The Minnesota Wild avoided a major catastrophe before the start of the season. As the preseason continues, the Wild made sure that their face of the franchise wasn't going to hit free agency next summer.
On Tuesday, the Wild and forward Kirill Kaprizov agreed to terms on a record-breaking contract, earning $136 million over eight years. This comes after he turned down an eight-year, $128 million contract. But Kaprizov is set to earn a massive amount in signing bonuses throughout this contract, and he holds a full no-move clause.
It was incredibly important for Minnesota to keep Kaprizov. As long as he is on the team, the Wild has a chance to win the Stanley Cup. But, how does this contract affect his salary cap.
How Kirill Kaprizov's new contract affects Wild's Stanley Cup chances
For the Wild, they need to hope that the salary cap in the NHL continues to increase at the rate it has been in recent years. If that is the case, the Wild will have nothing to really worry about because eventually, the deal will become a bargain. More importantly, it would allow the team to retain other top talents on the team and potentially bring in big name free agents.
Here is what the Wild's salary cap space projection looks like over the next few seasons, according to Puck Pedia:
Season | Wild Projected Cap Space |
|---|---|
2026-27 | $23.1 million |
2027-28 | $50.3 million |
2028-29 | $69.7 million |
Luckily for Minnesota, they do have some of their top players under contract for the foreseeable future. Matt Boldy is under contract until the conclusion of the 2029-30 season. Brock Faber is under contract until the summer of 2033. Marco Rossi is a restricted free agent in 2029.
So, their top core of players is locked in for the next few seasons at minimum. That could allow general manager Bill Guerin to truly go all out to ensure they have a Stanley Cup champion caliber roster that would be able to make it out of the western Conference and potentially beat a stacked team like the Florida Panthers. Having Kaprizov on the team should entice free agents to sign, especially if the salary cap rises significantly over the next couple of years. There are some big names set to hit the open market over the next few years, such as Quinn Hughes, Auston Matthews, and Zach Werenski.
But, the team does need to ensure they have adequate depth. If they are too top-heavy in terms of top forward lines and defensive pairings, they'll need to either make savvy moves or draft well to fill out the remaining depth.
But their chances hinge on Kaprizov being healthy. Last season, Kaprizov only played in 41 games due to an injury. Plus, they'll need to hope that he can keep up his production over the majority of the length of the contract.
There are still plenty of unknowns, considering this contract just got agreed upon on Tuesday. But it's hard not to feel optimistic about Minnesota's chances in the upcoming seasons. Again, it all depends on what the salary cap increases look like over time.