If there was one thing the Minnesota Wild’s playoff loss to Colorado laid bare, it’s this: they need a center. Badly. And now, there’s a name floating around that makes a lot of sense, assuming Vegas decides to move him.
Sportsnet’s Nick Kypreos linked the Wild to Tomas Hertl, the Golden Knights forward who has quietly been a solid second-line guy for years. The catch is Vegas needs cap space, and they might have to choose between keeping Hertl and signing restricted free agent Pavel Dorofeyev. According to Kypreos, the smart money is on Dorofeyev getting the deal, with Hertl becoming a trade chip.
Hertl has 24 goals and 58 points this season. That’s a tick down from his 32-goal year, but he played all 82 games and was durable — something Minnesota absolutely needs after watching Joel Eriksson Ek miss crucial time against the Avs.
What Hertl Would Bring to Minnesota
Hertl isn’t a superstar, but he doesn’t need to be. The Wild have Kirill Kaprizov and Matt Boldy on the wings. What they lack is someone who can win faceoffs and create time and space in the middle. Hertl wins draws at a 51 percent clip, and he’s physical enough to handle top-four minutes in the postseason.
Vegas has just $4.6 million in cap space right now, per Kypreos. Rasmus Andersson is expected to re-sign, which pushes more money onto the books. So the Golden Knights are in a spot where they have to move salary. They’d prefer to move goalie Adin Hill, but if that doesn’t work, Hertl becomes the more realistic option to ship out.
Minnesota already tried to land Evgeni Malkin before he went back to Pittsburgh. That tells you how badly they want a center. Hertl is younger than Malkin and costs less. His cap hit is $8.1 million, but Vegas could retain some salary to make the deal work.
The Wild have been hunting for a top center for months now. Free agency is days away, but the market isn’t loaded with options. Hertl might be the best player available via trade who actually fits what they need.
It’s not a done deal. Nothing ever is in June. But the logic is there for both sides, and Minnesota’s front office has been aggressive enough lately that a move like this shouldn’t surprise anyone.
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