While the Minnesota Wild seem to be set on their NHL blue line for the coming season, general manager Bill Guerin and his hockey operations staff looked to the future of their defensive corps on Saturday.
With the 52nd overall pick in the NHL draft – the first selection owned by Minnesota – the Wild looked to Scandinavia, drafting sizable defenseman Theodor Hallquisth, who played last season with Orebro in the Swedish junior hockey league.
Hallquisth, who turned 18 earlier this month, is a right-shot defenseman who played for Sweden in the 2025 World Juniors, and may be coming to Xcel Energy Center in December to skate for his country again, when the Twin Cities hosts the tournament.
He had participated in an interview with the Wild at the combine prior to the draft, and said current Minnesota defenseman Jonas Brodin is a mentor but was still pleasantly surprised to hear his name called.
“Speechless, shocked, a bit taken by the situation,” Hallquisth said in a Zoom with reporters in the minutes following his selection. “It was a surreal feeling.”
Hallquisth played in seven games for Team Sweden at the 2025 World Juniors, and a dozen more in the nation’s top pro league. He said his game grew last season when he concentrated on making the simple plays and let the game come to him.
“I see myself as a two-way defenseman, try to focus on the fast and easy plays, which I think is one of my strengths,” Hallquisth said. “I of course want to contribute offensively as well, but I prioritize defense. I can play physical, and I’m pretty coachable in things.”
The Wild made another change on their blue line later in the day, trading veteran Declan Chisholm to Washington in exchange for Chase Priskie and a draft pick.
Priskie, 29, is a former captain at Quinnipiac who has played four NHL games. Chisholm played 95 games for the Wild over the past two seasons, but did not crack the lineup in the playoffs. He came to the Wild originally after being picked up off waivers from Winnipeg.
“(Chisholm) is a good player, he did a good job for us. We appreciate it,” Wild general manager Bill Guerin said of the restricted free agent. “Honestly, it’s one of the better waiver pickups I’ve seen in a while. Credit to our pro staff. Declan came in and played great for us. …The finances didn’t really match up to what we need.”
Guerin added that they have not decided what they will do with Priskie, who is an unrestricted free agent.
Minnesota picked Czech forward Adam Benak in the fourth round, 102nd overall. At just 5 feet 7, Benak still led Youngstown in the USHL offensively last season, averaging better than a point per game in his first season of North American hockey.
Known for his puck-moving skill, Benak had seven points in four games for Czechia at the 2025 World Juniors, and some experts said his size, or lack thereof, was the only thing keeping him out of the top two rounds.
“At first blush, you see the size, but he is a dynamic offensive player,” said Judd Brackett, the Wild’s director of amateur scouting. “Great vision, skill, speed, tenacious at that size, and he has continued to prove it. … It’s more than the body and more of the brain. He knows where to be and can stay out of harm’s way.”
Hallquisth is expected to be in St. Paul in the coming days to attend the Wild’s development camp. But as of now, he will not be back in the Twin Cities in late July for the World Junior Summer Showcase, with teams from the U.S., Canada, Finland and Sweden playing exhibition games at Ridder Arena in Minneapolis. Hallquisth said he has not been selected for the Swedish team.
“He’s clearly a two-way defenseman. He’s got the ability to get back on a puck, he’s got a good IQ,” said Brackett. “He feels pressure, he can find his first read and get out of his zone. But he’s got good engagement too. He plays with some bite, which is nice.”
It was the second time in as many years that the Wild have used their first pick on a defender, having grabbed University of Denver blueliner Zeev Buium with the 12th overall selection in 2024. Buium was one of the top players in college hockey last season, then signed with the Wild and made his NHL debut in their first round playoff series against Vegas.
Later in the fourth round, Minnesota grabbed a pair of Canadian forwards, selecting Lirim Amidovski from North Bay in the Ontario Hockey League at 121 and Carter Klippenstein from Brandon in the Western Hockey League at 123.
Their final pick of 2025 was another defenseman, Justin Kipkie from Victoria in the WHL, with the 141st selection.
Earlier on Saturday, Blaine defenseman Jacob Rombach became the first Minnesotan taken on Day 2 of the draft when Nashville selected the future Gophers blueliner 35th overall. It marked the 25th consecutive year, and the 51st time in 52 drafts, that at least one Gopher has been selected.
Gophers-bound defenseman Mace’o Phillips, from Minnetonka, went 80th overall to Calgary. Ten picks later, the Devils grabbed future Gophers forward Mason Moe, who is from Eden Prairie. Another future Gopher, forward L.J. Mooney, was picked by the Montreal Canadiens at 113.
Blake Vanek, a key winger on Stillwater’s run to the 2025 state title game and the son of former Gophers and NHL goal-scorer Thomas, went to Ottawa with the 93rd pick. He will play major junior hockey in Washington state next winter, and has not yet picked a college.
Theodor Hallquisth poses after being drafted by the Minnesota Wild with the 52nd overall pick during rounds 2-7 of the 2025 Upper Deck NHL Draft at Peacock Theater on June 28, 2025 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Bruce Bennett/Getty Images)
New York Rangers’ Julien Gauthier (15) continues to compete with Florida Panthers’ Chase Priskie (22) for the puck after being tripped by Panthers’ Brandon Montour (62) during the first period of an NHL hockey game Tuesday, Feb. 1, 2022, in New York. AP Photo/John Munson)
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