The NHL has been discussing raising the salary cap for quite some time, but now they’ve made it official that it will be happening. In 2025-26, it will increase to $95.5 million from the current $88 million, and it’s expected to continue increasing. In 2026-27, it will increase to $104 million; finally, in 2027-28, it will increase to $113.5 million.
This news couldn’t come at a better time, as the Minnesota Wild will be free of the biggest chunk of their recent cap issues with the buyouts of Zach Parise and Ryan Suter. The past four years whenever the Wild’s cap space has come up, the buyouts have been mentioned. While it was necessary for the Wild to move their roster forward, it didn’t come without its issues. However, they knew they were only stuck for a little longer, and then the amounts dropped significantly, but with this recent news, they have more to be excited about, starting with Kirill Kaprizov’s next contract.
Kaprizov Needs to be Signed
It’s not a matter of if the Wild will pay Kaprizov but how much and they’re hoping to have it sometime this coming offseason. Even with his injury issues, the Wild know they can’t let him walk away, and they want to continue to build their team around him. Now, with this extra cash, they’ll be able to sign him and at least one other player, if not more depending on what way they go.
The Wild’s general manager Bill Guerin and team owner Craig Leipold have made it clear over the past few seasons that their main focus is proving to Kaprizov they’re a team that can win and that it’s worth signing in Minnesota long-term. However, to convince him of that, they need to have the money to sign players of his similar caliber, and with this increase, they will.
Kaprizov is currently on a $9 million salary per season that will end after the 2025-26 season, but of course, that’s expected to go up with his next contract. It’s hard to say exactly how much the Wild will offer Kaprizov, but he’ll once again make franchise history as the highest-paid Wild player for the second consecutive time. Early in the season, Michael Russo of The Athletic had proposed a number of $12-13 million per year for Kaprizov, but now, with the recent news of the salary increase, that has gone up a bit (from ‘Wild owner Craig Leipold on extending Kirill Kaprizov: ‘Nobody will offer more money than us, or longer’,’ The Athletic, 10/01/2024).
In a more recent article from earlier this month, shortly after the salary cap increase was announced, Russo and Joe Smith, both of The Athletic, put together some new thoughts on the subject of Kaprizov’s contract (from ‘Wild insider: How the NHL’s rising salary cap could affect Kirill Kaprizov, Marco Rossi,’ The Athletic, 02/03/2025). The new number they suggested was around $15 million and possibly higher depending on the negotiations, of course, and it’s important to remember this new contract if signed, won’t go into effect until after next season. The Wild will have a lot of money to offer Kaprizov, and hopefully, they’ll be able to keep him around and add to their roster as well.
Wild Have Room
The Wild have a few other players on their current roster they’ll be looking to sign but they are also looking to add to their roster from outside the organization. As stated above, the Wild want to keep Kaprizov and that means proving to him they’re willing to do what it takes to build that type of team. Marco Rossi will be looking for his first big contract after his entry-level expires at the end of this season, and they have to keep him. They’ll also need to look at if they want to keep around Marcus Johansson, Marat Khusnutdinov, Jakub Lauko, Jon Merrill, Travis Dermott, and Declan Chisholm who all have expiring contracts at the end of this season.
Of those named, the Wild can likely move on from a couple of them like Merrill and Johansson, and they’ll likely have to choose one or two more if they plan to bring in new faces. It’s likely the Wild are trying to move on from Ryan Hartman as well so they may be able to bring in someone new there as well in the terms of a trade.
Regardless, the Wild will have room to bring in some new blood, the exact number all depends on what happens this summer. But they’ll be looking to add someone alongside Kaprizov on that top line, as Mats Zuccarello won’t be around long-term, and they need someone younger and faster. Russo, Smith, and others have suggested someone like Brock Nelson or Brock Boeser to be a partner for Kaprizov. However, quite a few enticing names are on the free agent list this offseason, and the Wild have some big choices.
Boeser would be ideal between the two because he’s younger, but there’s another name on the list that they would have to sneak out from the Winnipeg Jets if they’re interested, and that’s Nikolaj Ehlers. He’s a speedy player with scoring ability, and he knows where to be. He could be an interesting partner for Kaprizov, and there are others they’re likely exploring as well with having some extra cash on hand.
Wild Have Proven Themselves
If the Wild can get back to playing like they did at the beginning of the season, they have a chance to sneak some names away. Ehlers might be challenging if the Jets also keep up their strong season because, like the Wild, they’ve proven they can win games. There are still a lot of games left, but so far, the Wild have exceeded expectations for this season.
If they can get back to their beginning-of-the-season play, they’ll have a solid chance to make a run in the postseason. How far they go will be up to their skills, of course, but most believe they are still one or two pieces away from making a run for the Stanley Cup. This increase in salary cap space will give them a chance to snag those players.
They were going to try regardless of the cap, but now they’ll have even more room and chance to get the players they need to complement Kaprizov and be the team they’ve wanted to be for seasons now. Minnesota fans have been waiting quite a while to have a strong, capable, winning team, and this is their chance that hopefully they can fulfill with this salary cap increase.
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