The Minnesota Wild re-signed one of their two pending restricted free agents on Friday. While much of the fans’ attention has rightly been attuned to the Marco Rossi saga, general manager Bill Guerin also needed to sign forward Michael Milne to a new contract. According to a press release from the team, that mission has been accomplished as he agreed to a one-year, two-way deal that pays $775,000 at the NHL level and $100,000 at the AHL level.
Milne’s re-signing won’t have quite the impact that a Rossi deal will, but it’s still something that needed to be done to keep the 22-year-old in the organization. Milne set a career-high in points as a professional with the Iowa Wild last season with 26 points (15 goals, 11 assists) in 60 games. The former third-round pick (2022) also made his NHL debut last season as he suited up for a 2-1 loss to Dallas in November.
Milne played 6:34 in the game without registering a shot on goal, but did throw three hits during his eight shifts in the game. While he’ll compete for a spot in the bottom-six during training camp, it’s likely that he’ll return to Iowa for another season and look to build on last year’s performance. A capable defensive forward and effective forechecker, he’ll have to show the organization that he can produce enough offense to earn a permanent spot on the NHL roster.
He’ll still be a RFA following this contract and under team control, but a strong season could lead to a multi-year deal that gives him a little more security.
With the deal, Rossi remains the Wild’s lone RFA without a contract as the organization decided not to tender offers to Graeme Clarke, Adam Raska, Luke Toporowski, and Ryan O’Rourke. Of those players only Clarke has latched onto another organization as he signed a one-year, two-way deal with the Washington Capitals.