The Minnesota Wild are still looking for their Christmas miracle on West 7th Street. General manager Bill Guerin should add New York Rangers’ star forward Artemi Panarin to his wishlist. Panarin is more of a trade deadline target, but the Wild could target Panarin sooner than that.
Here’s why Guerin should keep a close eye on the Rangers:
The Rangers aren’t in a rush to extend Panarin
New York isn’t rushing to extend Panarin. He’s approaching his mid-30s, at which point he’s expected to decline. However, Brad Marchand is showing everyone that age is just a number. Panarin is a much better player than Marchand, though.
The Rangers may be looking for cap flexibility. They recently extended Igor Shesterkin to an eight-year, $92 million extension ($11.5 million AAV). They traded Chris Kreider to the Anaheim Ducks for cap space. Don’t be surprised to see them make more roster changes.
If the Rangers start the season with more regression from their top players in Vincent Trocheck, Mika Zibanejad, J.T. Miller, and Alexis Lafreniere, then Panarin would likely be open to a trade. Don’t be surprised if the Wild are interested in him, especially Kaprizov.
Could Kaprizov convince Panarin to come to Minnesota?
Panarin is declining, but still a productive player
Panarin, 33, may no longer be a 100-point player, but the Wild don’t need that. They have Kaprizov. Panarin just needs to be a point-per-game player. We’ve seen what Mats Zuccarello is capable of as Kaprizov’s 37-year-old sidekick. Panarin undoubtedly can do better than Zuccarello.
Panarin finished tied for 13th with 37 goals in all situations, ahead of:
- Jason Robertson (35)
- Kevin Fiala (35)
- Auston Matthews (33)
- Sidney Crosby (33)
- Seth Jarvis (32)
- Mikko Rantanen (32)
- Nathan MacKinnon (32)
- Sebastian Aho (29)
- Brady Tkachuk (29)
- Jack Eichel (28)
- Mitch Marner (27)
- Matt Boldy (27)
Panarin was tied for 30th with primary assists with 27 in all situations, ahead of:
- Sam Reinhart (24)
- Brayden Point (23)
- William Nylander (23)
- Matthew Tkachuk (23)
- Boldy (23)
- Kaprizov (22)
- Robertson (22)
- Jarvis (22)
Panarin was 9th in 11.6 goals above expected in all situations, ahead of:
- Point (11)
- Kyle Connor (10.8)
- Kyrou (10.6)
- Nikita Kucherov (10)
- Fiala (6.5)
- Jake Guentzel (6.3)
- Kaprizov (4.6)
- Aho (4.1)
- Tim Stützle (3.8)
- MacKinnon (2.5)
- Reinhart (2.2)
Panarin finished 26th in Goals Per 60 Minutes (G/60) with 1.41 goals in all situations, ahead of:
- Fiala (1.4)
- M. Tkachuk (1.39)
- Jarvis (1.36)
- Kucherov (1.34)
- Jack Hughes (1.25)
- Rantanen (1.1)
- Aho (1.1)
- Eichel (1.06)
- Connor McDavid (1.06)
- Boldy (0.97)
Panarin finished 20th in Points Per 60 Minutes (P/60) with 3.39 points in all situations, ahead of:
- Robertson (3.29)
- Point (3.28)
- Hughes (3.24)
- Nylander (3.15)
- Aleksander Barkov (3.14)
- Rantanen (3.03)
- Reinhart (3)
- Boldy (2.63)
Panarin was tied for 120th in 5-on-4 G/60 goals with 1.55, ahead of:
- Eichel (1.45)
- Boldy (1.44)
- Kucherov (1.3)
- Mitch Marner (1.3)
- Hughes (1.27)
- Kaprizov (0.95)
- Aho (0.9)
- Stützle (0.45)
Panarin finished 25th in 5-on-4 Assists Per 60 Minutes (A/60) with 4.65 assists, ahead of:
- Matthews (4.37)
- Leon Draisaitl (4.28)
- M.Tkachuk (4.09)
- Aho (4.05)
- Nylander (3.78)
- Point (3.19)
- Boldy (3.13)
- Jarvis (3.04)
- Fiala (2.81)
- Rantanen (2.79)
- Robertson (2.17)
Panarin and Crosby are the “old” timers on this list, and they’re showing that age is only a number. Panarin bested someone like Matthews, who finished one goal shy of 70 goals in 2023-24.
MacKinnon is a consistent 100-point scorer, but wasn’t able to beat Panarin. Marner became a 100-point scorer for the first time, but it wasn’t enough. Eichel finally broke out into a 90-point producer, yet fell short of beating Panarin.
Panarin recorded a better G/60 than McDavid, who’s supposedly the best player in the world. Panarin also proved his worth as a better A/60 producer than Draisaitl. McDavid and Draisaitl are the NHL’s best present-day duo despite not having a Stanley Cup, showing that Panarin can still hang with the best.
Although he’s 33, Panarin will likely remain in his prime for the next three years. When he approaches his late 30s, we’ll start to see a real decline. However, I still expect him to remain a top-six/middle-six winger in his 40s. He has become the best undrafted player since Martin St. Louis.
Alex Ovechkin passed Wayne Gretzky in goals, but Panarin is on a journey to pass St. Louis in scoring. Now it’s Panarin’s turn to make history of his own:
- 163 points away from tying St. Louis (1033)
- 89 goals away from tying St. Louis (391)
- 74 assists away from tying St. Louis (642)
Panarin should likely pass St. Louis within two years. Will it be with the Rangers, though?
How likely is Kaprizov to convince Panarin to waive his NMC?
The Wild must ensure that Panarin truly wants to play in Minnesota. How much can Kaprizov convince Panarin to play with him on the top line? The Wild will have to prove to Panarin that they are a legit contender, much like they need to with Kaprizov.
For example, the Colorado Avalanche traded Rantanen to the Carolina Hurricanes, where he and Aho are close friends. Aho was excited due to their history and Finnish connection. However, that wasn’t enough to keep Rantanen in Carolina. Rantanen preferred to play with the Dallas Stars rather than the Hurricanes and forced a trade.
Guerin should be all-in on Panarin if the Rangers don’t sign him. The Wild can excel at a new level with Panarin dominating with Kaprizov. Panarin would also be reuniting with Vladimir Tarasenko, which should be another reason for him to waive the no-trade clause.
However, Panarin could still choose a better destination to compete. Panarin is regressing, but at a slow pace. Ovechkin and Marchand have shown to be elite veterans. Panarin is more than capable of being an elite veteran and could help drive winning for the Wild.