Takeaways From Minnesota Wild End-of-Season Interviews for 2025-26

The Minnesota Wild’s season ended on Wednesday, May 13, at the hands of the Colorado Avalanche in Game 5. Less than 48 hours later, they were back at Grand Casino Arena for their end-of-season interviews, and while there was obviously a lot of disappointment with the way things ended, there was a lot of optimism in the room as well. 

Player after player came in and answered questions from the media throughout the day, and while the tone was mostly serious, there were some jokes and smiles sprinkled in as expected when interviewing players like Mats Zuccarello. They had the weekend off, but on Monday, May 18, general manager Bill Guerin and head coach John Hynes came in for their end-of-season interviews as well. In this article, we’ll look at a few takeaways from the days, starting with the Wild’s need to make decisions. 

Wild Have Some Choices to Make 

Of course, this time last season, the spotlight was on getting Kirill Kaprizov’s contract done and how that was going to happen. Since then, they obviously signed Kaprizov but also Filip Gustavsson, and they brought in players like Quinn Hughes, Michael McCarron, Nick Foligno, and others who have either signed or moved on. 

The biggest question surrounds Quinn Hughes, of course, since he’s the Wild’s bona fide superstar and they want/need to do everything in their power to keep him around. He changed the team for the better, and he would leave behind a huge hole to fill if he were to leave. The good news is that when asked about this in his interview, he discussed how he likes it in Minnesota and is open to re-signing. 

“I mean, I really like it here. I think that I would definitely be open to re-signing. I mean, we’ll see what Billy (Guerin) wants to do. Again, we’re not even 36 hours removed, so it’s a tough loss. But I definitely would be open to re-signing here,” Hughes said to the media during his end-of-season interview when asked about wanting to re-sign in Minnesota. 

Outside of Hughes, they also have to think about McCarron, who would be a great player to keep around, not only for his skill level that he showed throughout his time with the Wild, but also his size. He’s a player who can help the team not get pushed around too much, and he can make plays happen. The only problem is whether the Wild can afford him. 

“Yeah, 100%. I think, obviously, you have a GM and coach who wanted me to come in here and help the team, and when someone gives up what they gave up to get me, I think it shows that how much they wanted me. So, to try to return the favor. I think at the same token, I think I’m at a point in my career where I haven’t really taken that next step financially, or had quite security, I’d say. I guess that’s what I’m looking for. I know some teams are strapped, and it is what it is, but I would love to be here…,” McCarron said to the media in his end-of-season interview when asked about staying in Minnesota. 

Then there are players like Mats Zuccarello, Marcus Johansson, Vladimir Tarasenko, Nick Foligno, Robby Fabbri, Zach Bogosian, and Jeff Petry who are all unrestricted free agents when July 1 rolls around. Plus, they also have Bobby Brink and Daemon Hunt, who will be restricted free agents. The Wild have quite a few decisions to make about who is staying and who is going this offseason, and it won’t be easy.

Gustavsson & Wallstedt Tandem 

Although the postseason wasn’t the easiest situation for either goaltender to be put in, they both handled it quite well. Jesper Wallstedt, of course, stepped up big in the postseason as he helped the team get over the hump of the first round against the Dallas Stars, and he did everything he could to get them through against the Avalanche, but of course, the whole team fell short. 

As for Filip Gustavsson, he struggled near the end of the season, and the Wild had to go with the hot hand at the time, which was Wallstedt. The move clearly paid off, and while Gustavsson did fill in for Wallstedt in Game 2 against the Avalanche, Wallstedt continued to have the hot hand. He made some mistakes as any rookie in their first postseason would, but he stood tall despite the immense pressure on his shoulders that could rattle any young goaltender.

It’s understandable that Gustavsson would be frustrated with the way his season ended, but he took it as a learning experience, as everyone should whenever a similar situation arises. It also makes more sense now that the news has come out about Gustavsson needing hip surgery. Regardless of the situation, these two goaltenders make a good tandem, and hopefully they can stay that way for seasons to come. 

“It was good. Obviously, both of us want to play, but he was always very supportive to me. Usually, I have a lot of questions, and I wonder a lot of stuff or plays out there happen where I, well, it’s always easier when we’re both doing it in Swedish, too. So we can kind of isolate our conversation, and we can get our own thoughts on it. But he was always very, very supportive of me, and I think he helped me a lot with just whenever I had stuff I wonder about or when plays ended up happening, I could always look to him to get some good answers,” said Wallstedt to the media in his end-of-season interview when asked about working with Gustavsson. 

Optimism for Next Season 

The end of this season was obviously difficult, but again, the Wild showed a lot of promise, and that makes it even more difficult to accept the way the season ended. Although there were quite a few things that went wrong, the Wild know they have a lot to look forward to, too. There’s a lot of hope regarding this team, and they took a big step in the right direction. 

They know what they need to fix, and they know one of the biggest problems was being consistent. Both head coach John Hynes and general manager Bill Guerin acknowledged this issue in their end-of-the-season interviews. Overall, the Wild can play with anyone, but the key is that they have to play their game and not someone else’s. 

“I think there was a lot of learning from the guys. I think the question that Mike (Russo) just asked Billy (Guerin), I think that really understanding how consistent you have to be in the playoffs. Every game is important. I think when you look at the consistency level we played with, for the most part, in the Dallas series was there, and then it was a quick transition right into the Colorado series. We know how that went, but then we gather ourselves, and I think it’s understanding you’re playing the same team time and time again. It’s not like the regular season…,” Hynes said to the media in his end-of-season interview when asked about learning to lose. 

“The consistency level you have to play with, the dedication level you have to deal with, of the simple things, truly understanding tactically what you need to do emotionally, how you need to play against a team as the series continues to go on. And when you look at it, that’s where we slipped a bit, particularly in game four… was that the willingness and the commitment to bring that night in and night out, shift in, shift out, game in, game out, I think that that’s a big one for all of us…,” Hynes continued to the media in his end of season interview about learning to lose. 

Everyone on the team, from the general manager to the final player on the roster, knows what needs to be addressed. The Wild have known they could’ve been better, and they can use this as a learning experience to be better next season. Hopefully, they can learn from these mistakes and become better for next season to try and make another run.