Subscribe
Follow Us
The Minnesota Wild and Columbus Blue Jackets came together on the David Jiricek trade on Saturday evening. The Wild traded Daemon Hunt and four draft picks to the Blue Jackets to acquire Jiricek's services. This move came after long-running trade rumors around the former sixth overall pick.
Jiricek has struggled to establish himself at the NHL level. However, he does have a lot of potential as a two-way defenseman. Even if his offense is what sticks, he could develop into one of the better offensive defensemen in the league. This, along with his size and youth, are what excite Wild general manager Bill Guerin.
“[Jiricek’s] something that we don’t have in the system really with that size,” said Guerin, via The Minnesota Star Tribune. “So, we felt it was worth what we gave up. Between having some youth on the blue line, having some veteran leadership — guys that they can learn from is really important, too,” Guerin said. “But, yeah, I’m excited about the future of the blue line.”
Wild take huge gamble on David Jiricek
David Jiricek is one of the top prospects among defensemen in the world. His talent is clearly evident when he takes the ice. For whatever reason, his development did not go as planned in Columbus. The Blue Jackets cut their losses, and now it's on the Wild to steer him in the right direction.
The Wild have shown they can develop defensemen. Brock Faber emerged as one of the brightest young defensemen in the league. In fact, there is an argument to be made for him being elite already. He certainly took on the workload of an elite defenseman last year as Minnesota challenged for the Stanley Cup Playoffs.
However, there is a big risk, as well. Jiricek could also not work with the Wild despite their best efforts. If that happens, Minnesota gave up quite the price to make this deal happen. Daemon Hunt is considered NHL-ready by many around the league. And they gave up four draft picks across three seasons, including a 2025 first-round pick.
It's a quintessential boom-or-bust move on behalf of Bill Guerin. The reward is incredibly high as it could give the Wild two elite right-shot defensemen while most teams have a hard time finding one. However, it could also blow up in their face while the Blue Jackets build a new core with the picks acquired. This is a trade fans should keep an eye on as it unfolds in real time.
