LAS VEGAS — So which Foligno brother gets No. 17?
“Seventeen goes to the guy who’s played the longest in a Wild jersey,” Marcus Foligno, the ninth-year Minnesota Wild veteran, said, with a bunch of ha-ha-ha-ha-has in a group text with Nick and The Athletic on Friday. “Plus, Nick’s too cheap to offer a good deal for my number.”
With a couple of laughing emojis, Nick responded: “Marcus wanted a Rolex for 17, but he forgot he owes me a Rolls Royce for all the things I’ve done and paid for for him in my life. So I said I’ll take ‘71’ instead.”
“That’s true,” Marcus wrote.
And there you have it: Brotherly love united in Minnesota between Nick and the younger brother who has looked up to him since they were kids but never got to play with him.
Now at 38 and 34 years old, respectively, Nick and Marcus were brought together by Bill Guerin on a team that has big aspirations this postseason.
“The whole story with the Folignos, it is a great story — it’s cool they’re reunited,” the Wild president of hockey operations and general manager said. “But we got Nick for Nick and what he brings to the table.”
Nick told The Athletic: “I’m thrilled and excited to join a great team. It was a bittersweet day as I said goodbye to some great young teammates and little brothers in Chicago. I loved my time there, but I’m thrilled for the opportunity to battle alongside Marcus and this team and go chase something special.”
At the end of an active week that earlier saw the additions of Robby Fabbri from the St. Louis Blues via waivers and Michael McCarron from the Nashville Predators via trade, the Wild acquired depth defenseman (at this stage of his career) Jeff Petry on Thursday — an indication that David Jiricek’s time with the Wild was likely hours from coming to an end.
And then, indeed, Jiricek’s time in Minnesota did end, when in advance of Friday’s trade deadline the Wild dealt him to the Philadelphia Flyers for hometown kid and talented winger Bobby Brink. Finally, the veteran Foligno came in for future considerations, and the Wild shipped out Vinnie Hinostroza to the Florida Panthers for the same to give him a new lease on life.
“I think we checked a lot of boxes the last couple days,” Guerin said. “I’m excited to see what the group can do.”
McCarron and Brink were expected to debut Friday night at Vegas, and Nick Foligno is likely to debut Sunday at Colorado after meeting the team in Denver on Saturday.
The Wild didn’t add the big center they hoped to, but Guerin exercised patience by not trading away what remaining precious assets he had left for guys like Vincent Trocheck and Ryan O’Reilly, who both stayed put Friday and aren’t true No. 1 centers. Instead, Guerin hopes to go big-game hunting this offseason or next season for a bona fide star, the way he did with Quinn Hughes in December.
The Wild have scored the most goals in the league since Hughes’ arrival, have the most points of any blue line in the league since Hughes’ arrival and are entering Friday night’s game against the Golden Knights with the fourth-most points in the NHL.
Guerin said the asking price for top-six centers was “extremely high,” so they “strengthened our team in different ways.”
The Wild feel the additions of Foligno and McCarron will lead to more faceoff wins, and the fact they have three superstars — Hughes and play-driving wingers Kirill Kaprizov and Matt Boldy on separate lines — will allow them to score plenty down the stretch, into the playoffs and finally make some noise in the postseason.
In other words, those three play drivers mitigate the fact the Wild don’t have a prototypical No. 1 center like the Dallas Stars’ Roope Hintz and Colorado Avalanche’s Nathan MacKinnon — two potential opponents in the first two rounds.
“Back in the day, centers carried the puck. They fed the wingers,” Guerin said. “The game is so different now. It’s so fluid, and (there’s) so much more creativity now. Kaprizov drives the offense on his line. Boldy drives the offense on his line. You need your centermen to be 200-foot players more than ever. The game has changed in that aspect.”
Guerin feels the additions give coach John Hynes options down the stretch and into the playoffs. Currently, Marcus Foligno and Marcus Johansson are hurt, although Foligno joked Friday morning the addition of his brother should accelerate his “week-to-week” rehab and he’ll be back “tomorrow.”
Foligno and McCarron can play wing and center. Danila Yurov, whose faceoff-circle weakness is becoming a glaring issue, can play wing and center. Same with Ryan Hartman. Same with Nico Sturm.
The Wild are suddenly a big-bodied team, especially in the bottom of their lineup, which they believe will aid them in the playoffs.
“(Guerin) understands how to build a team — the team chemistry, what kind of players and people you need — and we’re bringing in great people and we’re bringing in guys, they know why they’re here,” Hynes said. “We’re here to try to be the best team that we can be and finish the season strong, playing winning hockey and a style that gives us a chance to win, and then when you get in the playoffs, it’s all in on that.”
Brink is 24 and a pending restricted free agent. He’s a smart, competitive right wing who can play second line with Boldy, his former Under-18 World Juniors U.S. linemate, or the third line, where he’s expected to play with Yurov on Friday night. Guerin made it clear to Brink during their call Friday that this is not some kind of hometown homecoming. He’s here to work, win and be part of the future.
“He’s a versatile guy,” Guerin said. “He competes really hard. … He’s just a hockey player. He shows up every night. He loves the game. He has passion. He plays with emotion and passion. He doesn’t shy away from the high-traffic areas.”
Guerin and Hynes said they talked with Brink’s former Flyers coach, John Tortorella, in Milan during the Olympics. Hynes and Tortorella were part of head coach Mike Sullivan’s Team USA staff. A lot was made a few years ago when Tortorella scratched Brink in Minnesota with his friends and family hoping to watch him in person.
“What (Tortorella) tried to do for Bobby Brink was make him a better hockey player, and he did that,” Guerin said. “Sometimes, there’s tough lessons. But he gave him a glowing review.”
Traded for Brink was Jiricek. The Wild had sent first-, second-, third- and fourth-round picks, as well as Daemon Hunt, to Columbus for him in November 2024. The Wild at least got Hunt back before the season via waivers, but Guerin said it was time to cut bait on Jiricek.
“David was getting boxed out a little bit,” Guerin said. “When we traded for Quinn, that really changed a lot of things. That really changed our direction. When you have a young player like that, he needs to play. He needs more of an opportunity, and we weren’t going to be able to give him that. You don’t want to hold kids like that back. As much as we gave up for him, I feel we got fair return this time.
“That’s the way the world works. You kind of have to move on sometimes. We wish him luck. He’s a great kid. He’s gotten better under us, and I think he’ll continue to get better in Philadelphia.”
As for Nick Foligno, Guerin joked, “We’ve tried getting Nick three times before, so I guess fourth time’s the charm. He’s like his brother, an A-plus human.”
If Foligno’s going to play on an every-game basis, somebody’s getting squeezed. The Wild have 15 forwards on the roster now when healthy, so it’ll be interesting how it shakes out with Vladimir Tarasenko, Yurov, Brink, Marcus and Nick Foligno, Yakov Trenin, Sturm, McCarron and Fabbri.
“We’re going to have to see how things shake out, but you need depth — you need players,” Guerin said. “Some guys aren’t going to be in the lineup some nights. That’s the way it is. We are trying to make the playoffs, and then we’re going to make a push. You have to accept your role. You have to accept what you bring to the team and what the coach asks of us and what we all ask of you. That’s part of being a team player and part of what successful teams do.”
Hynes said point-blank that some forwards will have to sit some nights, just like some defensemen. Petry said he’s willing to accept that role, which is where he’ll start, in the press box at T-Mobile Arena.
“It’s just being direct and honest, and I think when you get in a situation like we’re in, where we’ve added players at the deadline, which the team deserved, and we want to give ourselves the best chance (in the playoffs) … there’s going to have to be just honest discussions,” Hynes said. “I think healthy competition is a value.
“If you’re going to win, you have to sacrifice on the ice, off the ice in those situations, and we’ll discuss that with the group as well.”