The Minnesota Wild entered the offseason with plenty on Bill Guerin’s to do list. One of the items toward the top of that list was bringing back center Michael McCarron, who played a key role on the Wild’s penalty kill and in the face-off circle during the team’s run to the playoffs.
McCarron told reporters he would love to return to the Wild and the team had mutual feelings as he approached free agency. On Tuesday, the two sides made it happen, agreeing on a six-year, $19.8 million ($3.3 million annual average value) contract extension according to Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman.
The contract will carry some sticker shock. But it’s enough to scratch one of their needs and could help the Wild turn their attention to other pressing issues as the offseason continues.
Michael McCarron’s return completes one piece of Wild’s offseason puzzle
The Wild drew some criticism when they acquired McCarron from the Nashville Predators in exchange for a second-round pick at March’s trade deadline. But McCarron wound up being a solid addition, scoring three goals and five points in 20 games with the Wild. Even more important was his 51.7 percent face-off win rate, cementing a role in the team’s bottom six forwards.
McCarron took his game up a notch during the playoffs with two goals and four points in 11 games but he also won 54.5 percent of his draws, increasing his price heading into free agency. While the term is shocking, the money is not as The Athletic’s Michael Russo and Joe Smith estimated he could get $4 to $5 million per season, but the Wild smoothed it out by adding additional years to the deal.
Keeping McCarron solidifies the bottom part of the lineup but the Wild must move onto some of their other free agents. Mats Zuccarello is the most notable free agent Minnesota must decide on, but at 38 years old, it’s interesting to see how far the Wild will go to bring him back. Vladimir Tarasenko could also be brought back after Marcus Johansson’s departure and the Wild also must reconfigure their blue line after it fell apart in a second-round series with the Colorado Avalanche.
This is all the undercard to the pursuit of a No. 1 center. While several names have been thrown around, Dylan Larkin became an obvious target when he requested a trade from the Detroit Red Wings last week. But a lack of high-end assets could be a problem and require a few smaller moves in order to bring Larkin to Minnesota.
In the end, McCarron’s return puts an important puzzle piece in place and could lead to the Wild making more moves to help them compete for a Stanley Cup during the 2026-27 season.
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