Minnesota Wild general manager Bill Guerin isn’t afraid to swing for the fences. Most executives wouldn’t consider trading a haul for a player like Quinn Hughes without an extension in place. The general manager knows that he has a two-year window to win with the superstar defenseman, and the rest is unknown for now. It means that the Wild still have to be aggressive at this year’s trade deadline.
The team has been on a roll since acquiring Hughes, which isn’t a massive surprise, knowing that he brings one of their most-needed elements: offense from the backend. They’ve passed off the Dallas Stars for second in the Central Division, and are five points behind the Colorado Avalanche for first, albeit with three extra games played.
It wouldn’t be a massive surprise to see them chase down the Avalanche, but it does seem unlikely. That means all roads lead to a first-round matchup with the Stars, and Guerin knows that some more depth down the middle is needed to compete with that team. If he went all-in with his Hughes deal, he may as well do whatever he can to land a top-six center.
All signs point to Vincent Trocheck being a potential target, but it’s unclear whether the New York Rangers have the assets they need. The Wild have one big piece they could dangle in a trade, but the Rangers having Igor Shesterkin hurts the possibility of Jesper Wallstedt going the other way in a trade deadline deal.
If the Wild want to go all-in and not worry about mortgaging the future, Wallstedt is going to give them the big fish they are searching for.
Would the Wild actually trade Jesper Wallstedt?
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There is no doubting that if Guerin wants to hold on to him, Wallstedt is the future of the Wild’s crease. He burst onto the scene this season and even made Team Sweden as the team’s third-string goaltender. It was quite the accomplishment for a rookie, and some could argue that Filip Gustavsson’s play in Milano-Cortina meant Wallstedt maybe should’ve gotten a shot.
Gustavsson’s play at the Olympics raises an interesting dilemma, as he is also Wallstedt’s tandemmate in Minnesota. Could his play in Milan scare Guerin away from losing Wallstedt as insurance for a playoff run?
If Guerin is comfortable with Gustavsson, he shouldn’t worry about three years from now when Wallstedt would potentially take over the starting role. There is a chance Hughes isn’t even in Minnesota by then, and the team’s outlook will look very different, given the players and picks Guerin traded to acquire him.
The Wild have a two-year window to win. Maybe winning can convince Hughes to stay, but there is always the looming possibility that he heads to free agency for the chance to play with his brothers. Guerin has to be planning for him not to re-sign, just to be safe.
In no way is this an endorsement for Guerin not to be forward-thinking and try to keep someone who could be one of the league’s better goalies in five years. However, if we’re looking for the maximum amount of enjoyment this spring, the Wild adding another elite player to their forward group could set up the Central Division as one of the best playoff matchups since the NHL switched to this playoff format. The problem is that it could mean giving up on Jesper Wallstedt to make it happen.