The Minnesota Wild are looking for a top-six center according to Darren Dreger of TSN, who explained what new GM Bill Guerin is looking for on the latest edition of Insider Trading:
He’s willing to be aggressive but he’s also a realist. He wants a top center, or a second-line center. How do you acquire that piece? The Minnesota Wild have an abundance of wingers, they have a good draft pile in terms of prospects and they also have a good picks list. So he’s willing to use all of that as bait, but again, he’s also careful knowing that the market just doesn’t throw a player like that out there.
Former GM Paul Fenton was probably looking for the same thing when he sent Nino Niederreiter to the Carolina Hurricanes last season for Victor Rask, but the 26-year old center hasn’t been able to accomplish anything in Minnesota and is now fighting to even have a roster spot on the team. Ryan Donato, another one of Fenton’s acquisitions from last season is being tried at center, while Eric Staal is the only real lock down the middle while Mikko Koivu fights his way back from ACL surgery.
Getting another player in one of those top two spots would obviously be ideal, but those kind of centers don’t come cheap. Matt Duchene has been traded twice over the last couple of seasons, both times for substantial packages without any real guarantee he would re-sign (he ended up taking the free agent route). If Guerin and the Wild want someone on that level with any term, it will likely take even more than the Avalanche and then Senators received.
It’s a tough situation to be in, and though Dreger suggests they have a stockpile to deal from, that isn’t really the case. The Wild don’t have any additional draft picks for the next three seasons past their own, and actually already moved their 2020 third-round selection for a pick in June. Sure they have some promising prospects in the system, but for a team that has a huge amount of money tied up in players well on the wrong side of 30, they’ll need some cheap options to fill in the gaps on entry-level deals in the coming years.
Chris Tierney or JG Pageau are likely available but they’d both slot in better on the third line.
The Sens aren’t going to move young players away at this point. They just named JGP assistant captain and Tierney is their second best centre on a team that isn’t deep at the position.
It would open a spot for Brown down the middle though.
Henrique?
Don’t see the wild doing anything this year their a bubble team in desperate need of a rebuild. With their aging roster all they have is a good top 4D and goalie, worst forward group offensively in the league. with no legit top line forwards as Stall is more of a 2nd liner moving towards3rd liner as he ages and Mikko not being healthy for years is never gonna be more than a 3rd liner at this point
im willing to bet Rask bounces back this year if healthy.
Malkin. Wild will need not only a top line center, but a world class center man to entice Cyril to make the jump from the KHL next year. MN has five 2nd/3rd lines with heart, sense, and edge to roll this year. A legit first line with have an abundance of support next year, it just wont come from within.
…will have an abundance.. …but the first line wont come from within the organization.
Brown has been a fourth line Right Winger most of his career , only thing he adds is physicality descent shot blocker, and 8-10 minutes a game if not in penalty box, limited scoring, and penalty minutes , don’t remember him ever playing center. Wild will be unloading high profile forwards and Defenseman at trade deadline if not sooner and coach.
Not that Brown
My apologies JD, thought you were talking about Minnesota, got foot in mouth syndrome today.
Staal and Rask down the middle baby. Worked in Carolina.