The Minnesota Wild felt the best use of their 2025 first-round pick was to bring in a defensive prospect a little further along in the process as opposed to selecting an 18-year-old that may not contribute for the next four years. So Bill Guerin sent it to the Columbus Blue Jackets as part of the package to acquire David Jiricek. Tonight, Columbus used the pick (#20) to select Pyotr Andreyanov from Krasnaya Armiya Moskva of the MHL.
The 6'2" netminder should see sometime with CSKA Moskva of the KHL at some point next season. A highly mobile goaltender Andreyanov posted a 1.75 GAA in 37 games last year. He's likely to spend a few more years before coming over.
It was Columbus' second pick of the night. They used their first pick (#14) to draft defenseman Jackson Smith from the Tri-City American. Columbus isn't done reaping the benefits of the trade as they still have a third and a fourth-round pick in 2026 and a second-round pick in 207 to use for players or trade assets. Minnesota did acquire a 2025 fifth-round pick in the deal as well.
Both teams benefited from the deal. Minnesota is a little further along in the competitive process and getting Jiricek, a NHL-ready defender, is much more important than a goaltender who is three or four years away from coming over from Russia. Meanwhile, Columbus, who are still in the rebuild mode, add nother top prospect to their system.
The New York Islanders kicked things off as they drafted defenseman Matthew Schaefer with the first overall pick, whie the San Jose Sharks went with forward Michael Misa with the second pick. Barring any overnight trades, the Wild's first pick will come in the second round on Saturday.