By Kalisha Turnipseed -
Marco Rossi is having a breakout season. He’s on pace for 28 goals and 40 assists and is starting to earn respect around the NHL because he’s produced even when he’s not on Kirill Kaprizov’s line.
Still, Bill Guerin doesn’t seem to see Rossi as part of Minnesota’s long-term future. Guerin likely wants players larger than Rossi, who’s 5-foot-9, 182 lbs., at center. Therefore, he’s likely still on the trade block.
If the Wild move Rossi, they should target Los Angeles Kings center Quinton Byfield.
Byfield is a big center (6-foot-5, 225 lbs.) with speed who can play a top-six role. Trading for Byfield would cost the Wild, but they need a contingency plan for Joel Eriksson Ek because of his injury history.
Like Rossi, Byfield shouldn’t be involved in any trade rumors. When the Kings signed him to a 5-year, $31.25 million ($6.25 million per season) extension in July, it looked like they were molding him into the next Anze Kopitar. Byfield has struggled to establish himself as a top-line center, but he scored 20 goals already. The Kings aren’t desperate to move Byfield, but they probably would for the right price.
Charlie Stramel will finish his college career at Michigan State University. The 21st pick in the 2023 draft could become Eriksson Ek’s successor, but he’s not NHL-ready.
Stramel spent his first two seasons at Wisconsin, where he had 20 points in 67 games. If he had been more productive with the Badgers, the Wild would likely be signing him to his Entry-Level Contract (ELC) this season. Still, Byfield’s more skilled and has a better ceiling than Stramel and Eriksson Ek.
Guerin doesn’t want to give up his farm system, which The Athletic ranked second in the league. Guerin also can’t make many trades because most of his core has no move clauses.
Over the weekend, he traded a 2026 2nd round pick to reacquire Gustav Nyquist from the Nashville Predators. In doing so, Guerin showed he’s willing to give up draft capital before prospects. However, he still has a 1st round pick in next year’s draft, which he’ll want to keep. Unfortunately, that makes someone like Rossi available. However, trading for someone like Byfield, who can be a more physical center than Rossi, is worth it.
Byfield fits into the Wild’s present and future, fitting in after their prospects graduate from their farm system. Byfield, 22, is one year and four days younger than Rossi. The Wild are likely thinking about their youth and not acquiring players over 30, let alone older than Rossi.
Trading for Byfield makes much more sense than trading for someone like J.T. Miller, who the Wild showed interest in before the Vancouver Canucks dealt him to the New York Rangers. Rossi has more value as part of a package for Byfield.
The Wild would have to add a low-caliber prospect with size to replace Byfield’s 6-foot-5 frame since the Kings won't just trade Rossi for Byfield straight up because Rossi is 5-foot-9. The Wild should consider moving Rasmus Kumpulainen (6-foot-4) to entice the Kings to trade Byfield. The Wild could ask for draft capital to balance out the trade.
Caedan Bankier's emergence makes Kumpulainen expendable. Bankier is playing with the Iowa Wild in the AHL, where he's been developing into a bottom-six versatile forward. The Athletic’s Corey Pronman ranked him as the Wild’s No. 6 prospect ahead of players like Liam Ohgren, Riley Heidt, Hunter Haight, and Marat Khusnutdinov this past August. Bankier will likely be fighting for a roster spot in 2025-26.
Bankier is a big center prospect who can compete with Khusnutdinov as a third-line winger alongside Stramel. The Wild's fourth line would be Marcus Foligno, Freddy Gaudreau, and Yakov Trenin. Ohgren will be more developed and ready to take on a top-six or middle-six role.
If Ohgren can’t play a middle-six role, the Wild have candidates in Heidt and Haight. The Wild can also explore free agency because the salary cap will increase, and the cap penalties for buying out Zach Parise and Ryan Suter will decrease.*
Like with Rossi, Byfield’s best years are still ahead of him. However, Byfield can make more of a physical impact. Rossi’s having a better season than Byfield right now. Byfield’s on pace for 16 goals and 33 assists, 6 points less than the 55 points (20 goals and 35 assists) he scored last season.
There’s a good chance that Byfield can improve his production, and why not have him center a superstar like Kaprizov and emerging star Matt Boldy? Kaprizov would play with a bigger center, making him more of a scoring threat. Byfield’s assignment will be to create space for Kaprizov by being a net-front presence. Adding Boldy to this duo will only make the Wild more dangerous, and they would have a better top line for the future.
Byfield can replace Eriksson Ek on the top power-play unit as a net-front presence. Eriksson Ek moves to the second unit because Byfield has better playmaking ability that Eriksson Ek doesn’t possess. Byfield can make difficult moves from in tight to create one-timers for Kaprizov or Boldy, making the opposing goalie freeze and scramble to make a save. Byfield hasn’t played with a star player like Kaprizov before. He could become the Wild’s Kopitar, giving Byfield a boost in production.
The Wild can stack their centers down the middle and on the wing. Once Stramel arrives, they can roll with Byfield, Eriksson Ek, and Stramel as their big three centers down the middle. That means someone like Danila Yurov, who can play center, will move to the wing alongside Eriksson Ek.
Byfield checks all the boxes in what Guerin’s looking for in a big-bodied center to be an Eriksson Ek contingency plan. If it means trading a slightly older player in Rossi to get him, Guerin should pull off a blockbuster move. That will encourage Kaprizov to extend his stay in Minnesota, following the five-year plan Guerin laid out for owner Craig Leipold as they start their pursuit of the Stanley Cup.
*An earlier version of this post indicated Alex Tuch was a free agent this offseason. We regret the error.
Think you could write a story like this? Hockey Wilderness wants you to develop your voice, find an audience, and we'll pay you to do it. Just fill out this form.
Recommended Comments
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.