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stfrank -> RE: Wild 2025-26 Season (12/24/2025 6:38:04 PM)
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quote:
ORIGINAL: TJSweens
Not buying it.
1. Forester had surgery and is out for the year.
2. The Wild no longer need to clear cap.
3. It will take more than Hartman to get Forester or Brink.
4. Guerin has $8.3M in cap. He is going big game hunting to add to the Hughes acquisition.
This is my guess:
Ryan O’Reilly
Team: Nashville Predators
Position: Center
Shoots: Left
Age: 34
Contract term: 2027 UFA
Current cap hit: $4,500,000
Trade Board ranking: No. 14
LeBrun: Minnesota Wild
OK, I stole this idea from our Wild expert, Michael Russo. But I agree it makes sense.
The Wild need a center who can win draws, and O’Reilly can still contribute offensively, is a Cup champion and is the type of character guy Wild general manager and president of hockey operations Bill Guerin loves, as far as the culture piece of it.
Now, as I recently reported, my understanding is that O’Reilly’s agent Pat Morris let it be known to some teams that had shown interest this season that O’Reilly wasn’t ready to go down this path at this point. O’Reilly sees himself as part of the solution in Nashville and doesn’t want to abandon ship. I can certainly see a world in which he doesn’t go anywhere.
But there’s still time for things to change before the trade deadline. At a $4.5 million cap hit this year and next, O’Reilly is good value and especially so if the Wild could get the Predators to retain.
I believe the price on O’Reilly would be a first-round pick and a top prospect. The Wild already moved their 2026 first-round pick in the Quinn Hughes deal, but they do have a first-rounder in 2027. There might be other ways to entice Nashville, too.
There is a very long list of teams that covet O’Reilly. But a trade to Minnesota does make sense.
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