Jack Eichel to Minnesota Wild Rumors Heating Up

The Minnesota Wild created a ton of cap space for next season as they have bought out veterans Ryan Suter and Zach Parise. While the team will pay a steep price down the road, next season they now have an additional $10 million to work with in cap space. Just enough money to fit in Buffalo Sabres captain Jack Eichel.

Friedman on 31 Thoughts mentions yes the #mnwild have interest in Jack Eichel but they're not willing to "tear the team apart" for him. They also have interest in Christian Dvorak.
— NHL Watcher (@NHL_Watcher) July 13, 2021

Now that we have the Suter and Parise buyouts entered into our system:

$55M projected cap hit and $26M in projected cap space with a roster of 14 (8F - 4D - 2G)#mnwild https://t.co/OeXcMYWFWg pic.twitter.com/3rxrUpvB21
— CapFriendly (@CapFriendly) July 13, 2021

Eichel as long been rumored to be on the Wild's radar as general manager Bill Guerin admitted he's trying to acquire a #1 center this offseason. The team has some young stars to build around, including Calder trophy winner Kirill Kaprizov, however they are paper thin at the center position. Eichel would fill a huge need for the team and give Kaprizov a running mate for the foreseeable future, once he signs his contract extension of course.

It sounds like it's coming down to the Wild, Los Angeles Kings or Boston Bruins for Eichel's services, so it's all going to depend on what Guerin and company are willing to part with to make a deal happen. The team has two first round draft picks, including the Pittsburgh Penguins' pick who they acquired in the Jason Zucker deal. If they are willing to part with at least one of the picks, along with a prospect heavy package, look for Eichel to end up in Minny.

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