It’s been a surprisingly quiet offseason for the Minnesota Wild. While they’ve moved on from Frederick Gaudreau and traded for Vladimir Tarasenko, the rest of the offseason has been crickets thus far.
This all might change soon, however. Frank Seravalli of Bleacher Report believes the Wild are ready to make a splash. “They weren’t quite ready to go out and acquire a lot of the players that were on the market this summer,” Seravalli said in his offseason grades article. “…but look for the Wild to be a really aggressive team moving forward.”
Wild Have One Roadblock to Solve First
Before they make any moves, however, they’ll need to address the elephant in the room: Marco Rossi’s contract. Rossi, 23, finished with career highs last season with 24 goals and 36 assists for 60 points in 80 games. He is the only restricted free agent that the Wild have yet to sign.
As of right now, the two parties are nowhere close to a suitable deal. Michael Russo of The Athletic believes term is a major factor at play. “I think he’s a little worried about signing some sort of bridge deal…and then getting buried and not being able to prove himself fully.”
Fortunately for Wild general manager Bill Guerin, it doesn’t seem like an offer sheet is a worry he has to consider. “I don’t think anyone would be willing to step up and pay,” Seravalli said. “I don’t think they could present any number that would scare off the Wild”.
Once Rossi and the Wild come to terms on a deal, an aggressive approach to the rest of the offseason seems inevitable.
Aggressive Options the Wild Can Take
The Wild, as of right now, have $10,186,835 in salary cap space. The flexibility at Guerin’s disposal all depends on Rossi’s contract. With that said, however, the free agent market still has a few options at their disposal the Wild could secure at an affordable rate.
Jack Roslovic, a 28-year-old center, headlines the remaining available NHL free agents. Roslovic hit 22 goals and 17 assists for 39 points in 81 games with the Carolina Hurricanes. Adding some short-term depth scoring to the Wild seems like the team’s best bet moving forward.
The Wild struggled in the playoffs last season due to a lack of depth scoring and power play goals. While Max Pacioretty is far removed from his career highs, he showed last season he’s still capable at the NHL level. Pacioretty was fourth in scoring with the Toronto Maple Leafs in the playoffs with three goals and five assists for eight points in 11 games. Could a solid, stable veteran presence be a difference-maker in Minnesota?
As far as targets go, Guerin’s focus lies on the offense.”We’re going to focus mainly on forwards,” Guerin said on the “Wild on 7th Podcast“. “I mean, I believe our D is set. We’ve got a good mix of veterans and youth. So mainly for me, I’m focused on forwards.
“Yeah, faceoffs—we need somebody to help with that. We need veteran-type guys who’ve been through it, who’ve got some battle scars and can help in that way. But we could always use more skill too. That’s everybody, but definitely in the forward position.”
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