It took some time, but the Minnesota Wild look like legitimate Stanley Cup contenders for the near future. They had their chance this season, defeating the Dallas Stars in the opening round, only to lose in five games to the Colorado Avalanche. Now, it's onto the offseason, where they will try to improve their chances of making it to the Final and winning the Stanley Cup, each for the first time ever.
All eyes will be on general manager Bill Guerin, as he has shown to be ultra aggressive in making moves to improve their odds. First would be extending defenseman Quinn Hughes. Then, it would be by finding a No. 1 center, possibly on the trade block. Of course, building through the NHL Draft wouldn't hurt. When it comes to the draft, things will be different this year due to an imminent departure in the front office.
On Sunday, The Athletic's Michael Russo reported that Judd Bracket, the Wild's director of amateur scouting, was leaving the organization for an "elevated position." That position was revealed, as the Toronto Maple Leafs announced they have hired Brackett to be their new assistant general manager under John Chayka.
We have appointed Judd Brackett as Assistant General Manager, Player Evaluation, and Freddie Hamilton as Chief of Staff. pic.twitter.com/3HwXpi0toG
— Toronto Maple Leafs (@MapleLeafs) June 1, 2026
Former Wild director of amateur scouting Judd Bracket leave to become new Leafs assistant GM
Losing Brackett does sting for the Wild, as he was responsible for running the show during their last five NHL Drafts. During that span, he used first round picks on goaltender Jesper Wallstedt, who looked every bit of their future starter during the playoffs this year, Danila Yurov, who tallied 27 points this season as a rookie, and Charlie Stramel, their top prospect expected to make his pro debut next season. Brackett also drafted Marco Rossi, Liam Ohgren, and Zeev Buium, who were all traded to the Vancouver Canucks for the Wild to land Hughes.
This is an impressive track record for Brackett. Other teams rarely hit on one prospect during that stretch of time. Brackett drafted three who could very well be part of the Wild's future (barring a trade), while three others were dealt to bring in a superstar like Hughes.
For the Maple Leafs, they reverted back to their ways as the league laughing stocks, not just because of their lackluster play on the ice this past season. The team hired Chayka to be their general manager, who hadn't been in the league since his disastrous tenure running the Arizona Coyotes front office, with former franchise great Mats Sundin being the senior executive advisor of hockey operations, who had never worked in an NHL front office. But after their hirings, the Leafs won the No. 1 overall pick, with the right to select top prospect Gavin McKenna. That helped shift the vibes from negative to overwhelmingly positive in Toronto.
Things should only get more positive for Maple Leafs fans. Brackett has been viewed as one of the NHL's brightest minds in terms of evaluating talent. The track record is there, and they should be excited to bring in someone who is more hit than miss when it comes to drafting players. The Maple Leafs need that, especially as they try to buidl around Matthews and get back into contention in what has become an incredibly stacked and crowded Atlantic Division.
As for what the Wild will do on draft nights, Russo reports that it will be assistant general manager Mat Sells and director of European scouting Ricard Persson running the draft for Minnesota this year.
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