PRETTY WILD

BY MIKE RIFKIN

According to reports Minnesota Wild superstar Kirill Kaprizov turned down an eight year $128 million dollar extension with the team. The contract would’ve made Kaprizov the highest paid player in the NHL in total dollars and AAV (Average Annual Value) at 16 million dollars per season.  Last season Kaprizov was limited to 41 games and posted 25 goals and 56 points and was a +19 (if you’re into +/-). Since Karprizov has come into the league he has 185 goals and 386 points in 319 games played. So I have two thoughts as to why Kaprizov turned down this lucrative offer. 

The first is that Kaprizov is one of three major players up for the max extensions along with Connor McDavid, Jack Eichel. So, Kaprizov and his camp could be waiting for either McDavid or Eichel to sign first before he signs. If that’s the case Kaprizov could wait a while, especially after McDavid’s latest comments. 

The other would be that Kaprizov would want out of Minnesota. Now while the Western Conference and the Central Division are both tough as nails to get through, the Wild are actually in a very interesting spot. They have some young talent, that have ascended including Matt Boldy and Brock Faber. The other thing is that they are no longer in salary cap hell, the buyouts of Zach Parise and Ryan Suter no longer have an effect on their cap situation, and with the cap going up, Bill Guerin can improve his roster without being handcuffed. 

For the Wild organization it’s imperative that a deal gets done before the season. They cannot let this drift into the season, and if something goes wrong they lose him in the summer for nothing. If they are unable to come to an agreement on a deal, they’re going to have to trade him. If they do have to go that route, they should look at the route the Carolina Hurricanes used when they traded Mikko Rantanen to Dallas, and allow it to be a sign and trade. But for Bill Guerin’s sake, they better hope Kaprizov still wants to be the face of their franchise.