NHL Rumors: Minnesota Wild, and the Montreal Canadiens

Kirill Kaprizov is going to get paid

Sportsnet: Elliotte Friedman on 32 Thoughts: The Podcast, on how Minnesota Wild forward Kirill Kaprizov is setting himself up to be on the top paid players in the NHL.

** NHLRumors.com transcription

Friedman: “I don’t look at Kaprizov as, well, he doesn’t have a trophy, or he doesn’t have 120 points in the season. I look at what that team looks like if he’s not there, and how important he is to that team.

When I say that I think he’s going to be in the Matthews, Draisaitl range, I believe that.

But I think this guy is going to be one of the top paid players in the league, because I think the Wild know (a) if he hits the market, everyone’s going to be chasing after him. And (b) he’s that important to their franchise.

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We’ll see what his numbers end up being at the end of the year. To me it doesn’t even matter, that he doesn’t have a Hart Trophy or he doesn’t have a billion points in a season compared to some of the other guys or the Cup. He’s their most dangerous player by a mile, and he makes them go.”

Montreal Canadiens mailbag on Martin St. Louis, Kent Hughes, Jake Evans, and David Savard

Eric Engels of Sportsnet: (mailbag) The Montreal Canadiens are not firing head coach Martin St. Louis anytime soon.

There is no doubt that Canadiens GM Kent Hughes is active in the trade market. He’d like to add a veteran defenseman and some grit upfront. Hughes isn’t interested in paying a high price for depth players this early in the season.

The Canadiens should have some interest in extending pending UFA forward Jake Evans but they shouldn’t rush into based on his best ever start to a season. If he does keep up his play, he may price himself out of town. They may not want to pay the 28-year-old over $3 million a year and go more than three years.

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The Canadiens could be interested in extending defenseman David Savard, but he is 34 years old. If he’s willing to sign a short-term and okay with a reduced roll, they might be more interested.