The Minnesota Wild were active on the trade market last season and that should continue this summer. While Quinn Hughes and Michael McCarron made immediate impacts after coming to Minnesota last season, the acquisition of Bobby Brink has been an exercise in patience.
Brink was acquired from the Philadelphia Flyers for defenseman David Jiricek in a March 6 trade. But Brink spent most of the Wild’s playoff run as a healthy scratch. Set to approach restricted free agency, Brink is one of the most intriguing players on the roster going into the offseason and general manager Bill Guerin could make his feelings crystal clear with what he decides to do with the soon-to-be 25-year-old.
Wild will reveal their plan for Bobby Brink this offseason
Based on the deal that brought him to Minnesota, the Wild had to be high on Brink’s potential. A second-round pick in the 2019 draft, Brink scored 36 goals and registered 94 points in 201 games for the Flyers. Brink also has a strong defensive element to his game, which adds to his upside.
With the Wild giving up Jiricek, who was acquired for a package of draft picks including their 2025 first-rounder, it was assumed Brink could be part of the middle six forwards.But instead of making an immediate impact, Brink found playing time hard to come by.
In 13 games for the Wild, Brink had just two goals and four points with a minus-2 rating. He also appeared in just four playoff games, ceding time to Vladimir Tarasenko, Marcus Johansson and fellow trade acquisition Nick Foligno.
Johansson has since returned to his native country of Sweden while Tarasenko and Foligno are both free agents. While Foligno has a good chance to return with his brother Marcus, Tarasenko isn’t a lock to return and could open up a spot for Brink. But there are also a few hurdles for Brink to overcome.
The first are the Wild’s plans in free agency. While Brink has established himself, the Wild don’t have time for youthful mistakes in their championship window. Former Wild prospect Liam Ohgren found that out the hard way as he couldn’t beat Johansson during last year’s training camp and sent to the Vancouver Canucks in the Hughes trade last December.
If the Wild add a veteran, that will be a player that Brink has to beat out and that’s not a given considering he struggled to earn consistent playing time after last season’s trade.
Brink’s contract is another situation to watch. According to a model created by The Athletic’s Dom Luszczyszyn, Brink’s past production has brought an on-ice value of $4.91 to $5.22 million. While those numbers seem high, the Wild could work out a bridge deal for a slightly lesser number that keeps him in the fold with a bigger role next year.Â
But it also comes as the Wild are looking to make significant additions. If Minnesota is short on assets, adding Brink into a deal to acquire a top-line center would be beneficial and reallocate funds for a team that has $9.4 million in cap space but has just 15 players on one-way contracts for next season according to Puckpedia.
In the end, this could look a lot like the Wild’s approach with Marco Rossi. While Rossi had a higher ceiling as a top-six forward, the two sides ultimately agreed to a three-year, $15 million contract only for him to be included in the Hughes trade. Minnesota could sign Brink, have him start the year and they could move him again if they don’t like what they see.
Whatever the Wild decide to do, it will speak volumes on what they think of Brink and it could determine what his role is going forward, whether it's in Minnesota or somewhere else.
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