MN Wild updates: Brock Nelson stays with Avs, Marco Rossi likely gone?

This is a big summer for GM Bill Guerin and the Minnesota Wild, who have finally escaped the financial difficulties of the Ryan Suter and Zach Parise contract buyouts. They now have some actual cap space to supplement their 2025-26 roster as they look to snap an unfortunate streak of eight consecutive losses in the first round of the playoffs.

How exactly they plan on doing that is unclear. And before they add to the roster, they might actually end up subtracting. 

Center Marco Rossi, who turns 24 in September and is coming off a career year, will be a restricted free agent this offseason. Guerin and the Wild have made a couple "significant" contract extension offers, according to reports, but have not been able to reach common ground with Rossi's representation. 

A shorter bridge deal for Rossi seems unlikely to be accepted after he saw his role reduced pretty significantly in Wild's playoff series. So if the Wild aren't willing to meet his asking price on a long-term deal, the logical move might be to trade him to the highest bidder.

"There was another call between the sides on Tuesday, per league sources, and Rossi’s agent, Ian Pulver, reiterated that a bridge deal no longer makes sense for Rossi after he was buried on the fourth line in the playoffs," The Athletic's Michael Russo and Joe Smith reported. "Since the Wild don’t seem to have an appetite to invest in a long-term deal for Rossi at an AAV around Matt Boldy’s $7 million, it sure feels like his time in Minnesota could be coming to an end over the next few weeks."

Even if Rossi remains on the roster, the Wild are expected to pursue a center to add depth and scoring punch. That would become a particularly glaring need if Rossi ends up being dealt.

One potential target, veteran Minnesota native Brock Nelson, re-signed with the Colorado Avalanche this week for three years and $22.5 million. Nelson could've made sense as a target for the Wild if he had reached the open market, but there also would've been some risk in signing him to a contract of that level, considering he turns 34 this fall.

Other centers who could hit free agency in July, per The Athletic, include "the Florida Panthers' Sam Bennett, Toronto Maple Leafs' John Tavares, Dallas Stars' Matt Duchene, Ottawa Senators' Claude Giroux and Jonathan Toews, who last played for the Chicago Blackhawks in 2023." The Wild could also look to add a center via trade, whether that involves Rossi or not.

Rossi played in all 82 regular season games for the second straight year and finished with 24 goals and 36 assists. His 60 points trailed only Boldy among Wild players (Kirill Kaprizov and Mats Zuccarello averaged more points on a per-game basis). But for whatever reason, he received the third-lowest ice time of any Minnesota player during the first-round loss against the Golden Knights, putting his future in question.

If he is available to be traded, it's believed that Rossi will command major interest from around the NHL. He's No. 2 on The Athletic's trade board, behind only Rangers winger Chris Kreider. Even though any team acquiring Rossi would also have to give him a new contract, Guerin could potentially get a solid return in a deal.

It would have to be a quality return, because moving Rossi wouldn't necessarily make the Wild better next year. That's why Guerin has told Russo that he's not "dying" to trade Rossi.

At the moment, the Wild's top three centers for next season are still Joel Eriksson Ek, Rossi, and Ryan Hartman. July 1, when NHL free agency officially begins, is the date to keep in mind here.