Wild closing in on extension with starting goaltender

In just a matter of days before the season starts, Minnesota GM Bill Guerin has removed nearly all anxiety from what was initially shaping up to be a franchise-altering free agent period next July. Both Gustavsson and franchise cornerstone Kirill Kaprizov were set to hit the open market. Guerin took care of business with the latter earlier this week by delivering the largest contract in NHL history for eight years and $136M in total value. Now, only aging top-nine wingers Vladimir Tarasenko and Mats Zuccarello remain among the notables from the Wild’s 2026 UFA class.

Gustavsson is entering the final season of a three-year, $11.25M deal carrying a $3.75M cap hit that he signed as a restricted free agent in 2023. He landed that contract after a dominant platform campaign in which he broke out for a .931 SV%, 2.10 GAA, three shutouts, and a 22-9-7 record in 39 appearances.

His performance the following year, though, indicated the Wild were smart — at least initially — not to give him too much too soon. He regressed under the weight of being a primary tandem option for the first time, logging a more pedestrian .899 SV% and 3.06 GAA with a 20-18-4 record in 45 games. Considering the Wild’s reputation for having a stout defense held up in 2023-24, those numbers translated to a disappointing -4.8 goals saved above expected, according to MoneyPuck, placing him 27th out of 31 goalies who played at least half their team’s games that year. He, along with even worse results from backup Marc-André Fleury, was a significant reason why Minnesota missed the playoffs that year for just the second time since 2012.

Filip Gustavsson rebounded nicely last season for Minnesota Wild

The 27-year-old rebounded quite nicely in 2024-25, though. He took on more workload from the aging Fleury and became their true No. 1 instead of just a tandem option. While he didn’t quite reach the heights of that dominant 2022-23 showing, Gustavsson was still a top-10 goalie in the league by nearly every metric. That includes starts (58, t-7th), wins (31, t-6th), save percentage (.914, 6th), GAA (2.56, 10th), and shutouts (5, t-4th). He saved 15.3 goals above expected and ranked sixth in Vezina Trophy voting, leading Minnesota back to the postseason despite injuries to multiple key skaters, including Kaprizov, for significant chunks of the season.

He’ll continue being the Wild’s true starter for the foreseeable future and is set up for another 55-plus start season in 2025-26. He’ll have a new face as his backup, though. With Fleury retired, top prospect Jesper Wallstedt is making the jump to full-time NHL minutes. When Gustavsson signed his last contract, there was hope both internally and externally that Wallstedt would be ready to take over the No. 1 job in the 2026 offseason, one of the contributing factors as to why that deal was somewhat term-limited. After some significant bumps in the road in his development, though, that likely won’t be the case. The 2021 first-round pick’s development was tracking nicely up until last year. His numbers with AHL Iowa took a steep dive, plummeting to a 3.59 GAA, .879 SV%, and a 9-14-5 record in just 27 appearances as injuries limited his availability.

Minnesota committed to Wallstedt making the jump to the NHL before last year, though, inking him to a two-year, $4M extension that’s taking effect for 2025-26. While they may have initially looked at this year as a chance for Wallstedt to take the reins entirely, the goal now is for a smooth NHL adjustment and a rebound to league-average territory. He is, after all, a two-time AHL All-Star and had the top GAA in the Swedish Hockey League as a 19-year-old. With slightly tempered expectations now, though, the Wild are committing to the more established option as they ramp up their championship pursuit.