Minnesota Wild Waive Vladislav Firstov for Purposes of Contract Termination

Michael Russo of The Athletic was first to report the Minnesota Wild have waived Vladislav Firstov and this waiver transaction is for purposes of contract termination.

Sources say #mnwild’s Vladislav Firstov will be on unconditional waivers to today for purposes of contract termination.

— Michael Russo (@RussoHockey) May 14, 2024

Firstov was in the second year of his three-year entry-level contract and was owed $925,000 AAV in the final season of his deal. He'll now be free to sign with any team, meanwhile is very likely playing the foreseeable future in the KHL.

#mnwild Vladislav Firstov has been placed on unconditional waivers. https://t.co/snaAxxoxfQ

— CapFriendly (@CapFriendly) May 14, 2024

The Wild selected the promising forward in the second round of the 2019 NHL Draft and had high hopes for Firstov after a strong showing with the Waterloo Black Hawks of the United States Hockey League. From the USHL, Firstov went on to play NCAA hockey win Connecticut, racking up 58 points in 82 games.

Firstov has spent the last two seasons playing in the KHL for the Torpedo Nizhny, and came back to the AHL ranks to finish up this past year, recording two goals and four points in 10 regular season games.

The Wild head into next season with only $6 million in cap space and are entering the final season of having Zach Parise and Ryan Suter's massive dead cap hits on their books.

Photo credit: Ron Chenoy-USA TODAY Sports