Last week I shared two of my four teams that I would prefer the Buffalo Sabres to deal with in a potential Jack Eichel trade. I stayed out in Southern California focusing on the Los Angeles Kings and Anaheim Ducks.

It’s time to kick another week off with my third team in this series. I stay in the Western Conference but look to the Midwestern part of the country. The Minnesota Wild are up next. That team pulled off a big 1-0 overtime win in Game 1 against the Vegas Golden Knights yesterday.

The Wild are in a spot where they avoided the rebuild and have pulled off the quick “reset.” Going that route would make you think that they’re a younger team, but they’re not. They have money tied up in some older players, but even their key “young” players are all at least 24-years-old. That list consists of players such as Kirill Kaprizov, Joel Eriksson Ek, Kevin Fiala, and Jordan Greenway.

They’re missing that elite center to be a real contender in the West. Eriksson Ek did a good job in that role this season, but he would have even more success slotting into a second-line center role behind Eichel. The Wild are in a position to make this move to get a few runs at a championship with Ryan Suter, Jared Spurgeon, and Mats Zuccarello only having a few more solid years in them.

Prospects/Young Assets

When I look at the Wild the type of trade I’m looking to make is one centered around futures and prospects. Minnesota has a few forwards at the top of their prospect pool in Marco Rossi and Matthew Boldy. Most Sabres fans are familiar with Rossi. There was controversy and even outrage that the Sabres passed on him to select Jack Quinn last year.

Rossi would be the main focus of this trade if it wasn’t for the unfortunate Covid-19 situation he went through this year. The Austrian forward suffered a heart condition due to lingering effects from the virus. The good news is that he was just permitted to begin skating again this week. He may still turn out the be the player that he was projected to be. However, the Sabres are not in a position to roll the dice on that in an Eichel trade.

That brings me to Boldy. I’ll admit that I wasn’t a fan of his back in 2019, but he has been impressive since his draft year. The American-born winger exploded in his D+2 season. He played well as a returning player for Team USA in their run to win Gold at the World Juniors. He continued that with a strong sophomore season for Boston College. Boldy registered 11 goals and 31 points in 22 games.

Matthew Boldy, hello. Filthy between-the-legs goal to extend USA’s lead. pic.twitter.com/Mpf0GebZSK

— Ryan Quigley (@TheRyanQuigley) December 29, 2020

After his college season, he moved on to playing in the AHL for the Iowa Wild. He continued his strong year with six goals and 18 points in his first 14 pro games. The big winger has some speed in his game and great vision. I didn’t trust that his scoring would continue away from the loaded US National Development program, but it has at all levels.

Another prospect I would target in this deal is defenseman Calen Addison. The right-shot defender was a second-round pick of the Pittsburgh Penguins in the 2018 NHL Draft. The Wild acquired Addison as part of the package for the trade that sent Jason Zucker to the Penguins.

He played his junior hockey with Dylan Cozens at Lethbridge in the WHL. Last year was his first pro season and he spent the majority of it in the AHL. He registered six goals and 22 points in 31 games for Iowa.

Addison is an offensive-minded defender that needs some work on his game on the defensive end. He has talent and could be an interesting player if he’s developed properly. The Sabres have a need on the right side of the blue line that the Canadian-born blueliner could fill.

Another player I would target as an under-the-radar roster addition is Nico Sturm. After playing three years of college hockey at Clarkson, he put up a strong rookie season during the 2019-20 campaign in the AHL. Strum got his first full-time look at the NHL this past year and he was part of the turnaround with the Wild. He scored 11 goals and 17 points in 50 games in a bottom-six role with Nick Bjugstad and Nick Bonino as his two most common linemates, according to Evolving Hockey.

He also put up some strong underlying numbers. According to Evolving Hockey’s model, he was third on the Wild in score and venue adjusted 5 on 5 on-ice shot quality percentage. Sturm was fourth among all players in individual shot quality per 60 minutes at 5 on 5. You’ll also see below that he graded out well in the twins RAPM model.

The German-born winger has good size, skates well, and can be an effective two-way player on a cheap contract.

Draft Picks

The Wild hold two first-round picks in the 2021 NHL Draft. They have their own and the pick that belongs to the Penguins. In this trade, the Sabres should be getting the lowest of the two picks in the upcoming draft.

They also have the majority of their picks in the 2022 draft and with this being a futures type trade, I would include a second first-round pick. It’s a hefty price to give up two first-round picks, but they would be without one in the 2022 draft.

Taking Money Back

In the two deals with the Kings and Ducks, I added in a player to take back money to even out the trade. This time, I’m going to avoid doing that. Now, if the Sabres do have to take a player back with money, Matt Dumba is likely that player.

He has two years remaining on his contract with a $6 million cap hit. I wouldn’t be opposed to taking back Dumba because the Sabres could flip him to pick up more assets. My concern with taking him is that it would likely prevent the Sabres from getting another pick in this deal.

Trade Projection

Like I said initially, I’m looking to the future in this trade with the Wild.

Wild receive: Jack Eichel

Sabres receive: Matthew Boldy, Calen Addison, Nico Sturm, 2021 and 2022 first-round pick

There’s no real splashy name in this deal like what you saw in the two trade scenarios with the California teams. However, I think this is still a strong deal for the Sabres. They get two first-round picks and two high-end prospects that are likely NHL-ready.

One more team remaining.

Data via: Evolving Hockey, Cap Friendly, and Byron Bader

Photo Credit: Derek Cain/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images