While the Minnesota Wild’s offseason came earlier than many fans hoped for, there is still a lot to look forward to this summer, with the first being the NHL Entry Draft on Friday, June 27, and Saturday, June 28. It may not seem entertaining for Wild fans because they don’t have a pick until the second round, but they can still build their lineup.
The draft is a chance to build the depth of a roster, and although the Wild are built quite well when it comes to depth, they can always improve. It’ll be interesting to see what way they go this summer with the cap space they’ll have as well. First, we’ll look at what happened to the first-round pick and go from there.
Wild Get Jiříček For First Rounder
Giving up draft picks always comes with risk, but making the picks comes with risks of its own. Everything in the sports world has an inherent risk. Will the player you trade for or pick in the draft work out? The Wild wanted to bolster their defense during the season when they lost Jonas Brodin in late November, so they went after David Jiříček.
He’s everything the Wild want in a defenseman: young, skilled, and he has size. He didn’t quite crack the lineup fully this season, but in his six games played, he had a goal and an assist for two points. He did have some mistakes, but those would’ve likely been cleaned up had he been in the lineup longer. However, the Wild plan to have him in the lineup fully next season, and it’ll be exciting to see how he fits in.
To get him, they had to give the Columbus Blue Jackets a pretty large package that included a number of draft picks for different seasons, but the main one was their first-round pick in this coming draft. They would’ve picked 20th this offseason had they kept their pick, which could’ve meant the possibility of picking up a center.
When looking at the draft rankings from my colleague Dayton Reimer for April, there are a couple of defensemen that could go in that spot, but if the Wild were still picking, they would likely pass. Their defense is pretty solid, but their center ice position could use some help. However, they may want to trade instead of relying on the draft, and these player rankings can always change.
Regardless, they would likely still go for a center since that has been a problem of theirs for years. The center closest to 20th overall is Cullen Potter from Arizona State in the NCAA. The Wild have shown they like to go for the college kids; Brock Faber and Zeev Buium are prime examples, so it’s not far-fetched that they would go for Potter too.
Wild Have Second Round Pick
The Wild don’t have the glamour of a pick in the first round, but they do have one in the second, which could mean a chance to add to their solid depth. They have the 52nd pick overall, and there are a number of players they may be interested in. According to the article mentioned above, there are a couple of centers and a wing available around that position.
When looking at the names around the 52nd pick, Conrad Fondrk, who’s a center from the United States Development Program (NTDP), Alexander Zharovsky, who’s a right wing with the MHL, and then finally Adam Benak, a center from the United States Hockey League (USHL) all stand out. All three of these players should interest the Wild, who want to build their center and wing positions.
General manager Bill Guerin said in his last press conference going into the offseason that they are looking to build those two positions in free agency as well. It’ll be interesting to see if they build their depth in that area as well as immediately with free agency.
Wild Protect Picks
The Wild have been known as a team that has been pretty guarded when it comes to their draft picks, however now that they’re going to have money to spend when July, 1st hits, it appears they aren’t as concerned about building their depth for the future, but working on the current team. Guerin had set them up to have a pretty strong future in terms of picks and depth for a while, and now they can focus on getting current players in.
Related: Minnesota Wild Can Really Capitalize With Salary Cap Increases
That doesn’t mean they’re ignoring the draft, knowing the Wild staff, they’ve had their plans in place for a while and know exactly who they want and where. With the depth they’ve been able to build, they know what they’re doing and hopefully they can both build their center and wing positions for the future, but also currently to have strong teams for years to come.
The Wild have great things coming their way, and after the strong but disappointing end to their postseason, it’s going to be fun to see what they do this offseason in both the draft and free agency. Hopefully, they can get everything they want accomplished and come into next season ready to go for a deep run in the playoffs.
