As the first full week of training camp begins, there’s no hint of an answer to the question that most Wild fans have about the coming season and the half-dozen or so seasons to come after that. If star forward Kirill Kaprizov is to sign a contract extension that will keep him in Minnesota after July of next year, neither his agent Paul Theofanous nor Wild general manager Bill Guerin are admitting to having anything cooking right now.
Theofanous reportedly made an unannounced trip to Minnesota last week and had a lengthy conversation with a member of the Wild’s hockey operations department during a training camp scrimmage at TRIA Rink. But if those talks yielded any progress, or any setbacks, neither side is talking about it.
He is healthy and has been a full participant in training camp, and Kaprizov is even back to his familiar habits of staying on the ice after practice for a few extra shots and skating drills, until the Zamboni driver politely asks him to vacate. He did not travel to Winnipeg for the Wild’s preseason opening 3-2 overtime win over the Jets on Sunday, nor will Kaprizov be part of the traveling party that heads to Dallas for a 7 p.m. Tuesday night preseason game versus the Stars.
The Stars will be coming to visit on Thursday night for the Wild’s first home game of the preseason and their first game since the name change at what’s now known as Grand Casino Arena.
In his meeting with reporters on day one of camp, Kaprizov reiterated that he likes playing in Minnesota, likes his team and likes the fans here, calling it his second home (after his native Russia). When asked about the state of his contract talks and why he would reportedly turn down an offer of the richest contract in NHL history, he deferred those topics to Theofanous, and made mention of the fact that Kaprizov remains under contract with the Wild until July 1, 2026.
“We have a lot of time, it’s just 2025,” Kaprizov said. “It’s one more year I have.”
Roster moves announced
On Monday, the Wild reduced their training camp roster to 52 players and signed a goalie for their minor league system.
They signed Chase Wutzke, a butterfly goalie with some size, to a three-year entry-level contract after selecting the 19-year-old in the fifth round of the 2024 NHL Draft. The Wild then assigned Wutzke to the Red Deer (Alberta) Rebels of Canadian major junior leagues, where he has played since 2022.
Major junior is also the destination for forwards Lirim Amidovski, Adam Benak and Carter Klippenstein. Benak, an undersized but skilled rookie, skated more than 16 minutes versus Winnipeg on Sunday.
The Wild released defensemen Rowan Topp and Jordan Tourigny, and sent three players – forward Matthew Sop and Ryan McGuire and goalie William Rousseau – to Iowa Wild training camp.
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