After missing the playoffs for the first time in several years, the Minnesota Wild stayed fairly quiet in NHL free agency. The Wild made a few minor additions, but overall, there wasn't a ton of turnover.
Of course, their hands have really been tied by the Zach Parise and Ryan Suter buyouts. The total cap hit from their combined buyout penalties for the coming season is nearly $15 million. Obviously, on an $88 million salary cap, that's a substantial setback.
Below, however, we take a look at the moves the Wild did make and assess their free agency.
Four-Year Deal for Yakov Trenin
The Wild's only really notable addition came in signing Yakov Trenin. The forward signed a four-year deal with Minnesota, carrying a $3.5 million cap hit.
Trenin broke into the NHL as a member of the Nashville Predators in 2019-20, after spending several seasons in the AHL. He was able to add depth production, and while he doesn't have a ton of speed, he can bring physicality to a lineup. The forward scored at an 82-game pace of 13 goals and 23 points across parts of five seasons in Nashville, before being dealt to the Colorado Avalanche at the trade deadline for a playoff run. This past season, he scored 12 goals and 17 points in 76 games.
While Trenin can be a decent depth forward, his contract is questionable at best. For a bottom-six winger who's never even hit 25 points in a single season, $3.5M per year on a four-year contract is a lot. Anthony Duclair and Max Domi, who are able to play much higher in a lineup and bring more of an offensive impact, got very similar deals. I had projected a maximum of a three-year contract for Trenin at HockeyComparables.com, at $2M per year.
The Wild have a lack of cap space, and though the forward group will be better Trenin than without it, he's unlikely to provide $3.5M worth of value.
Other Moves
Aside from the Trenin signing, we saw some smaller moves as well. The Wild signed all of Reese Johnson, Travis Boyd, and Devin Shore, among others, to one-year contracts worth $775,000. The trio of players combined for 79 NHL games last season, and Boyd specifically could be an interesting depth add.
Meanwhile, the Wild also re-signed defenseman Declan Chisholm. Chisholm was claimed off waivers from the Winnipeg Jets earlier in the season and played 29 games with Minnesota. The contract is for one year at $1 million, and Chisholm is likely to play a bottom-pairing role next season.
Aside from the signings, the team also acquired forward Jakub Lauko from the Boston Bruins. Playing 60 games with Boston last season, Lauko managed 10 points and is a likely fit on Minnesota's fourth line. Lauko has a single year left on his deal, worth $787,500.
Extensions for Middleton and Faber
Two of the team's biggest signings of the month didn't come with additions, but rather extensions.
Defenseman Jacob Middleton was locked up on July 1, signing a four-year deal with the Wild. The contract carries a $4.35M cap hit and will kick in for the 2025-26 season.
Middleton is 28 years old and was originally acquired from the San Jose Sharks at the trade deadline in 2022. This past season, he managed several career-highs in Minnesota, with seven goals, 25 points, and nearly 20 minutes per game in ice time. While the defender won't add a ton of offense, he's tough to play against and can bring consistent physicality. Given his age and usage, the contract is relatively fair.
The bigger extension came just days ago, however, when the Wild extended Brock Faber. The defenseman's monster eight-year deal carries an $8.5M cap hit, also kicking in for the 2025-26 season.
Faber is coming off a huge rookie season, which saw him finish second in Calder Trophy voting. The defender scored eight goals and 47 points, ranking first among Wild blueliners in both categories. He also took on a huge role right from the get-go, playing nearly 25 minutes per game, which was quite a ways more than any other player on the team.
An eight-year deal for the lack of sample size will always carry some risk, but we've seen the deals become more common in recent years, with another example being Jake Sanderson's contract with the Ottawa Senators. In locking up Faber a year out, the team avoids what could've been a much larger pay-day, if he takes another step next season.
The Wild's free agency was generally quite uneventful, in terms of additions or subtractions. The notable deal they did sign, bringing in Yakov Trenin, was pretty questionable. Meanwhile, though the extensions for Middleton and Faber are the most exciting signings, they're a matter of retaining current players rather than improving the roster, so it's hard to factor them in when assessing a team's free agency moves.
With the Wild coming off a playoff absence, they didn't do a ton to get themselves into a better position, heading into the coming season.
Grade: C
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