Kirill Kaprizov Will Receive Largest Contract From Wild: Owner

Kirill Kaprizov Will Receive Largest Contract Offer From Wild: Owner

Kirill Kaprizov is one of the most electrifying players in hockey, period. Since making the jump to the NHL four years ago, the Russian known as “Kirill The Thrill” scored 160 goals and 330 points in 278 games. However, the 27-year-old is set to hit free agency in 2026. Obviously, the Minnesota Wild are planned to do everything in their power to retain their best player since arguably Zach Parise. The next step is out in the Summer of 2025. Once that arrives they will offer him a massive deal to stay in the Land of 10,000 Lakes. Team owner Craig Leipold made no mistake about that in a recent interview:

“I will tell you nobody will offer more money than us, or longer,” Leipold told The Athletic’s Michael Russo. “So all we have to do is prove to him that we want to win.”

Leipold continued: “So what does he want? He wants to win. So we have to prove to not only to him, but to other UFAs that we also want to win. And we’re used to winning. This is the State of Hockey, and we’re going to get back to the winning ways. We’re going to get a perennial playoff team, but it does start with Kirill. He’s going to be the focus of what we’re going to do. We plan to re-sign him.

The Wild’s biggest problem currently is their retained salary. They bought out the contracts of Parise and Ryan Suter back in 2021, which resulted in one of the largest cap penalties we’ve seen. However, in 2025 it becomes a thing of the past. The combined $14.7 million dead cap on those buyouts will go down to $1.7 million after this season. Combined with Gary Bettman projecting a cap increase of roughly $4.5 million, that could give Minnesota over $17 million in additional cap space without even mentioning other pending free agents.

Big-Game Fishing In The Lakes?

The first order of business of course is nailing down Kaprizov to an extension. He currently makes $9 million per season so imagine you pay him at least $2-3 million more per season. However, it’s the Summer of 2026 where many names besides just Kirill the Thrill will be free agents. No one makes more sense for the team than Burnsville, MN native Brock Boeser. He hit the 40-goal mark for the first time in his career last season. It is a sure bet that he would continue doing so if he played on the first line and powerplay with #97. The Canucks would definitely love to keep him and his ceiling, but it’s hard not to think about the possibility of Boeser returning home in 2026.

Other big fish, to name a few, include Connor McDavid, Aretmi Panarin, Jack Eichel, Cale Makar, and Alex Ovechkin. There’s a chance two years from now will be the most explosive free agency in league history.

A team you must keep an eye out for this season is the Minnesota Wild. They have some super good players but are obviously swimming with some big fish out in the Western Conference. Their success this season will play a critical role in their pursuit of keeping Kirill Kaprizov on board for the long term.

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