Trading Gustav Nyquist Means the Wild Can't Offer-Sheet Matthew Knies

The Minnesota Wild are looking to upgrade talent in their top-six. The Wild have Kirill Kaprizov, Matt Boldy, and Joel Eriksson Ek as their top line. However, their top-six is incomplete. 

Fans would love to bring Matthew Knies back to Minnesota. He dominated with the Gophers, scoring 36 goals in 73 games (75 points overall). The Toronto Maple Leafs are going to face a tough decision this summer. Mitch Marner is expected to get a big raise after registering his first 100-point season. He's also continuing his hot surge in the playoffs, scoring 13 points in 12 games. 

Rossi scored 24 goals this season, but they will likely trade him this summer. Whatever the return might be, the Wild aren't making roster improvement easy by trading a 23-year-old center coming off back-to-back 20-goal seasons and a 60-point season. Rossi is a foundational player, even at his size. 

Mats Zuccarello will turn 38 in September and isn't getting any younger. Still, he enjoyed a productive 2024-25 season, registering 54 points in 69 games (19 goals and 35 assists). However, he regressed in the playoffs, producing 3 points (1 goal and 2 assists) in 6 games against the Vegas Golden Knights. Zuccarello will either be playing with Kaprizov or remain on the 2nd line. 

2022 first-rounder Danila Yurov signed a 3-year Entry-Level Contract (ELC) on Friday, and the Wild expect the converted winger to play center. He will either play on the 2nd or 3rd line or start as the 3rd-line center. Yurov is a Swiss Army knife. He brings a combination of skills and defensive discipline. Don't be surprised if head coach John Hynes gives him a look on the penalty kill. 

Liam Ohgren struggled to stay on the roster. While he was nearly a point-per-game producer in Iowa, he's still having difficulty adapting in the NHL. Ohgren’s likely going to fight for a spot in the middle-six. Ohgren will play on Yurov’s wing if he becomes more consistent. If anything, Ryan Hartman is the last forward on the third line. Still, who's going to be playing on the 2nd line? 

Knies is coming off his ELC, and he'll get at least $7 million on his next contract. Marner is Toronto’s top priority. If Knies becomes too expensive for the Leafs to extend, teams will likely offer him a contract. 

Dylan Holloway is a prime example. Last summer, the St. Louis Blues offered him a 2-year, $4,580,914 contract. The Edmonton Oilers couldn't match what the Blues gave him, so St. Louis traded for him. Holloway showed promise in his first season with the Blues, scoring 63 points in 77 games. Knies is this year's Holloway, and general manager Bill Guerin could aggressively pursue him. 

However, the Gustav Nyquist trade will affect this process! 

Like many fans, I want Knies badly. However, Guerin traded his 2026 2nd-round pick to the Nashville Predators for Nyquist, who had seven points in 22 regular-season games and none in the playoffs. Guerin fumbled on an excellent opportunity to land a goal-scoring power forward. The Wild can't offer sheet high-end forwards, such as Winnipeg Jets’ Gabe Vilardi or Anaheim Ducks’ Mason McTavish. 

The requirement for an offer sheet is that teams must possess their own draft picks for the matching salary tiers when submitting an offer sheet. These picks must be available in the upcoming drafts, and teams cannot use picks from other teams unless they've reacquired their original selections. It's fair to assume Nashville won't do Minnesota any favors. 

Here are the tiers of the offer sheet: 

• $1,511,701 or less: No picks
• $1,5111,701 - $2,290,457: 3rd-round pick
• $2,290,457 - $4,580,917: 2nd-round pick
• $4,580,917 - $6,871,374: 1st-round pick and 3rd-round pick
• $6,871,374 - $9,161,834: 1st-round pick, 2nd-round pick, and 3rd-round pick
• $9,161,834 - $11,452,294: 2 1st-round picks, 2nd-round pick, and 3rd-round pick
• $11,452,294 or more: 4 1st-round picks 

Is it possible that the Wild can offer up to 6,871,374? Absolutely, but the Leafs can match that offer since Knies is a future core piece. The Leafs will have over $24 million in cap space this summer. Marner will likely take at least $14 million. Now they're down to $10 million. The Leafs will be left with 3,128,626 if they choose to match. The rest of their free agents are John Tavares (UFA), Marner, Max Pacioretty (UFA), Steven Lorentz (UFA), Nicholas Robertson (RFA), and Pontus Holmberg (RFA).

Tavares is likely to test free agency since the Leafs will prioritize keeping Knies, whose glass is half full, whereas Tavares’ glass is half empty. Pacioretty is injury-prone and likely won't return with the Leafs. Lorentz and Holmberg will likely sign team-friendly salaries so they can sign Robertson. 

Nicholas isn't like his brother, Jason Robertson, but he scored 15 goals this season and could end up scoring 20 goals next season. Should the Wild consider offering Robertson a contract instead? They can, but that comes with a risk as well. Either they can offer Robertson $2,290,457 or offer over $4,580,917 for one year. 

The catch is that the Leafs can match $2,290,457 and let Lorentz and Holmberg walk. Then, the Wild would have to overpay by trading their 2026 first-round pick if they offer $4,580,917, and the Wild already traded their 2025 first-round pick for David Jiricek. The chances of the Wild landing Robertson are slim. 

The Wild must strategically find free agents who fit their need for top-six talent or trade for one using Rossi. The Wild will likely pursue Brock Nelson this summer. Guerin will probably overpay for him and miss out on more young talent to bring on the roster. 

In his exit press conference, Guerin mentioned that he's interested in bringing back his free agents, meaning Marcus Johansson, Nyquist, and Justin Brazeau. If Guerin signs at least one of them, they will block a roster spot from someone more deserving. Vinnie Hinostroza is also on the roster. Will the Wild trade him, put him on waivers, or make him the 13th forward? 

Seeing that the Wild can't pursue Knies is a bummer and outrageous. Are they willing to trade four 1st round picks for him because they can’t offer him less money? The Wild would have to overpay Knies $11,452,294 or more to sign him. As much as I want Knies back in Minnesota, he hasn't proven to earn that salary. 

Knies regularly plays with Auston Matthews and Marner on Toronto’s top line, and didn't break 30 goals nor score at a point-per-game pace. Rossi scored 2 more points than Knies, but Rossi didn't play with Kaprizov all season. Knocking on wood because Rossi scored most of his goals without Kaprizov’s help.

The Wild must make a different impact move because they can’t offer Kneis less money. Now, if Leafs’ general manager Brad Treliving chooses to keep Tavares and sign him to a big extension, then Guerin could capitalize. However, he would still need to trade at least his 2026 first-round pick to make it happen. 

Guerin needs to stop overcommitting to older players past their prime, and Nelson is one of those players. It's time for the Wild to get younger and faster to continue building a championship-caliber roster. If Guerin can't break his old habits, expect them to continue making the playoffs and suffering more first-round eliminations.