Minnesota Wild Extend Jon Merrill
Jon Merrill won’t be looking for a new contract this summer after all. The Minnesota Wild have extended the pending free agent defenseman, signing him to a new three-year, $3.6MM contract that will carry him through the 2024-25 season.
Merill, 29, signed a one-year, $850K contract with the Wild last offseason after a Stanley Cup run with the Montreal Canadiens and was expected to be nothing more than a depth option. He’s quickly shown he can be more than that, averaging more than 17 minutes a night through 33 games and racking up 11 points. That has him on track to blow past his previous career-high of 15 points, set in 2018-19 with the Vegas Golden Knights, and has landed him this multi-year contract that brings a level of security and stability.
Selected 38th overall in 2010, Merill is on his fifth NHL organization already. Starting out with the New Jersey Devils, he then moved to the Golden Knights, Detroit Red Wings, and Canadiens before ending up in Minnesota. It’s with the Wild where he has found the best fit, and where he’ll be the next while after inking a three-year extension.
In that nine-year career, he’s played in 438 games, scoring 77 points while registering 557 blocked shots and 389 hits. A $1.2MM cap hit is still representative of his role on the Minnesota depth chart–that is, as an option well behind the likes of Jonas Brodin, Jared Spurgeon, and Matt Dumba–but also suggests that he’ll have a full-time role for the team moving forward. Jordie Benn and Alex Goligoski are both unrestricted free agents at the end of the season, though the latter is expected to sign an extension at some point to keep him in Minnesota.
Rem Pitlick Placed On Waivers
The Minnesota Wild have placed Rem Pitlick on waivers, according to Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet. The 24-year-old forward was claimed off waivers by Minnesota earlier this season, meaning the Nashville Predators could potentially send him directly to the minor leagues if they are the only team to put in a claim this time around.
Through 20 games with Minnesota, he actually has six goals and 11 points, but has seen his ice time drop to just a handful of minutes over the last while. In Saturday’s game against the Washington Capitals, Pitlick played just 5:35 and seemed obviously on his way out of the lineup. With Joel Eriksson Ek approaching a return and Kirill Kaprizov avoiding major injury, Pitlick’s time in Minnesota could be over.
Should he clear, the team could send him to the minor leagues but not the taxi squad. Since he was on the active roster for most of the season, he isn’t eligible to be placed there despite his salary being under the $1MM threshold. Pitlick is on a one-year, two-way deal that carries a cap hit of $917,831 and will be a Group VI unrestricted free agent at the end of the year unless he plays in an additional 59 games this season.
Brodin's Injury Believed To Be Serious, Eriksson Ek Could Return Friday, Goligoski Added To COVID Protocol
- The Wild may soon be getting some more bad news on the injury front as Michael Russo of The Athletic reports (Twitter link) that defenseman Jonas Brodin’s upper-body injury is believed to be serious enough to be a long-term issue. He was injured while blocking a shot against Boston on Thursday and leads all Minnesota players in ice time at 23:35 per game.
- Meanwhile, as part of a long list of players not playing tonight, the Wild revealed (Twitter link) that defenseman Alex Goligoski has been placed in COVID protocol. He joins Brandon Duhaime and Jordan Greenway as those currently unavailable and if his placement was for a confirmed positive test, he’ll be out for at least the next five days.
Rask, Mermis, And Rau Recalled From Taxi Squad
- The Wild announced (Twitter link) that they’ve recalled forwards Victor Rask and Kyle Rau along with defenseman Dakota Mermis from the taxi squad. To make room on the roster, Joel Eriksson Ek and Kirill Kaprizov were transferred to injured reserve but with the team off until Friday after their game tonight, both will be eligible to return at that time.
More Injury Troubles For Minnesota Wild
The Minnesota Wild won last night, with the winner going to Matt Boldy on his first career goal and Kaapo Kahkonen stopping 36 of 38 shots. The future looks bright in Minnesota, but the present, not so much.
Kirill Kaprizov was helped to the locker room after being hit by Boston Bruins forward Trent Frederic, a play which head coach Dean Evason called “predatory.” Michael Russo of The Athletic reports that Kaprizov is still being evaluated but the reporter has been told it is “not good.”
But the injury concerns from last night don’t end there. Marcus Foligno was given a maintenance day after blocking a shot at the end of the game, but Jonas Brodin was also missing from practice as he is evaluated for a similar block. Once again, Russo tweets that it “doesn’t sound good” for Brodin, who only just returned from a stint on the COVID-19 protocol.
The Wild are already missing Joel Eriksson Ek, Jared Spurgeon, Cam Talbot, Jordan Greenway, Nick Bjugstad, and Brandon Duhaime, meaning any new injuries would take their toll. But Kaprizov and Brodin are arguably the two most important players on the roster even when it’s at full strength, and would be a devastating loss for the Wild if they are out for any significant amount of time.
With the win last night, the Wild are currently tied with the Colorado Avalanche for third place in the Central Division by standings points. They would actually be ahead of the St. Louis Blues and almost even with the Nashville Predators (but behind Colorado) if sorted by points percentage, given their 20-10-2 record.
Luckily, if this situation can be called that at all, the Wild have only one game (tomorrow) between now and January 14. Only three between now and January 21. That would, in theory, give them an opportunity to heal some wounds, though it isn’t clear how long Kaprizov and Brodin will be out at this point. Every team goes through injuries, but this is certainly going to be a difficult stretch for the Wild.
Central Notes: Bjugstad, Olausson, Beagle
There’s bad news coming on the injury front for the Minnesota Wild. Head coach Dean Evason said today that forward Nick Bjugstad will be out “for a while” with an upper-body injury. Things certainly haven’t gone smoothly for Bjugstad in his second season with the Wild. In 28 games, he has just five points, and his defensive game has slipped from last year as well. Bjugstad’s entire career has been marred by injuries, and it’s always tough to see when the Minnesota native experiences another setback. Hopefully, he can recover by the end of the season to help out the Wild on a playoff push.
More notes from the Central Division today:
- There’s movement on the prospect front for the Colorado Avalanche, as 2021 first-round pick Oskar Olausson was moved in the OHL today, traded to the Oshawa Generals from the Barrie Colts. Olausson joins Bruins prospect Brett Harrison and Oilers prospect Ty Tullio in Oshawa, where they hope Olausson’s talent can add a punch to their team. Olausson had 25 points in 22 games with Barrie.
- Arizona Coyotes general manager Bill Armstrong said today that forward Jay Beagle had lower-body surgery and could miss anywhere between eight weeks and the rest of the season. While a defensive center first and foremost, Beagle had just one point in 21 games with Arizona. He’s in the final year of his contract with a $3MM cap hit.
Victor Rask, Zane McIntyre Clear Waivers
Jan 5: Both players have cleared waivers, according to Michael Russo of The Athletic. Rask is expected to be assigned to the taxi squad, where the Wild will receive $1.125MM in cap relief. McIntyre will be assigned to the Iowa Wild.
Jan 4: Per Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman, the Minnesota Wild placed forward Victor Rask and goalie Zane McIntyre on waivers today.
While McIntyre wasn’t in the Wild organization prior to today, the waiver placement means that he signed an NHL contract with the Wild today. He was previously with the AHL’s Tucson Roadrunners on an AHL contract, appearing in three games and posting a .904 save percentage to go with a 2-1-0 record.
McIntyre has spent time on NHL rosters over the past few years but hasn’t gotten into a game since he played eight with the Boston Bruins in 2016-17. Those are the only eight NHL games he has under his belt, but he’s been a capable enough AHL man over the years and that’s the role he’ll play in Minnesota.
Rask’s waiver placement is partially salary-motivated, as the 28-year-old forward is in the last year of a contract that carries a $4MM cap hit. If he clears waivers, the Wild can save roughly $1MM on that hit while he’s in the minors.
He has four goals and six assists in 21 games this season, occasionally serving as a healthy scratch.
Minnesota Wild Recall Matt Boldy, Marco Rossi
It’s time for the kids to have an impact in Minnesota. The Wild have recalled both Matt Boldy and Marco Rossi to the taxi squad, with both expected to make their NHL debuts against the Boston Bruins this Thursday.
The Wild are currently in free fall from the top of the Central Division, losing their last five games and dropping to third place behind the St. Louis Blues and Nashville Predators. They’re also without Joel Eriksson Ek and Jordan Greenway for the time being, opening room for the top prospects to step in and contribute.
Boldy, selected 12th overall in 2019, is the only top-20 player from his draft that has yet to make an appearance at the NHL level. The 20-year-old forward has 28 points in 24 games for the Iowa Wild since signing out of Boston College last year, though only ten of those appearances have come this season. Boldy suffered a broken ankle in October as he was trying to crack the Minnesota roster out of training camp.
Rossi meanwhile was picked even higher, ninth overall in 2020. The 20-year-old center was start the 2020-21 campaign in Switzerland, but a bout with COVID revealed a myocarditis diagnosis that kept him out the entire season. It wasn’t at all clear whether Rossi’s career would continue, with the young forward telling Michael Russo of The Athletic how frightening the diagnosis was:
Every time before I went to sleep, I was so scared that I won’t wake up anymore. Every night, before sleep, I was really sad and always crying because I was scared of that. I told my parents, ‘Could you sleep right next to my bed and be here ’til I fall asleep?’ And every day I woke up in the morning, I was so glad that I woke up. It was really hard.
Now healthy and playing every day in the AHL, Rossi has picked up right where he left off in 2020. Through 21 games with Iowa, he has 23 points, routinely controlling the game with his strong two-way play.
The two youngsters may not be up for the rest of the season, but it will be exciting for Wild fans to see them take the ice in a Minnesota sweater for the first time.
Minnesota Considering Recall Of Boldy, Rossi
- The Minnesota Wild may be giving a young prospect their first chance at the NHL level, as Michael Russo of The Athletic tweets Matt Boldy and/or Marco Rossi could be coming up for Thursday’s game. The Wild placed Jordan Greenway in the COVID protocol today and are already without Joel Eriksson Ek. Boldy, as Russo points out, is the only top-20 pick from 2019 yet to play in an NHL game, while Rossi is only a year removed from his myocarditis diagnosis which put his career on pause.
Snapshots: Paquette, Zuccarello, Canadiens Quarantine
The Montreal Canadiens are absolutely ravaged at the moment by injuries and COVID, and bad turned to worse today when forward Cedric Paquette didn’t finish Saturday’s game against the Florida Panthers due to a neck injury, per TVA’s Renaud Lavoie. Montreal dressed just 11 forwards and five defensemen for that game, a 5-2 loss. They had just three players dressed with a cap hit greater than $1MM, with the majority of their lineup filled out by rookies and AHL call-ups. Paquette played a third-line role, centering Lukas Vejdemo and Alex Belzile. Paquette’s only played in 18 games this season, missing some time due to injury and suspension, but he only has one assist while averaging 9:11 per game. More injury news is certainly concerning for the 28-year-old Paquette, who signed a one-year deal with Montreal this offseason.
More notes from around the league on the first day of 2022:
- With the Minnesota Wild missing captain Jared Spurgeon from tonight’s Winter Classic due to a lower-body injury, The Athletic’s Michael Russo tweets that right wing Mats Zuccarello will serve as the third alternate captain for the outdoor spectacle. Matt Dumba and Marcus Foligno are healthy and will serve as the other two alternates, as per usual. Zuccarello fought back from an early-season injury to have one of the most productive starts of his career, posting 24 points through 24 games. The Norwegian winger will likely reprise his role on the team’s top line, playing alongside Kirill Kaprizov and Ryan Hartman.
- The Canadiens aren’t playing again until January 12th at the earliest as their entire upcoming four-game homestand is postponed. The team won’t complain due to the aforementioned excessive amount of lineup absences, but now, head coach Dominique Ducharme says that a five-day quarantine for the entire team upon their return to Montreal is possible and will be discussed. While it won’t affect their playing schedule, it could give a chance for players to stay healthy and help their lineup get back to having experienced NHLers in the mix.
- UPDATE: the Canadiens and Laval Rocket have officially paused all team activities through January 6, following up on Ducharme’s statement from earlier.