ST. PAUL - The Minnesota Wild made a trade to acquire Gustav Nyquist from the Nashville Predators for a second-round pick. Because it was just a draft pick, the Wild had to send someone down.
Liam Ohgren was sent down to the American Hockey League (AHL), with Nyquist primed to take his spot. But the Wild also sent down Marat Khusnutdinov, who had been with the team the whole year and the end of last season.
The move that sent Khusnutdinov to the minors was not indicative of his play or that he was playing poorly; it was just strictly business.
"A lot of it’s cap-related as well," Wild President of Hockey Operations and General Manager Bill Guerin said. "He makes 9 whatever. So, we have to accumulate as much cap space as we can. To be honest with ya, it stinks. It stinks for him because he's been here all year. He's played hard. He's played well. This is not your regular demotion. There's a lot more to it. And yeah it sucks."
Khusnutdinov, 22, makes $925,000 and is in his final year of a two-year entry-level contract. Believe it or not, that is too much for the Wild to carry after they made the move to get Nyquist.
The move of sending Khusnutdino down is to be seen as a business move and nothing more than that.
"No, no, no, no. This is more us running our business. It’s an unfortunate situation for Marat, and we know that. And not a great call to make," Guerin explained. "Like, hey, you've been here all year, but we need to do this so other players can come back." (He made a face to show it’s unfair.)
Wild Reassign Marat Khusnutdinov, Liam Ohgren To Iowa
ST. PAUL - The Minnesota Wild made a handful of moves today. First, forward <a href="https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/minnesota-wild/latest-news/wild-acquire-forward-gustav-nyquist-from-nashville">Gustav Nyquist was acquired</a> from the Nashville Predators in exchange for a 2026 second-round pick.
Nyquist, 35, is in the final year of his contract, with a cap hit of $3.185 million. The Predators retained 50% of that contract, so the Wild are on the hook for a $1,592,500 cap hit.
Brendan Gaunce played his seventh game with the Wild this season on Sunday against the Boston Bruins. Even though Khusnutdinov might be the better player and has been with the team the whole season, unlike Gaunce, he makes $150,000 more than Gaunce, and that is a big deal for this cap-strapped Wild team.
"Yeah, I think he's disappointed," Guerin said on how Khusnutdinov took it. "It's tough, kind of really getting across to each other, like, deeply, because of the language barrier. But I know he's disappointed. I don't blame him."
At the end of the day, this move was so Joel Eriksson Ek and Kirill Kaprizov can come back before the regular season ends and play some games before the playoffs start.
Gaunce was the team's third line center on Sunday and Devin Shore was the fourth line center. Once Ryan Hartman comes back, he will slot in as the center and likely on the third line between Marcus Foligno and Vinnie Hinostroza.
Hartman is done serving his eight-game suspension and will be back to play against the Seattle Kraken on Tuesday.
Nonetheless, it is safe to say that if healthy, Khusnutdinov will likely be back with the Wild by season's end for the playoffs and help out when needed.
Sure, the offensive numbers aren't flashy, but he has played hard and well defensively. Like Guerin said, the move was strictly a business and cap-related move.
Jan 7, 2025; Saint Paul, Minnesota, USA; Minnesota Wild center Marat Khusnutdinov (22) in action in the second period at Xcel Energy Center. Mandatory Credit: Matt Blewett-Imagn Images.