Much has been made of the potential record-setting extensions that would be handed out this offseason, particularly for Kirill Kaprizov of the Minnesota Wild and Connor McDavid of the Edmonton Oilers. For the former, speculation about his future reached an all-time high yesterday morning when it was reported that Kaprizov rejected an eight-year, $128MM extension from the Wild.
Not only would that offer have made Kaprizov the highest-paid player per season with a $16MM AAV, but it would have been the largest total dollar amount given to an NHL player, topping Alex Ovechkin’s previous 13-year, $124MM extension with the Washington Capitals. Speaking about the contract rejection for the first time on his podcast, 32 Thoughts, Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman reported that the Wild were genuinely surprised about Kaprizov’s decision, and have now had to assess different options.
Friedman went on to say that the Wild could increase their offer for Kaprizov or negotiate a sign-and-trade with a team that Kaprizov would agree to sign with. Regardless, given his value to the organization and perceived value around the league, Minnesota would suffer a major loss should it let Kaprizov sign elsewhere next summer without recouping any assets in return.
In that same vein, there have been some reports indicating that the Wild have approached Kaprizov for a hypothetical trade list, while other reports have claimed the opposite. The Russian All-Star has a complete no-movement clause, so he has full control over how his situation is handled moving forward.
Since yesterday’s news, General Manager Bill Guerin and the Wild have preached confidence that a deal will eventually get signed, while Kaprizov’s camp has yet to respond. Although injuries have been an issue for Kaprizov of late, his value to Minnesota can’t be overstated. Since coming into the league as a 23-year-old rookie during the 2020-21 season, Kaprizov has scored 185 goals and 386 points in 319 games wearing a Wild jersey, reaching or exceeding the 40-goal plateau on three occasions.
It’s an unenviable situation for the Wild. It’s early enough before the regular season that a solution could theoretically be worked out, but Kaprizov’s maximum trade value will fall the closer the team gets to the trade deadline without a new contract in place. It’s conceivable that Minnesota could reach a sign-and-trade in early March, but that is exceedingly rare, especially in the NHL.