The Minnesota Wild set up their defensive future earlier this offseason when they announced Brock Faber’s contract extension, and yesterday, Monday, Oct. 7, they secured their goaltending future. They announced a two-year contract extension for Jesper Wallstedt worth $4.4 million, or about $2.2 million a year.
This announcement wasn’t a huge surprise. Wallstedt has been touted as their future number-one goaltender since he was drafted back in 2021, and that’s still expected of him now, even with Marc-André Fleury and Filip Gustavsson. It shows that the Wild have confidence in his abilities, and they expect him to slide into the NHL lineup next year after Fleury is done.
In this article, we’ll examine Wallstedt’s expectations for this and next season and how his contract fits into the team. We’ll start with his expectations for this season and move on from there.
Wallstedt’s Easing Into NHL
Wallstedt had a small taste of the NHL last season. He played in three games, and while the first game was a 7-1 loss, he responded with two wins to end his NHL season. One of them was a shutout, and the other was a 6-2 win. He showed he’s a strong, young, and confident goaltender who can bounce back from hard losses.
The important thing to remember about Wallstedt’s big loss is that it was his first NHL game against a strong-scoring Dallas Stars team, and his defense didn’t step up to help him out. When a goaltender is struggling, it’s his teammate’s job to help him, and they didn’t. However, as a rookie, he also learned not to let the loss affect his mental state.
Those few games were perfect for him to know what to expect this coming season when he plays more games. He likely won’t have a lot of games, but more than three, and the Wild will need him to show what he can do because these games will matter.
This season will ease him even more into the physical and mental expectations of a starting goaltender and prepare him for next season when he takes over a more full-time role, likely alongside Gustavsson. This season, he’ll still be easing into the NHL but with a lot more responsibilities and expectations to follow through on. Hopefully, he can continue to wow fans and take that next step.
Wallstedt’s Full-Time Role
In the 2025-26′ season, all eyes will be on Wallstedt as it will be expected he either take the starting role or be in a 1a/1b situation with Gustavsson. Regardless of what it will be, he’ll be in a full-time role and on his way to a long career in the NHL. Depending on how he does this season, they may have Gustavsson still take the brunt of the load next season, with Wallstedt backing up to get him fully comfortable.
The Wild are relying on him to be their future goaltender, and although he’s already confident for a rookie goaltender, he’ll have to embrace that confidence even more to get wins in the NHL. Next season, the pressure will be on as the team will have money to spend, and they’ll be expecting to have all the pieces to go all the way, including their goaltending.
Wallstedt’s Contract Fits
Wallstedt’s contract may seem a little hefty for a goaltender who has yet to play a full season in the NHL, but he’s earned it, and the Wild want him as their future. They know what he can do, and while he hasn’t had a chance to prove himself yet, he will do so this season before his contract starts in 2025-26.
Related: Wild’s Brock Faber Continues to Shine as His Second Season Starts
The Wild still have to fit in a Kirill Kaprizov extension, and whoever else they decide to bring in to take this team to the next level, which includes Wallstedt, and they wanted to make sure he wasn’t enticed to go elsewhere. He still has a lot to prove, but seeing how he’s played so far and proving he can bounce back, it appears he’ll outplay that contract when it starts next season. Depending on how things go and if he plays as expected, the Wild may have gotten off cheap for two years and will have to pay up when the contract expires.
Wallstedt Equals Hope
The Wild have had their fair share of strong goaltending, but none that have reached true star status, similar to how Kaprizov is viewed in his position. Wallstedt may be that goaltender if he lives up to expectations and can help lead the team to many more postseasons and past Round 1, something they haven’t done in quite some time. The future is bright for the Wild, and Wallstedt is at the forefront.
