The Minnesota Wild have Filip Gustavsson locked up through next season at $3.75 million. He also has a five-team no-trade clause in his contract, so he’s going nowhere anytime soon. His backup, Marc-Andre Fleury, however, is retiring after this season, and the Wild will need to replace him next year.
The Wild are banking on their 22-year-old goalie prospect to take the reins of the backup goaltender position next season, and it seems like he could be ready for the promotion. There’s work to be done, but his numbers this season aren’t an indication of his inability to play at the NHL level.
MN Wild goalie prospect gets second-tier ranking amongst drafted goalie prospects
Jesper Wallstedt received the fourth overall spot in Scott Wheeler’s 2025 drafted goalie prospect rankings. That puts him atop Wheeler’s second tier despite struggling this season with AHL Iowa. Wallstedt has only been the second-best goaltender for the Iowa Wild, and neither netminder has a save percentage above .900.
Wallstedt has dealt with injuries this season, and the defensemen in front of him have struggled to block shots. That might be due to the injuries the Wild have sustained all season forcing more minutes onto younger prospects. Regardless, Samuel Hlavaj has been Iowa’s better netminder, with a 3.18 goals allowed average and .890 save percentage.
This season, however, Wallstedt has seen a shot on goal every two minutes he’s been on the ice (3.88 GAA, .871 SV%). In fact, he’s seen a shot every two minutes the last two years in Iowa. Hlavaj has enjoyed slightly better defense in front of him, seeing 0.48 shots on goal per minute played this year. Wallstedt opened up about his struggles this season and is aware of what’s needed of him.
What the Minnesota Wild need Wallstedt to work on…
Jesper Wallstedt is a six-foot-three, 213-pound goalie. That’s a big goalie. Understandably, he has some trouble getting back to his feet after going down to close the five hole. But he might also be a liability in one-on-one situations.
There are some minor questions about his fitness and his agility, though. There are times when he doesn’t get up and down as quickly as you’d like to close his five-hole or recover on second and third chances. And while he’s strong going post-to-post and low-to-high I wouldn’t say he has quick feet one-on-one. I’d still be surprised if he doesn’t become a good 1A/1B in time but he does need to get a little quicker if he’s going to realize that potential.
Scott Wheeler, The Athletic (subscription required)
Wallstedt just turned 22 in November, so he’s got time to learn what the Wild need him to learn. Whether he’ll learn on the job next season or not will be determined by how well he performs the rest of the season and how fit he gets this offseason.
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