The Wild Could Trade Jared Spurgeon To Four Contending Teams This Offseason
Minnesota Wild captain Jared Spurgeon’s No-Movement Clause (NMC) will turn into a Modified No-Trade Clause (M-NTC) this offseason, meaning the Wild have more flexibility with his cap hit than in previous years. Spurgeon is a beloved player in the “State of Hockey” who has played a top-four defense role for 14 years. Many fans feel he should be untouchable, but the Wild aren’t in a Stanley Cup winning window right now. Spurgeon has three years remaining on his seven-year contract, and less term means the Wild should be more equipped to trade him.
There are a few contending teams that need a veteran top-four defenseman. However, Spurgeon is 34 and hasn’t played 82 games since 2018-19. He’s not going to yield that much in return, unless general manager Bill Guerin retains some of his salary. The Wild would mostly move him to create cap space. Spurgeon carries a $7.575 million cap hit, which is starting to look hefty because he has suffered injuries recently.
With that said, let’s take a look around the league and try to find the most realistic trade destinations for Spurgeon with the goal of shedding cap space.
Carolina Hurricanes
The Canes will have Brent Burns, Dmitry Orlov, Jaccob Slavin, and Scott Morrow under contract. Spurgeon would look good with the likes of Slavin or Orlov in Carolina’s top four. Brady Skjei, Brett Pesce, Tony DeAngelo, and Jalen Chatfield will be Unrestricted Free Agents (UFAs) this summer. Morrow looks like a foundational player for the Hurricanes, and he’d benefit from playing with Spurgeon. Is there a way for Guerin to land goal-scoring depth in Noel Gunler, a 6-foot-2, right-shot 22-year-old winger? It doesn’t hurt to land future depth who he can call up when injuries occur.
Toronto Maple Leafs
Toronto is always looking for defensemen. The Leafs have Morgan Rielly, Jake McCabe, Conor Timmins, and Simon Benoit signed through 2024-25. Timothy Liljegren will be a Restricted Free Agent (RFA), and Toronto will likely extend him. T.J. Brodie, Joel Edmundson, Jake Muzzin, John Klingberg, Mark Giordano, and Ilya Lyubushkin will be UFAs who could test the market. Would Spurgeon be a better starting option over the UFAs mentioned? Spurgeon can benefit from playing a power play role in the top four. As for a return, a defense prospect like William Villeneuve, who scored 25 points in 54 games as a 22-year-old for the AHL’s Toronto Marlies sounds nice.
Vancouver Canucks
The Canucks will have Quinn Hughes, Carson Soucy, and Noah Juulsen signed through 2024-25. Tyler Myers, Nikita Zadorov, Ian Cole, and Mark Friedman will be UFAs, freeing up a lot of cap space. Filip Hronek will be an RFA, but he recently rejected a contract offer and may leave Vancouver.
