Marco Rossi and JJ Peterka are players who were heavy topics of conversation during this past NHL offseason with both top 2020 draft talents heading into contract extension discussions. The players produced eerily similar totals last season with Rossi amassing 60 points versus Peterka’s 68.
The outcomes of each player’s contract talks played out vastly differently for both sides. Marco Rossi extended his stay in Minnesota, agreeing to a short term $5 million bridge deal with the Wild after a long period of dialogue between both parties before coming to an agreement. JJ Peterka on the other hand had his situation dealt with far earlier in the summer, signing a long term contract with the Utah Mammoth after he was shipped off by his former team in Buffalo.
However, history could have played out quite differently according to insiders as there was reported smoke around a hypothetical swap of the players between the two clubs.
A Rossi-Peterka trade was possible
Via insiders Jeff Marek and Pierre McGuire, there was heavy talk heading into this summer of a potential Marco Rossi-JJ Peterka deal. In this move, the Wild and Sabres would have swapped their respective 23 year old forward studs in what could’ve been a crazy blockbuster trade around the NHL scene.
It is fun to think about how different the hockey world would look had this scenario took place. In the meantime snapping back to reality, Peterka will look to make hay with his new squad in Utah while Rossi hopes to perform these next 3 years with the Wild and make bank on his next deal.
