The opening of NHL free agency on July 1 was accompanied by another huge meaning in Minnesota.
The Wild can now extend Kirill Kaprizov on a max-length eight-year deal.
The contract hasn’t arrived yet, but when it does, it’ll be huge.
Minnesota Sports Insider on X predicts Kaprizov could max out at eight years for $120 million, which would be a record-setting $15 million per year.
Even if he doesn’t get quite that high, it seems safe to expect a nine-figure deal for Kaprizov, assuming he signs on to an eight-year pact.
The 28-year old Russian winger is coming off a season in which he played just 41 games but still managed 25 goals and 31 assists.
In his career, he has 185 goals and 201 assists in 319 games.
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Minnesota took Kaprizov in the fifth round in 2015, and man, that’s paid off.
He has spent five seasons in the NHL since coming stateside. In the last four, he has averaged more than a point per game.
As long as Kaprizov stays healthy, he’ll likely be worth whatever big money the Wild want to give him.
The task after a contract extension, whenever it can finally be reached, will be to surround Kaprizov with enough talent to not waste his prime years.
That means there are some big tasks ahead for Minnesota, with Kaprizov a winger on the ice but at the center of the future with the Wild.
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