With the NHL trade deadline fast approaching, teams are working hard to improve their rosters in any way they can.
For the Minnesota Wild, they have already completed one trade in recent days, with the possibility of more coming. With that in mind, let’s take a little look back at the history of this organization at the NHL trade deadline.
Past 5 Wild Trade Deadlines
Over the past five years, the Wild have made a total of six trades at the deadline, including one that brought over a key member of the current roster from the Nashville Predators.
Feb. 26, 2017
Minnesota receives: Martin Hanzal, Ryan White, 2017 fourth-round pick
Arizona receives: Grayson Downing, 2017 first-round pick, 2018 second-round pick, 2019 conditional fourth-round pick
Feb. 27, 2017
Minnesota receives: Future considerations
Arizona receives: Teemu Pulkkinen
Feb. 26, 2018
Minnesota receives: 2019 fifth-round pick
Montreal receives: Mike Reilly
Feb. 20, 2019
Minnesota receives: Ryan Donato, 2019 fifth-round pick
Boston receives: Charlie Coyle
Feb. 25, 2019
Minnesota receives: 2020 seventh-round pick
Winnipeg receives: Matt Hendricks
Feb. 25, 2019
Minnesota receives: Kevin Fiala
Nashville receives: Mikael Granlund
Feb. 10, 2020
Minnesota receives: 2020 first-round pick, Calen Addison, Alex Galchenyuk
Pittsburgh receives: Jason Zucker
Top 5 Wild Deadline Deals
Feb. 25, 2019
Minnesota receives: Kevin Fiala
Nashville receives: Mikael Granlund
Two players at the time that likely could use a change of scenery were traded one-for-one in this deal. Granlund was fresh off his best season in the NHL, where he recorded 67 points in 77 games during the 2017-18 campaign. On the other hand, the Wild were acquiring a much younger player in Kevin Fiala.
At the time of the trade, Fiala already had one 20-goal season under his belt but was struggling with just 10 in 64 games. The following season, his first full one with the Wild, he had 23 goals and 31 assists in 64 games. This season, he currently has 54 points in 59 and looks to be a core member of this team moving forward.
April 3, 2013
Minnesota receives: Jason Pominville and 2014 a fourth-round pick
Buffalo receives: Matt Hackett, Johan Larsson, a 2013 first-round pick and 2014 second-round pick
Johan Larsson played multiple seasons for the Sabres but never recorded more than 20 points a year. The first-round pick selected in this trade, Nikita Zadorov, only played 67 total games for the Sabres.
On the other hand, Pominville played 327 games for the Wild, registering 206 points. He also added 23 points in the playoffs in 34 games. The Sabres never got that type of value from any of the assets acquired in the original trade.
Feb. 10, 2020
Minnesota receives: 2021 first-round pick, Calen Addison, Alex Galchenyuk
Pittsburgh receives: Jason Zucker
Jason Zucker had a solid career with the Wild, but with the team looking to retool for the future, they agreed to send him to the Penguins, who were again trying to load up at the deadline for another deep playoff run.
In return, the Wild received prospect Calen Addison, who looks poised to be a staple on the team’s blue line for years to come and Carson Lambos, who they selected with their 2021 first-round pick. He’s an exciting young player for the Winnipeg Ice in the WHL and represented Canada at the World Junior Hockey Championship. Getting two high-level prospects for Zucker looks like a fantastic return for the time being, but this trade can’t be adequately judged for a couple more seasons.
March 4, 2001
Minnesota receives: Willie Mitchell
New Jersey receives: Sean O’Donnell
Willie Mitchell played 288 games for the Wild as a solid stay-at-home defender who wasn’t afraid to get physical. Despite O’Donnell playing 1224 games in the NHL over his career, only 17 ended up being with the Devils. In those games, he only managed to produce one assist and would join the Bruins in the offseason.
March 13, 2001
Minnesota receives: 2001 third-round pick
Ottawa receives: Curtis Leschyshyn
This one isn’t a steal by any means, but Curtis Leschyshyn never had more than 10 points in any season with the Senators. Meanwhile, with the draft pick, the Wild selected Stephane Veilleux, who scored 90 points over his first six seasons and even returned to the Wild in the 2011-12 season to play his final few seasons in the state of hockey.
Worst 5 Wild Deadline Deals
Feb. 26, 2017
Minnesota receives: Martin Hanzal, Ryan White, 2017 fourth-round pick
Arizona receives: Grayson Downing, 2017 first-round pick, 2018 second-round pick, 2019 conditional fourth-round pick
Both teams would likely want this trade back, as neither side benefited much from this deal. None of the players selected by the Coyotes with the picks they acquired ever played a game at the NHL level for the organization.
On the other hand, the Wild gave up a lot of draft capital for Martin Hanzal in hopes he could make an impact come playoff time. He was solid in the last month of the regular season with 13 points in 20 games but only had one goal in five playoff games. He signed with the Dallas Stars as a free agent in the offseason.
March 5, 2014
Minnesota receives: Matt Moulson, Cody McCormick
Buffalo receives: Torrey Mitchell, 2014 second-round pick, 2016 second-round pick
Yet another trade both teams likely would want back. Moulson, exactly like Hanzal, had 13 points in 20 regular season games with the Wild but failed to make a sizeable impact in the playoffs with three points in 10 games. He signed back in Buffalo in the offseason for five years.
Feb. 20, 2019
Minnesota receives: Ryan Donato, 2019 fourth-round pick
Boston receives: Charlie Coyle
Ryan Donato played just 84 games with Wild, registering 39 points. Meanwhile, Charlie Coyle was a perfect fit in Boston from the moment he arrived, playing the physical style of hockey the Bruins love so dearly. He also had 16 points in 24 playoff games in 2019 and signed a six-year extension later that fall.
Related: Revisiting the Bruin’s Trade for Charlie Coyle 2 Years Later
Feb. 26, 2018
Minnesota receives: 2019 fifth-round pick
Montreal receives: Mike Reilly
After deciding to sign with the Wild as a free agent out of the NCAA, Mike Reilly played 84 games with them throughout three seasons. However, his time with his hometown team ended in February of 2018, as he was shipped to the Canadiens for a fifth-round draft pick.
Reilly would eventually find his way to the Senators, where he started to become a much more impactful defenceman. This past summer, he signed a three-year, $9 million contract with the Boston Bruins. As for the Wild, they selected Matvei Guskov, who is currently playing in Russia and has yet to sign an entry-level contract.
Feb. 28, 2011
Minnesota receives: Jeff Penner, Mikko Lehtonen
Boston receives: Anton Khudobin
This one stings for Wild fans, as neither player they acquired ever played a single game for the organization at the NHL level. Meanwhile, Khudobin eventually became a solid goaltender, highlighted by helping the Dallas Stars make the Stanley Cup Final in 2020. With over 250 NHL games, He’s easily the best player in this deal, and the Wild got essentially nothing in return.
Overall, it’s clear that the Wild don’t have the best history in terms of finding success with their deadline deals. Pominville and Fiala highlight their best trades, but a lot more than not, they are on the losing end of these deals.
So far at this deadline, they have already acquired Tyson Jost and Nicolas Deslauriers in separate deals, and more could still come before Monday”s deadline. The Wild are surely hoping that some of their deadline deals this year end up on the good side of history when looking back at them later.
