The Minnesota Wild are set to begin Training Camp later this week, starting on Thursday, Sept. 19, at TRIA Rink in downtown St. Paul. Among the 57 players participating, several prospects will be eager to make an impression and compete for a coveted NHL roster spot for the 2024-25 season.
General manager Bill Guerin faces a tough challenge after the Wild failed to qualify for the postseason in 2023-24. The team has also endured several consecutive first-round playoff exits in recent years. With no significant roster additions made over the summer, many fans are left questioning the team’s direction moving forward.
Which prospects have the best chances of making the team? Our list of players to watch includes a handful of former first-round draft picks, many of whom are expected to have a realistic shot to make the leap to the NHL. With that in mind, here are the names Wild fans should be keeping a close eye on as Camp begins this week.
2022 No. 19 overall pick F Liam Öhgren
A native of Stockholm, Sweden, the Wild made Liam Öhgren their Round One selection in the 2019 Draft. He’s already gotten a taste of life in the National Hockey League, having played four games with the Wild last season and picking up his first career goal, banging home a rebound against the San Jose Sharks on April 13:
According to his scouting profile, Öhgren is a strong skater who often fools opposition defenders with his quick and agile stickhandling.
“Everything happens in motion for Öhgren,” his draft profile via Elite Prospects explained. “He gets moving as pucks arrive at his position, skates through his passes, and doesn’t need to break stride to get off his shot. He plays at such a heightened pace that the puck often flies from his stick no sooner than you realize he’s even secured possession in the first place.”
You can bet that Öhgren will do everything in his power to ensure his NHL stint this upcoming season lasts much longer than the brief appearance he had last season.
2021 No. 20 overall pick G Jesper Wallstedt
Viewed as the Wild goaltender of the future, Wallstedt was selected by Minnesota with the 20th overall selection in the 2021 NHL Draft and has played the majority of his career in North America with Minnesota’s American Hockey League affiliate, the Iowa Wild.
Last season, he posted a record of 22-19-4 with the Iowa Wild, recording a 2.70 goals-against average and a .910 save percentage. He was briefly called up to Minnesota, appearing in three games and winning two. However, his NHL stats were modest, with a 3.01 goals-against average and a .897 save percentage.
Guerin voiced his support for Wallstedt in April, stating that he looked more confident in his second go-around with Minnesota.
“It was great to see Jesper Wallstedt get back in the net and get a couple of wins under his belt,” Guerin said via NHL.com. “Obviously had a tough game and had a chance to go down to Iowa and work on his game, then was able to come up and have some success here and play well, and he looked like a different goalie — just much more confident.”
With veteran goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury entering his final NHL season and backing up Filip Gustavsson, look for Wallstedt to make his case to crack the Wild goaltending tandem this year.
2024 No. 12 overall pick D Zeev Buium
The most recent Round One selection of the Wild, Buium was taken with the 12th overall pick at The Sphere in Las Vegas earlier this summer.
A native of San Diego, California, Buium has already earned numerous accolades while playing college hockey with the Denver Pioneers, including being named to the All-NCHC First Team and All-NCHC Rookie Team while taking home NCHC Rookie of the Year and NCHC Offensive Defenseman of the Year honors.
According to his scouting profile, Buium excels in leading defensive zone breakouts along with
“Buium scans ahead of each retrieval, plans his escape route in advance of collecting the puck, makes sure to draw in at least one forechecker, and then beats them with near-comical ease, keying a clean breakout and activating into the rush,” his draft profile via Elite Prospects explained. “He is intelligent, deceptive, skilled, even creative in a part of the game where being efficient would suffice.”
2020 No. 37 overall selection F Marat Khusnutdinov
A skilled forward known for playing a two-way game, Khusnutdinov has spent the last several seasons playing in the KHL with SKA Saint Petersburg and then HC Sochi; he also earned 16 games of NHL experience with the Wild last season, scoring a goal with three assists.
He’s expected to compete for a roster spot and has the tools to do so based on comments made by Guerin.
“He’s a solid two-way player, he’s got speed, he’s tenacious — those are the things we’re looking for,” Guerin said via NHL.com. “We want to make sure we put him in a situation that he can succeed in, and [the] timing of when he gets into the lineup is going to be important, but he will eventually get in the lineup.”
