NHL offseason: Minnesota Wild active on opener of free-agency period

The Minnesota Wild gained one former Pittsburgh Penguin on Wednesday as another one moved on from the franchise on Wednesday, the opening of what should be an active free-agency period for the franchise.

The Wild reached a one-year agreement with the veteran defenseman Alex Goligoski, a Grand Rapids native and former Minnesota Golden Gopher, who was a member of the Penguins’ Stanley Cup championship team in 2009.

He was among the initial signings that the Wild made on Wednesday. The team also signed Frederick Gaudreau, a 28-year-old player who spent time between the Penguins roster and the AHL this past season,  and defenseman Dmitry Kulikov.

Goligoski. who turns 36-years-old on Friday,  has 83 goals and 429 points in his 924-game NHL career. He had three goals and 22 points this past year for the Arizona Coyotes

“We’re happy with the guys we got today.” Wild general manager Bill Guerin said. “Alex Goligoski was the primary target for us on defense and we got him. We are extremely happy. There is great flexibility in his contract for us and for him. I think he’s excited to be playing at home. Freddie Gaudreau is a guy who we identified that would be a good fit for us,” Guerin said. “He can play wing, he can play center.”

Goligoski recently told Michael Russo of The Athletic of his interest in the Wild:

“I mean, I’ve never really liked them, to be honest,” the free-agent defenseman, who hails from Grand Rapids, Minn., told The Athletic lightheartedly earlier this week. “Of course, I’ll never forget (Andrew) Brunette scored the goal in Game 7 (against Colorado in 2003). I think I was a sophomore in high school. Me and my buddies were watching that.“But maybe it’s just because I’ve been a pro for so long. And in the pros, I really just didn’t like them at all, but, no, I’ve never been a fan. I mean, being in Dallas and Arizona for so long, I feel like I probably played them more than any other team I’ve ever played. So it’s just natural. I just grew to dislike them and all the guys on their team and everything.”

The Wild also lost a forward in free agency, had a former defensemen sign with a division rival and also lost  a couple of prospects as well.

Wild center Nick Bonino, who won a Cup with the Penguins in 2016 and ’17., signed a two-year deal with the San Jose Sharks, the team that selected him in the sixth round in 2006. The 33-year-old was traded from Nashville to the Wild for Luke Kunin during the 2020 NHL Entry Draft and he had 10 goals and 26 points this past season.

Former Wild defenseman Ryan Suter, who received a buyout from the Wild this offseason, signed a four-year deal with the Dallas Stars. Goligoski was signed in part to give the Wild a veteran defensive presence that Suter provided the team.

Minnesota also traded restricted free-agent defenseman  Brennan Menell  to the Toronto Maploe Leafs for a conditional seventh-round prediction in next year’s entry draft. In addition, Gerald Mayhew, who has played the majority of his career with the Iowa Wild, signed a one-year, two-way contract with the Philadelphia Flyers.

In other free agency news:

•It appears that you can scratch the Wild from the list of possible suitors for Buffalo’s Jack Eichert.

•So much for the idea of the Foligno brothers playing together with the Wild.