Kaprizov re-signs for five years, $45 million. Get excited!!!
The wait is over. Like tater tot hotdish straight out of the oven, this news is HOT!!! Wild fans have been waiting for this news all summer and Wild General Manager, Bill Guerin, has been playing it so cool lately. He probably knew this announcement would be coming soon – sneaky little devil. Getting Kirill Kaprizov signed to a five-year contract, reportedly including a no-movement clause for the final two years (which why would you for an electric player in his prime?) is huge!!! That’s what she said.
Yes, $9 million/year AAV is a ton of money for a guy that just has 55 NHL games. Yes, he will make more money against the cap than any other Wild player and the sixth highest for ANY NHL player that has not yet reached his 25th birthday. However, he is the reigning Calder Trophy winner who scored 27 goals and 51 points in an abbreviated season. He paired up well with Mats Zuccarello, who had 35 points (24A) himself.
With Kevin Fiala, Joel Erikkson Ek, Kaprizov, Matt Boldy and Marco Rossi on the roster, the Wild have a young core of speed, agility, skating and sniper power that perhaps is unmatched with a group this young and ready to burst out of the starting gate – not to forget about the fresh tendie, Kaapo Kahkonen, who was in Calder discussions for a while last season and finished the year 16-8 in his first full season and a save percentage just north of 90%.
Today, Kaprizov and the rest of the Wild organization and fans are all smiling. It’s a good day. Go Wild!!!!
The Morning Skate 