'I'm Not Concerned About That': Craig Leipold Says Wild Plan to Show Kaprizov They Are Worth It

Rumors have swirled around about Kirill Kaprizov but for the Wild's Owner Craig Leipold, it's simple. They plan to show him they are worth it.

ST. PAUL - On July 1st the Wild will begin the upcoming season with a lot of extra money. The massive Zach Parise and Ryan Suter buyouts are set to be reduced by a lot. 

Right now the Wild still have $14,743,590 tied up on their salary cap in Suter and Parise. Next season it turns to $1,666,666, a much lesser amount. Minnesota Wild Owner and Governor Craig Leipold calls July 1st Christmas. 

"Next July 1 is going to be like Christmas," Leipold said. "We're going to have money available. We're going to have the resources available to do what we need to do to get back to Wild hockey. And we're looking forward to that. We look at who could be available next year. We've got a list, and if they're available, we're going to go after them. And we feel like we're going to be able to get one or two really good players to add on to this team. 

"Obviously, you guys know that we've been developing players so well, and we're excited about our new guys. Next year we think we'll have a couple of new players join us. So we think the years after that are going to be a very long window that we're going to be competitive."

One of those players in particular will be Kirill Kaprizov. The 27-year-old enters this season with two years left on his contract. But once July 1st comes, the Wild can extend him. 

Which they fully plan on doing. Or at least trying.

"We're going to get a perennial playoff team, but it does start with Kirill. He’s going to be the focus of what we're going to do. We plan to re-sign him," Leipold said. "I will tell you nobody will offer more money than us, or longer. So all we have to do is prove to him that we want to win."

Kaprizov could want an 'x' amount of money or an 'x' amount of years on his next contract but Leipold made it clear there will be no team in the NHL that will offer more money or term to Kaprizov than the Wild. 

The question becomes if Kaprizov believes the Wild can win. At the end of the day, the Wild have to prove to Kaprizov that this team is worth being on for the next eight years, if that is the term they are thinking of. 

This year becomes the biggest way the Wild can prove to Kaprizov that this team is worth staying on.

“I think so, yeah. I think it does, particularly the young players. He wants to win, so he’ll look at what’s happening, where we want to be," Leipold said on if this season makes a difference in extending Kaprizov. "He’s still a young guy, obviously, a very young player with a long runway, and we need to show to him — and, frankly, we need to show to a lot of people, show our fans — that we’re committed to winning and we’re gonna get there.”

Other than Yakov Trenin and Jakub Lauko, this Wild team is essentially the same as last year's Wild team that missed the playoffs for the second time since 2012. 

Sure, a healthy season out of Jared Spurgeon and Marcus Foligno will be huge for this team. A better penalty kill and start to the season will also be huge for the Wild. But there is no guarantee that will happen. 

What makes this year any different than last?

But Leipold, Bill Guerin, and the rest of the Wild believe that last year will be a one-off. Last year's down year will not happen again in the eyes of the Wild brass. This means there is no pressure on Guerin and his job doesn't seem in question if this team misses the playoffs again this year. 

"There is no pressure on Bill. He and I are totally connected with this," Leipold said. "We didn't make the playoffs last year and we can all look back at why it didn't happen but as we say in the business, s--t happens. Hopefully, it doesn't happen two years in a row. We're going to work hard and our plan is to make the playoffs. So there is no what if we don't? We are gonna make it."

So what needs to be better for this team to win this year?

“Our details gotta be better. The penalty kill was not good. That’s not like us. We have historically always had a top-15, usually a top-10 penalty kill. We were No.30 in the league. Unacceptable. Our goaltending was unusual last year. Nobody got really hot. Didn’t know which goalie we should go with. That was a little unusual," Leipold said. "Obviously, the injuries hurt. But there were a lot of good things that happened last year. 

"Brock Faber had a great year. Marco Rossi had a great year. Boldy got off to a slow start and then had a phenomenal year. Kirill has always had a slow start and had a phenomenal year. So, there are some good things. We had some players that didn’t have good years and that hurts. Our first line was really good. Our second line was good. Our third and fourth line wasn’t. We have to concentrate on that a little bit more.”

There is no doubt this year is a big year for the Wild. They have committed to a core that hasn't proven a lot, outside regular season success, and most of them are locked in for many years to come. 

Is that something Kaprizov wants to commit to? The Wild sure hope so. But we will have to find out. It could be Christmas or it could be the beginning of the last year of Kaprizov in a Wild sweater. 

"I have not had a conversation with Kirill about this. But I know enough about Kirill and how he feels. The first thing he's going to want is, he's going to want to win. That is what he's gonna want," Leipold said. "The money is going to work itself out. I'm not concerned about that, It will be there. It's not only Kirill. We have to show a lot of people that we're back and that's what our plan is."

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