The Minnesota Wild have elected not to sign 2018 first-round draft choice Filip Johansson.
Johansson, 22, has played in Sweden ever since former Wild general manager Paul Fenton selected him 24th overall in the 2018 NHL Draft. He signed a two-year contract extension with his current Swedish Hockey League club, Frölunda HC, back in December 2021.
The 6’1″ right-handed defenceman scored three goals and 11 points in 47 SHL games with Frölunda in the 2021–22 regular season. He added five goals and seven points in nine 2022 playoff contests.
Johansson is one of 28 players whose exclusive draft signing rights expired at 5:00 p.m. ET on Wednesday. He’s the only first-round pick of the group.
As compensation for not signing Johansson, the Wild will receive the 24th pick in the second round of the 2022 NHL Draft. That newly-created selection will be the new No. 56 overall and will push all the subsequent picks down by one spot.
Including the compensatory pick, the Wild now possess seven selections in the 2022 NHL Draft:
- 2022 1st (MIN) — No. 24
- 2022 2nd (VAN) — No. 47
- 2022 2nd (Compensatory) — No. 56
- 2022 3rd (MIN) — No. 89
- 2022 4th (MIN) — No. 121
- 2022 5th (MIN) — No. 153
- 2022 6th (MIN) — No. 185
The Wild no longer own their original second- and seventh-round selections but recently acquired Vancouver’s 2022 second from the Arizona Coyotes in exchange for prospect Jack McBain.
Fenton served as Wild GM from May 2018 to July 2019, participating in two drafts while presiding over the team. Matt Boldy, his 2019 first-round pick, scored 39 points (15 goals, 24 assists) in 47 games with the Wild in the 2021–22 regular season.
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