Russo & Smith Mailbag, Part Deux (Paywall/Athletic)

Some really nice questions this time around.

Link: https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/6478881/2025/07/10/wild-trade-declan-chisholm-vladimir-tarasenko/

Selection:
Free agency won’t be the way to go moving forward with a skyrocketing salary cap. Trades likely will be the same when teams can afford their top players’ next contracts. So, how do you improve other than through development? Yet we have Marco Rossi developing and don’t want to pay him what he’s worth in terms of comps. — Ben Hertel

There are still going to be available trades, as we’ve seen this offseason. It’ll just be harder to compete as other teams have the cap space as well, and with so many modified no-trade clauses, the Wild will have to show they’re a destination spot. But you make a good point about the developing angle of this. Guerin talked about how much they valued their picks — and making them — in his first few years as a GM. As a result, director of amateur scouting Judd Brackett and his staff helped put together what The Athletic’s Scott Wheeler labels the second-best prospect pool in the league. This year, however, will be a telling one on the team’s pool of young players, as there are a handful of prospects who are expected to play a role on the NHL club. It starts, but doesn’t end, with Buium, who should grab a regular role on the blue line, with Jiricek vying for time as well. Yurov is making his much-anticipated arrival from North America. Liam Ohgren is hungry for a middle-six role. It’s really important for players on their entry-level contracts to make an impact, and these young players could go a long way in helping the team get over the hump. The latest hire of Greg Cronin to run AHL Iowa will be an important one as they try to balance playing younger players and developing a winning culture. — Smith