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Detroit Red Wings Trade 2-Time Stanley Cup Champion to Minnesota Wild

Originally posted on Blade of Steel | By Tom Banks | Last updated Jun 30, 2025 2:56 PM ET

The Minnesota Wild are in need of major talent, and on the eve of free agency, they've made a surprise trade with Detroit to land a veteran in Vladimir Tarsenko.

The trade market in the NHL has been heating up in recent times, and with free agency almost upon us, there should be plenty more movement around the league in the coming days.

On the eve of free agency on Monday, we've now seen another surprising trade go down, as the Minnesota Wild have acquired veteran Vladimir Tarasenko from the Detroit Red Wings.

This comes just 12 months after the two-time Stanley Cup winner signed a free agent deal with the Red Wings, and according to an official announcement from Detroit, the deal is for 'future considerations'.

The 33-year old struggled to produce like we've seen in the past during the 2024/25 season, tallying just 11 goals and 33 points in 80 games for the Red Wings, that production coming just 12 months after he scored 23 goals and 55 points for Ottawa and Florida.

Minnesota will be hoping they get more of the 2023/24 version of Tarasenko, and with plenty of talent in their forward group already, the belief is that he can get back to being a productive player in the NHL once again.

As for the Red Wings, this one ended up being a very disappointing free agency signing, and it makes plenty of sense for them to move him after the year he had, so ultimately, this deal should end up being a win-win for both as Minnesota takes on the remainder of his deal ($4.75 million in 2025/26, the final year of the deal) to land a proven veteran and Detroit clear up plenty of cap space.

This article first appeared on Blade of Steel and was syndicated with permission.

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