The Seattle Kraken and Minnesota Wild completed a trade earlier in the off-season, with the Kraken acquiring veteran forward Frederik Gaudreau, but a new report from RG indicates that the Kraken could be interested in acquiring another center.
Marco Rossi and the Wild have been at odds in contract negotiations for quite some time now, and no resolution seems to be in sight. Rossi is a 23-year-old center coming off the back of a 24-goal and 60-point campaign. Drafted with the ninth overall pick in the 2020 NHL Draft, the 5-foot-9 Austrian plays a smart two-way game with great playmaking instincts despite his small frame.
Rossi has made it his mission to add weight to his frame this off-season, trying to put to rest the claims that he isn't big or strong enough to warrant the contract he believes he deserves.
RG reported that the Vancouver Canucks remain interested in Rossi, but the price tag is unknown. For the Kraken, the exact offer is still unknown, but one of their sources claims it could involve the franchise's leading scorer, Jared McCann.
“Look, I get the age difference there, and I’d imagine McCann would be part of a package, but when you look at both of the teams and what they’re probably willing to offer in Rossi’s age range, I don’t see a match,” one of the sources told RG.
“I think you make McCann the centerpiece of a package going back to Minnesota. He definitely fits what Guerin wants, and he can play center, too, if they need. The Kraken have a ton of middle-six guys, but how about a 1-2 punch of Beniers and Rossi? So maybe they can find a match.”
McCann, while not being shopped by the Kraken, has been prominent in trade rumors dating back to the trade deadline. He's entering the fourth year of a five-year, $5 million contract and could fetch a strong haul due to his age, production, and cost efficiency.
It's rare to find a proven center at Rossi's age, which makes the deal enticing. The Kraken have plenty of young centers in their prospect pool, but outside of Matty Beniers and Shane Wright, who haven't necessarily broken out yet, no one is a sure thing, and not as sure a thing as Rossi has proved to be.
The Wild could very well commit to Rossi long-term and meet his demands, but if not, the Kraken will continue to be a team to watch.