2026-27<\/p>\n
Upper Limit: $104MM Expiring Contracts (RFA): F Bobby Brink<\/a> ($2.75MM), F Max Shabanov<\/a> ($1.6MM), G Jesper Wallstedt<\/a> ($2.2MM)<\/p>\n Brink was non-tendered by his hometown team after a disappointing stint to end the season but that was more to get around arbitration eligibility as he quickly re-upped with the Wild.\u00a0 He\u2019s banking on a bounce-back campaign which could give him a shot at doubling this if all goes well.\u00a0 But if it\u2019s another 30-point effort, his earnings upside won\u2019t be too much higher than this.\u00a0 Shabanov was non-tendered by the Islanders after an underwhelming first NHL season.\u00a0 Formerly a top scorer in the KHL, he could be back there in 2027 if he has a repeat performance next season.\u00a0 It\u2019s hard to see him breaking out enough to command big money but if he holds down a steady spot in the lineup and has some success, he could jump up to where Brink is.<\/p>\n Wallstedt receiving this salary despite limited action raised some eyebrows but it wound up being quite the bargain last season as he battled for the starting role.\u00a0 A repeat showing this season could have him pushing for something closer to the $7MM range with arbitration rights next summer.<\/p>\n Expiring Contracts (UFA): D Zach Bogosian<\/a> ($1.25MM plus $100K in GP bonuses), F Blake Coleman<\/a> ($2.45MM*), F Nick Foligno<\/a> ($900K), F Ryan Hartman<\/a> ($4MM), D Quinn Hughes<\/a> ($7.85MM), D Daemon Hunt<\/a> ($900K), G Calvin Pickard<\/a> ($1MM), D Jared Spurgeon<\/a> ($7.575MM), F Nico Sturm<\/a> ($2MM)<\/p>\n *-Calgary is retaining an additional $2.45MM on Coleman\u2019s contract.<\/p>\n Aside from 2021-22, Hartman hasn\u2019t been a top-line scorer but he has passed the 20-goal mark in two of the last three seasons while bringing grit and versatility to the table.\u00a0 The fact he\u2019s a center really boosts his value to the point where he should push past the $6MM mark on a medium-term deal next summer.\u00a0 Coleman came over from Calgary this summer and there are some similarities to Hartman in that he had one outlier year offensively but contributes enough secondary scoring, grit, and versatility to put him in the $6MM range on his next contract.<\/p>\n Sturm\u2019s faceoff prowess earned him his current deal but he didn\u2019t produce much in the first year of it.\u00a0 A full-time fourth liner, he may have a hard time matching this unless he improves his production this coming season.\u00a0 Foligno was thought to be mulling over retiring but sticks around to play a full season with his brother.\u00a0 At this point, given his age (38) and projected limited role, he probably won\u2019t command much more than this next summer if he wants to keep playing.<\/p>\n Spurgeon was a top-pairing player for several years for Minnesota but he\u2019s starting to slow down.\u00a0 Turning 37 in November, he\u2019ll be more of a fourth or fifth option on his next deal, one that will be a short-term pact.\u00a0 He\u2019s a candidate for a bonus-laden one-year deal if he re-signs to give the Wild some flexibility while a two-year pact could come in around half of his current price tag.\u00a0 Bogosian (who hits his bonuses at 60 GP) is more of a seventh option at this point near the end of his career.\u00a0 Hunt is still early in his career but is also closer to a seventh defender than a full-timer.\u00a0 Accordingly, their next contracts are likely to stay close to the minimum.<\/p>\n Pickard signed as injury insurance and is likely AHL-bound at some point but has enough of a track record to stay around this price point as a third-stringer moving forward.<\/p>\n 2027-28<\/p>\n Projected Upper Limit: $113.5MM The good news for the Wild is that they can easily afford to keep Hughes in the fold, though it will come at the expense of some of their depth.\u00a0 If he signs in the $17MM range, they\u2019d be looking at having around $2MM to $2.25MM per roster spot to fill out their group.\u00a0 And that\u2019s before a big-ticket contract for Wallstedt.\u00a0 That could put the squeeze on keeping some of their other veterans like Hartman, Coleman, and Spurgeon.<\/p>\n Expiring Contracts (RFA): F Danila Yurov<\/a> ($972,500 plus $2MM in bonuses)<\/p>\n Yurov\u2019s first NHL season was decent.\u00a0 He was eased in with a bottom-six role which resulted in his bonuses not being reached.\u00a0 Barring a big increase in ice time, he\u2019s unlikely to reach most of his bonuses over these next two years either.\u00a0 At this point, he profiles as a candidate for a bridge deal which, given the state of the market, could still check in around the $4MM mark.<\/p>\n Expiring Contracts (UFA): D Jonas Brodin<\/a> ($6MM), F Marcus Foligno<\/a> ($4MM), D Olli Maatta<\/a> ($3.5MM), F Yakov Trenin<\/a> ($3.5MM)<\/p>\n Foligno\u2019s market will be stronger than his brother\u2019s but perhaps not by much.\u00a0 He\u2019ll be entering his age-37 year on his next contract and with Minnesota\u2019s depth, he may be seeing fourth-line minutes regularly over the next couple of seasons.\u00a0 That could have him making closer to half of his current price tag on his next deal.\u00a0 Trenin signed this deal two years ago, one that looked like an overpayment immediately.\u00a0 While he is one of the most physical players in the league, he doesn\u2019t bring much offensively to the table.\u00a0 That said, his physicality could give him a chance to come in around this price point again.<\/p>\n Brodin has been a reliable shutdown player for 14 seasons now but his offensive limitations typically capped his earnings upside.\u00a0 That should still the case in 2028 when he\u2019ll be 35 but even so, a small raise could be doable on a short-term contract.\u00a0 Maatta has been hit-or-miss in recent years.\u00a0 When it\u2019s the former, this price tag is reasonable but when it\u2019s the latter, it\u2019s an overpayment.\u00a0 That makes projecting his next contract quite difficult.\u00a0 If things go well with the Wild, he could get a pay bump.\u00a0 If things don\u2019t go well, his price tag could be cut by close to half.<\/p>\n 2028-29<\/p>\n Forecasted Upper Limit: $123MM While next summer could be tough for Minnesota, they should have more flexibility when planning for this season with $17MM coming off the books and beyond Brodin, no big-ticket deals to sign.\u00a0 This is a window where they could look to make a splash.<\/p>\n Expiring Contracts (RFA): None<\/p>\n Expiring Contracts (UFA): F Joel Eriksson Ek<\/a> ($5.25MM)<\/p>\n While Eriksson Ek is not an ideal number one center, he has filled that role frequently and held his own while being a solid defensive player.\u00a0 If the market continues on its current trajectory, it wouldn\u2019t be shocking to see his camp push for around double his current price tag unless his production falls off over the next three seasons.<\/p>\n 2029-30<\/p>\n Forecasted Upper Limit: $133.5MM (8.5% increase) A good chunk of the projected increase will go to Eriksson Ek if he re-signs but otherwise, they should have some extra wiggle room in this offseason.<\/p>\n Expiring Contracts (RFA): None<\/p>\n Expiring Contracts (UFA): F Matt Boldy<\/a> ($7MM)<\/p>\n Boldy bypassed a bridge contract to sign long-term and the end result is that he is quite the bargain for a top-line winger.\u00a0 At this point, it seems like he\u2019s a safe bet to double this price tag (and potentially more) given that he\u2019ll be 29 when his next contract begins.<\/p>\n Signed For 2030-31 And Beyond<\/p>\n For that season, there will be a new CBA in place so trying to forecast the cap and cap space basically becomes a guessing game.\u00a0 Accordingly, we\u2019ll go back to the old Deep Dive format for players signed beyond the 2030-31 campaign.<\/p>\n D Brock Faber<\/a> ($8.5MM through 2032-33) Kaprizov\u2019s contract was the richest in league history, at least for a few months and really set the new standard for comparison.\u00a0 There\u2019s no denying that it was a huge price to pay but there\u2019s no denying that he\u2019s a top-end talent when healthy.\u00a0 As the cap continues to rise, this won\u2019t look quite as jarring but it\u2019s also fair to say it won\u2019t be viewed as a team-friendly pact either.\u00a0 McCarron opted for long-term security with this deal while also securing a much higher payday than he had before.\u00a0 It was a bit surprising at the time but after seeing some of the other deals handed out to players like him in free agency, Guerin read the market fairly accurately.<\/p>\n Faber had his best offensive showing last season while continuing to log heavy minutes.\u00a0 If he stays around 50 points and 24 minutes per game moving forward, he could be in a position to double his price tag on his next contract.<\/p>\n Gustavsson signed an early extension last year, one it\u2019s fair to wonder if Minnesota might want a mulligan on, knowing the year Wallstedt had and the contract that will be coming his way.\u00a0 At his best, he\u2019s a solid starter but in two of the last three years, he has been more of a mid-to-lower-tier one.\u00a0 A repeat showing of 2025-26 moving forward would allow the Wild to get an okay return on the contract but with Wallstedt\u2019s deal looming, can they afford to keep both?<\/p>\n Outlook<\/p>\n Things have been tight cap-wise for the Wild for a while now and that should continue for a couple more years at least.\u00a0 However, they have the cap room to keep Hughes in the fold and sign at least most of their other core players.\u00a0 However, it may take a bit before they can add another core piece to their group.<\/p>\n Photo courtesy of Nick Wosika-Imagn Images.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Navigating the salary cap is one of the most important tasks for a front office.\u00a0 Teams that 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Current Cap Charge: $102,847,499
Cap Space: $1,152,501
Potential Bonuses: $2.1MM (less than half is likely to be achieved)
Dead Cap: $1,666,666 (buyouts of Zach Parise<\/a> and Ryan Suter<\/a>, $833,333 each)<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/USATSI_28848975-200x300.jpg\")
<\/a>Hughes is the big-ticket player GM Bill Guerin has to contend with and talks about a new deal are already underway.\u00a0 It\u2019s widely expected that he\u2019ll become the top-paid defenseman in the NHL with his next contract and jumping into Kirill Kaprizov<\/a>\u2019s price range ($17MM) is realistic given his importance to the Wild and his stature around the league.\u00a0 Minnesota would love to sign him long-term but his camp seems to prefer something shorter-term, giving him a bit more flexibility and a chance to cash in a few years from now when the salary cap is even higher. Talks started last month on an extension but nothing is in place yet although it took quite a while for Kaprizov to sign last year as well.<\/p>\n
Current Cap Charge: $67,522,499 (11 players signed)
Cap Space: $45,977,501
Potential Bonuses: $2MM (no more than half would be realistic)
Dead Cap: $1,666,666 (buyouts of Parise and Suter) and there\u2019s a chance of a bonus carryover penalty from 2026-27<\/p>\n
Current Cap Charge: $49,549,999 (6 players signed)
Cap Space: $73,450,001
Potential Bonuses: None
Dead Cap: None<\/p>\n
Current Cap Charge: $42,633,333 (6 players signed)
Cap Space: $90,866,667
Potential Bonuses: None
Dead Cap: None<\/p>\n
G Filip Gustavsson<\/a> ($6.8MM through 2030-31)
F Kirill Kaprizov<\/a> ($17MM through 2033-34)
F Michael McCarron<\/a> ($3.33MM through 2031-32)<\/p>\n