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The Minnesota Wild are one of the best teams in the NHL at this point. Minnesota missed the Stanley Cup Playoffs in 2024 after a disappointing season all around. However, Kirill Kaprizov has emerged as a Hart Trophy candidate as the team has rebounded well. Minnesota may be buyers if things keep up, and the Philadelphia Flyers could be trade partners.
The Wild reportedly “like” Flyers forwards Joel Farabee and Bobby Brink, according to Anthony Di Marco of the Daily Faceoff. Di Marco notes that Minnesota is not a fan of Farabee's contract. Philadelphia signed Farabee to a six-year contract back in 2021. It carries a cap hit of $5 million through the 2027-28 season.
Minnesota's stance on his contract makes a lot of sense. The Wild have little more than $1 million in salary cap space, according to PuckPedia. However, they are shedding nearly $15 million of dead salary cap space in the summer. This certainly gives them more flexibility to add a sizeable salary like Farabee's at that time.
How Joel Farabee, Bobby Brink fit with Wild
The Wild are a fine offensive team through their first 16 games. Minnesota are a top-10 offensive team in terms of Goals For Per Game, according to ESPN. This is not a team that is struggling to score goals. In saying this, though, they could certainly benefit from balancing their offense.
Kirill Kaprizov leads the team with 30 points in 16 games. In fact, the only player in the NHL with more points than him is Colorado Avalanche superstar Nathan MacKinnon. However, the next highest-scoring Wild players are Matt Boldy (17), Marco Rossi (14), and Mats Zuccarello (14).
Those four players account for 75 points between them. As a result, these players account for exactly half of the 150 points Wild skaters have accumulated to this point. It's certainly great to have players that can take over games. But having a top-heavy offense can certainly sink teams when the going gets tough.
Joel Farabee and Bobby Brink could certainly help balance things out just a bit. Farabee, in particular, could serve a crucial middle-six role. He has consistently put up around 30-39 points in the NHL. And last year, he set a new career-high with 22 goals and 50 points.
Brink, meanwhile, is much more cost-effective. He carries a cap hit of $1.5 million through the 2025-26 campaign and is a restricted free agent after that. Brink has certainly shown promise at the NHL level before. For now, though, he would likely be a bottom-six option with offensive upside.
The Wild are looking to make the Stanley Cup Playoffs in 2025. And their hot start to this new season certainly puts them in a good spot to do so. Perhaps a trade with the Flyers could see Minnesota add the final piece to a roster poised to make a playoff run.