Minnesota Wild Offseason: The Top Five Wild Stories of the Summer

5) Mikael Grandlund Re-Ups with The Wild

Apr 11, 2015; St. Louis, MO, USA; Minnesota Wild center Mikael Granlund (64) takes a shot on goal as St. Louis Blues center Paul Stastny (26) defends during the second period at Scottrade Center. Mandatory Credit: Billy Hurst-USA TODAY Sports

The Wild’s second highest free agent priority after Devan Dubnyk was their top line center Mikael Grandlund. The Wild shored up his services for another two years at a price of $6 million total ($2.8m next season and $3.2m the following season).

The young Finn is seen by Chuck Fletcher and the Wild as one of the key pieces to the future. His numbers from last year (8 goals and 31 assists) are almost identical to the year before (8 goals and 33 assists), suggesting that he may be reaching a plateau, but he’s young so there’s always the element of time.

Re-signing Grandlund was not so much about getting a goal scorer as it was about getting someone who can push the play, be physical, and when needed offer that extra bit of offense. Still most would say, like with Vanek, a bit more offense is needed, especially down the stretch and especially if you want to beat Chicago in the playoffs.

More from Gone Puck Wild

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• Minnesota Wild draft heavy on centers and home-state selections
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