Wild sign Filip Gustavsson to five-year contract extension

The Minnesota Wild have locked up their netminder for the next few years.

On Saturday, team general manager Bill Guerin announced that the Wild have signed goaltender Filip Gustavsson to a five-year contract extension. The deal, set to kick in next season, carries an AAV of $6.8 million through the 2030-31 campaign.

Gustavsson has been bred to be the Wild’s No. 1 backstop. With Marc-Andre Fleury retiring, the Swedish netminder is going to be relied upon to carry the load, seemingly uncontested.

The 27-year-old played the majority of the games last year for the second time in his NHL career. In 58 games, he went 31-19-6, posting a 2.56 goals-against average, a . 914 save percentage and five shutouts. Gustavsson started all six games of Minnesota’s opening-round series against the Vegas Golden Knights, registering a 2.71 GAA and .914 SV%. Ultimately, the Wild fell to the Golden Knights in a hard-fought series.

Gustavsson was originally taken by the Pittsburgh Penguins in the second round of the 2016 NHL Draft. However, before he played a game for the Pens, he was dealt to the Ottawa Senators in February 2018. After a couple of seasons with Ottawa, he was on the move again, being the return piece in the trade saw the Wild move Cam Talbot to the Sens in July 2022.

Across five NHL seasons, Gustavsson has appeared in 169 games, delivering a career record of 83-59-20, a 2.67 GAA, a .913 SV% and 11 shutouts. In 11 postseason contests, he is 4-6 with a 2.53 GAA and a .917 SV%.

Along with his pro career, Gustavsson has made several appearances on the international stage. Along with playing for Team Sweden at the 4 Nations Face-Off this past February, he has played for Tre Kronor at the IIHF Men’s World Championship twice, helping the team win the bronze medal at the 2024 Men’s Worlds. Gustavsson also took home the silver at the 2018 IIHF World Junior Championship.