Could the Minnesota Wild really be looking into moving Jesper Wallstedt at the trade deadline? The rookie goalkeeper took the State of Hockey by storm this season, but due to a recent cold snap he has to surrender to his tandem partner Filip Gustavsson. The Wild don’t want to give up on him, but if the right return presents itself, Bill Guerin isn’t afraid to make a big splash.
Trading the Great Wall of St. Paul would undoubtedly be a big splash. Wallstedt is Minnesota’s future, but the Wild are in win-now mode with the uncertainty surrounding Quinn Hughes’ long-term future with the club. If Hughes doesn’t last past the 2026/2027 season, Guerin’s best chance of winning a cup is within the next two seasons.
If Minnesota wants to gain the upper hand over the Dallas Stars and Colorado Avalanche in their division, the belief is that they need to add another top-six center. The Wild could use a better center than Ryan Hartman on their first line alongside Kirill Kaprizov, and Wallstedt is the type of talent that could get them that player.
Vancouver Canucks
Could some of Team Sweden’s Olympic representatives switch teams after the tournament is over? It will take more than just Wallstedt to make it work, but Guerin and Patrik Allvin have had plenty of trade talks with each other this offseason, and Elias Pettersson could reunite with Hughes in Minnesota.
The Vancouver Canucks still have a long way to go in their rebuild, but with Thatcher Demko’s injuries piling up, one of their needs could be a goaltender. Wallstedt was part of the future with players like Marco Rossi, Zeev Buium and Liam Ohgren in Minnesota. Could he join them in Vancouver and start something new?
St. Louis blues
Would the St. Louis Blues consider trading Jordan Binnington elsewhere and then acquiring Wallstedt to form a young one-two punch with Joel Hofer? While the suitability for Wallstedt isn’t great in St. Louis, the suitability for Robert Thomas in Minnesota is why this deal would work.
The Blues would likely prefer not to acquire another goaltender in a Thomas deal. But if the Wild were to sweeten the pot and make the best offer for their franchise center, it would be hard to pass up the 23-year-old future star.
Thomas would make a lot of sense in Minnesota with his team-friendly salary.
Nashville Predators
The Wild’s most pressing problem with all these trade ideas is freeing up cap space for players like Pettersson and Thomas. This idea goes a little further than the beaten path, but Steven Stamkos’ recent run of success and Stanley Cup history would make him a great fit for Minnesota if they are truly in win-or-bust mode.
Juuse Saros’ extension took effect this offseason, but his stats over the last few years have everyone wondering how that deal will age over the next eight years. Saros may need less workload to age that contract more gracefully, and creating a tandem with Wallstedt could be the way to do that.
Next: Red-hot Jesper Wallstedt has Oilers fans reconsidering controversial draft decision
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