It’s time for another round of NHL rumours to start your work week. We’re closing in on the NHL Draft and the start of free agency this weekend. Teams are tying sign their players, but there may be some hard decisions to be made. The flat salary cap is making life difficult for the league’s general managers. Some teams are going to have to let go off some valuable assets because the cap is tight. Today’s NHL rumours focus on the Seattle Kraken and the Minnesota Wild.
All NHL rumours come from the original source and are subject to change.
NHL Rumours
Seattle Kraken
Rumour: Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman talked about the future of defenceman Carson Soucy in his latest edition of 32 Thoughts.
Friday 32 Thoughts news & interview pod. Guest is @GoldenKnights owner Bill Foley, and he’s terrific. Links to your preferred platform here: https://t.co/io7Mr1QEpm
— Elliotte Friedman (@FriedgeHNIC) June 23, 2023
Analysis: Soucy had a strong Stanley Cup Playoff run for the upstart Kraken. Kraken general manager Ron Francis did take calls on the Viking, Alberta native, but passed. The 28-year-old was making $2.75 million per season and is expected to get a nice raise. Seattle has around $20 million in cap space. However, the Kraken have to sign five restricted free agents this off-season. This includes arbitration eligible Vince Dunn, who was also very good in the post-season.
Soucy is an unrestricted free agent and plenty of teams would love to get the lefty defenceman on July 1. He doesn’t fill up the scoresheet, but is very strong in his own end of the ice. Friedman added that the Vancouver Canucks could be a good suitor for Soucy. The Canucks did recently buyout Oliver Ekman-Larsson just recently. However, Vancouver general manager Patrik Allvin will have to deal with plenty of teams also angling for Soucy’s services.
Minnesota Wild
Rumour: The Athletic’s Michael Russo and Joe Smith speculated on the next contract for RFA goalie Filip Gustavsson.
Wild trade options, assistant coach close, Gustavsson and Rossi futures — Mailbag, part 1
ICYMI, from @JoeSmithNHL and me
MEATY MAILBAG NO. 2 is complete and runs Monday.
Now we need a drink … and an aspirin https://t.co/86yf2mJNAq
— Michael Russo (@RussoHockey) June 24, 2023
Analysis: Gustavsson seems to be the starter at least for the next couple of years while Jesper Wallstedt gets seasoning. Marc-Andre Fleury began the season as the starter, but Gustavsson ended up as the number one netminder. Gustavsson is a restricted free agent that made $787, 500 per season. However, he’s probably going to want a nice raise for his strong play. The main problem is the Wild are going to up against the salary cap due to the Zach Parise and Ryan Suter buyouts.
This limits the options for Wild general manager Bill Guerin, who has to fit his goalie under the cap. The 25-year-old goalie is arbitration eligible and that could make Guerin’s job even more difficult. Both Russo and Smith think that a contract of one to three years is in the cards. Three years would take one of Gustavsson’s UFA years while a one-year deal would have the two parties back in the same position. The Wild have two years of having over $14.7 million of dead cap space. That dead money is a cloud that is hanging over the Wild and Guerin.
Wallstedt is going to need more time in AHL Iowa and signing Gustavsson is very important. However, the Wild have to be very careful in not hamstringing themselves even further.
Main photo by: Steven Bisig-USA TODAY Sports
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