After Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman wrote in yesterday’s “30 Thoughts” column that he’d heard Nino Niederreiter’s name come up in trade talks, Michael Russo of the Star Tribune did a little more digging. He spoke directly with Minnesota Wild GM Chuck Fletcher and got him on the record about his outlook for this summer.
I’ve spoken to a lot of teams in the league. People are inquiring about a lot of our players, not just necessarily [Niederreiter and Mathew Dumba]. If teams call and ask about a player, I’m listening, but there’s a big difference between listening and shopping. We’re going to have to make a change or two here, so if somebody has an idea, I’m willing to listen and I’m willing to work with people if something makes sense.
That “change or two” is likely because of the cap situation the Minnesota Wild find themselves in. With Niederreiter and Mikael Granlund due for substantial raises and the Wild already committed to over $61MM in salary next season (via CapFriendly), there just may not be enough room to keep everyone. Fletcher mentioned more than once about waiting to see where exactly the cap would land—it’s expected to increase a few million to somewhere around $76MM for next season—indicating that it may be possible to extend everyone and still make the team better.
The Wild would obviously put a huge price tag on Niederreiter, especially after a career season for the former fifth-overall pick. With two years left before free agency, the 24-year old scored 57 points and looked like the possession-driving force the New York Islanders had hoped for when they drafted him. The same would go for Dumba, though it would likely take a different sort of package for the 22-year old. He’s entering the final year of his current contract, and will be a restricted free agent next summer with several years still to go before he hits the open market.
Dumba though may be at risk of being selected by the Vegas Golden Knights, with Ryan Suter, Jared Spurgeon and Jonas Brodin expected to earn the protection slots should the team use the 7-3-1 method. Moving his $2.55MM cap hit might not take the Wild completely out of the woods though.
While Fletcher is clear that he’s not shopping Nieddereiter, Dumba or anyone else at the moment, he’ll be open to whatever idea someone has to try to improve his club. With no first or second round picks this season, and no second rounder next year either, they may need to move on from someone to replenish the future.