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Wild GM Won't Reveal Details After Historic $128 Million News

Originally posted on Athlon Sports | By Antonio Losada | Last updated Sep 19, 2025 8:30 AM ET

Minnesota Wild general manager Bill Guerin addressed the media at the start of training camp on Thursday, speaking openly to reporters for the first time since reports surfaced that Kirill Kaprizov rejected a historic eight-year, $128 million contract offer.

While Guerin made clear the franchise intends to keep its star winger, he declined to discuss specifics of the talks.

“These negotiations are private. I can’t really get into it,” Guerin said. “Things are fine. The most important thing is that we want to sign Kirill. He’s our franchise player. We want to keep him here. He’s a big part of our team. We’re working toward that. We’re doing the best we can.”

Kirill Kaprizov deflects contract questions as Wild open camp: ‘It’s my job to focus just on hockey’ https://t.co/iYl68iX6LS
— Michael Russo (@RussoHockey) September 18, 2025

The reported offer would have set NHL records in both total value and average annual salary. Kaprizov, who is entering the final season of a five-year, $45 million contract, deflected all questions to his agent, Paul Theofanous, on Thursday.

“My agent talks with Billy and the team,” Kaprizov said. “It’s not my job right now. I just want to focus and be ready for the season and keep playing, and that’s it.”

Guerin said Thursday that he will keep details about the contract talks quiet and reserved for him and Kaprizov's camp, which he said is critical to avoid disrupting the process.

“It’s his life. It’s his contract. It’s his livelihood. I’m not gonna be out here telling you guys everything that’s going on,” Guerin said. “It just doesn’t help.”

Guerin added that what matters most is maintaining a strong relationship with Kaprizov and ensuring the team remains focused.

The Wild GM then pointed to other NHL stars such as Connor McDavid, Jack Eichel and Artemi Panarin, who also are entering the final year of their contracts, emphasizing that Minnesota is not alone in facing such a situation.

“This is not the first time that this has happened,” Guerin said. “There’s other players in the league that are going through it — other teams that are going through it. We are not special. We focus on the team and the task at hand — and that’s getting off to a good start, having another good training camp.”

Kaprizov has been the Wild’s leading scorer since arriving in the NHL in 2020, coming off a few years playing in Russia's KHL. So far, he has racked up three 40-goal seasons and a 108-point campaign in 2021–22.

Although the Russian's reported decision to decline the record-setting offer has fostered speculation around his future, Guerin insisted his confidence as the leader of the Wild's front office remains unchanged.

“We know Kirill. We like Kirill. He’s a great player,” Guerin said. “Why wouldn’t we be confident? It’s been a great relationship. We love the kid.”

This article first appeared on Athlon Sports and was syndicated with permission.

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