The Minnesota Wild have made some big changes this offseason but one of the biggest was the departure of Mats Zuccarello. A player that had put up 118 goals and 389 points over seven seasons in Minnesota, Zuccarello had become a key part of the offense and, more importantly, a trusted teammate for Kirill Kaprizov on and off the ice.
That made it surprising when the Wild allowed Zuccarello to leave and sign an incentive-laden deal with the Los Angeles Kings this summer. But what may be even more surprising to Wild fans is that general manager Bill Guerin didn’t consult his star player as the decision was being made.
“I don’t talk to players like that because you know what? That puts them in a really awkward position,” Guerin said during an appearance on SKOR North’s Judd’s Hockey Show on Tuesday. “Those guys are buddies, man. I’m not putting that on them. If I ever wanted a players’ opinion, it’d be just kind of like…’What do you think of this guy or that guy [that’s] not on the team?’...I would never [say] ‘Hey, should we get this guy or should we let this guy go?’
“That puts our players in a really bad spot, and it’s not their job. That’s my job you know and it’s the hockey operations. That’s what we’re getting paid for and honestly, it’s things like that you’ve just got to protect your players from. Sometimes they think they want to coach or manage. But what they really want to do is play.”
Mats Zuccarello’s Wild departure could wind up helping Kirill Kaprizov
Had Guerin asked Kaprizov for his opinion, it would have been understandable. Now making $17 million per season, Kaprizov is the one of the four pillars of the franchise along with Quinn Hughes, Brock Faber and Matt Boldy and with his friendship off the ice, it’s likely that he would have suggested Guerin keep Zuccarello around to make one last run this season.
But in the end, it’s possible that Guerin was trying to save Kaprizov from himself. Set to turn 39 in September, Zuccarello has played in 70 games just once since he signed with Minnesota before the 2019-20 season. The Athletic’s Michael Russo also reported that the Wild wanted to get away from the “East-West” game that Zuccarello “dragged” Kaprizov into at times and Guerin himself hinted that changes needed to be made on Tuesday.
“Zuccy had some great years with us and he was an important part of the team,” Guerin added. “A very popular guy, tight with Kirill obviously. …It’s just one of those things that at some point in time, things have to change. You don’t have to go through a full fire sale, where you’re making massive changes…But at some point in time, we have to change a bit. …We have our core guys, it’s just time to do something a little bit different.”
The Wild are betting big on Mats Zuccarello’s replacements
The Wild are hoping they have done enough to help Kaprizov despite Zuccarello’s departure. Minnesota lost 150 combined points from last season as Marcus Johansson went back to Sweden and Zuccarello signed with the Kings. While the final part of that production, Vladimir Tarasenko is still a free agent, he is not expected to return and it has the Wild betting on some of their recent acquisitions to fill the void.
Bobby Brink, who was acquired at last year’s trade deadline, is expected to be one of those solutions. Maxim Shabanov could also fill that void after signing as a free agent and entering his second full year after coming over from the KHL. Internal improvement from Danila Yurov is also a possibility if he begins the season with the Wild and Minnesota could still make a blockbuster trade that could make Kaprizov even better next offseason.
Losing Zuccarello probably stings and until Kaprizov speaks, it’s hard to gauge his real feelings on the matter. But for a player that scored 45 goals and tallied 89 points last season, the aspect of him reaching another gear without his friend could get him over the loss quickly.
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