it’s easy to imagine him becoming a middle-six center who can center a scoring line or play an effective checking role. That type of player is worth a $5 or $6 million AAV. 

Compare that to his trade value this year, in which he just one piece of a trade that netted a player whose on-ice value is only half of that. 

NHL asset management is more than just maximizing wins. Playoff wins are more important than regular season wins, so we must consider championship windows. At some point, though, should a team go all-in when there’s a chance to double their ROI one or two seasons down the road? 

It will be clear soon if this was an effective use of Khusnutdinov’s cost-controlled years. Perhaps Brazeau will prove the Wild’s pro scouts right with a few timely playoff goals. After all, Guerin’s staff has been right before about Vinnie Hinistroza and Declan Chisholm. 

On the other hand, if Khusnutdinov takes reasonable steps forward in the next two seasons in Boston -- his second and third full seasons in the NHL -- Brazeau will have to put together one hell of a 2025 playoffs to make that worth it.