NHL Preview 2024-25 67 SportsForecaster.com

Forwards

Matt Boldy [RW/LW]

  • Age: 23
  • Ht: 6-2
  • Wt: 201
'23-24 GP G A P +/- PIM P/GP
Min 75 29 40 69 5 48 0.92
Career 314 118 157 275 26 166 0.88
Forecast 80 36 42 78 - - 0.98

He has been everything the Wild may have asked for when they took him 12th overall in 2019. Boldy has averaged 30 goals and 66 points in his two full NHL seasons, has cemented a top-six forward role, sees loads of time on the power play and still has plenty of room for growth as he enters the prime of his career. What is not to like?

Joel Eriksson Ek [C]

  • Age: 27
  • Ht: 6-3
  • Wt: 207
'23-24 GP G A P +/- PIM P/GP
Min 77 30 34 64 18 60 0.83
Career 573 140 175 315 64 254 0.55
Forecast 75 29 38 67 - - 0.89

Big Eriksson Ek has grown from a good checking center to one of the best two-way players in the NHL. He will try to build on his first 30-goal season, which also featured career highs in points and plus/minus rating in '23-24. Part of his offensive spurt has come from his power-play success (12 PPG in each of the last three seasons).

Marcus Foligno [LW/RW]

  • Age: 33
  • Ht: 6-3
  • Wt: 226
'23-24 GP G A P +/- PIM P/GP
Min 55 10 12 22 10 59 0.40
Career 898 140 185 325 37 913 0.36
Forecast 69 9 12 21 - - 0.30

Several injuries have limited Foligno's playing time in each of the past two campaigns, which have followed up his career-best 23-goal, 42-point, plus-25 rating breakout in 2021-22. The 33-year-old son of former NHL winger Mike Foligno still led the Wild in hits (179) and played a solid defensive game before his 2023-24 season ended.

Frederick Gaudreau [C/RW]

  • Age: 31
  • Ht: 6-0
  • Wt: 184
'23-24 GP G A P +/- PIM P/GP
Min 67 5 10 15 -23 12 0.22
Career 423 62 93 155 8 51 0.37
Forecast 76 10 14 24 - - 0.32

Very little went right last season for Gaudreau, whose offensive totals and plus/minus rating fell off a cliff–and contributed to the Wild's failure to reach the playoffs. Injuries were an issue; Gaudreau never really recovered from an early-season hit and often appeared to be a bit leery about risking his body in high-traffic areas.

Ryan Hartman [C/RW]

  • Age: 30
  • Ht: 6-0
  • Wt: 197
'23-24 GP G A P +/- PIM P/GP
Min 74 21 24 45 4 72 0.61
Career 674 143 169 312 48 662 0.46
Forecast 77 18 20 38 - - 0.49

It was in 2021-22 when Hartman busted out for 34 goals and 65 points for the Wild. His offensive numbers have been declining ever since. He averaged just 16:31 of ice time and was also suspended twice in 2023-24. Hartman did contribute to the team in other ways: he was fifth on the team in blocked shots (65) and seventh in hits (75).

Marcus Johansson [LW/RW]

  • Age: 34
  • Ht: 6-1
  • Wt: 203
'23-24 GP G A P +/- PIM P/GP
Min 78 11 19 30 -15 22 0.38
Career 1012 193 344 537 -64 160 0.53
Forecast 74 12 22 34 - - 0.46

The veteran Swedish winger's performance in 2023-24 was nothing like the player who excelled after being reacquired at the NHL trade deadline in 2023. That player had 18 points in 20 games to help the Wild make the playoffs. Instead, he slumped badly offensively, was soft on pucks and generally frustrated Wild fans throughout '23-24.

Kirill Kaprizov [LW]

  • Age: 27
  • Ht: 5-10
  • Wt: 202
'23-24 GP G A P +/- PIM P/GP
Min 75 46 50 96 11 36 1.28
Career 348 202 216 418 67 145 1.20
Forecast 82 51 42 93 - - 1.13

There are precious few left-wingers more dangerous in the NHL than the 27-year-old Russian, who is coming off his third straight season of 40-plus goals and is averaging just under 1.2 points per game through his first four seasons. One reason for his success is that he gets huge amounts of power-play time (4:10 PP TOI/GP in '23-24).

Marat Khusnutdinov [LW/C]

  • Age: 22
  • Ht: 5-11
  • Wt: 176
'23-24 GP G A P +/- PIM P/GP
Min 16 1 3 4 -3 6 0.25
Career 116 10 13 23 -17 34 0.20
Forecast 70 8 21 29 - - 0.41

The smallish forward has already had success playing against men in the KHL, thanks largely to a motor that is always in high gear, a deceptive level of skill and a surprising level of success for a young player who stands just 5'11'', 176 pounds. He can skate, set up plays, finish his chances and play the two-way style coaches love.

Jakub Lauko [LW/RW]

  • Age: 24
  • Ht: 6-0
  • Wt: 169
'23-24 GP G A P +/- PIM P/GP
Bos 60 2 8 10 -3 32 0.17
Career 139 11 17 28 -14 90 0.20
Forecast 73 6 7 13 - - 0.18

The 24-year-old is a heavy hitter on the wing (176 hits in '23-24, second on Boston) but is not counted on to generate a lot of offense. An ugly facial injury and a lack of production helped limit him to 60 games, during which he averaged less than 10 minutes per game. He is fast for a player who is a big banger rather than a scorer.

Marco Rossi [C]

  • Age: 23
  • Ht: 5-9
  • Wt: 182
'23-24 GP G A P +/- PIM P/GP
Min 82 21 19 40 -4 47 0.49
Career 202 49 65 114 -15 87 0.56
Forecast 82 26 31 57 - - 0.70

The Austrian forward's much-awaited rookie season–delayed somewhat by COVID-related aftereffects–was a success. Off-season adjustments helped him grow stronger and improve his skating, and he responded with a 21-goal campaign in 2023-24–despite averaging less than 17 minutes of ice time in his 82 games. Rossi is just getting started.

Yakov Trenin [W/C]

  • Age: 27
  • Ht: 6-2
  • Wt: 201
'23-24 GP G A P +/- PIM P/GP
Nas/Col 76 12 5 17 15 40 0.22
Career 404 57 48 105 21 237 0.26
Forecast 78 11 9 20 - - 0.26

The versatile forward added a more physical presence up front when the Avalanche acquired him at the trade deadline last season. But Trenin is more than just another banger: he has reached double figures in goals in each of the past three seasons and posted a career-best plus-15 rating in 2023-24. He can play all three forward spots.

Mats Zuccarello [RW]

  • Age: 37
  • Ht: 5-8
  • Wt: 181
'23-24 GP G A P +/- PIM P/GP
Min 69 12 51 63 -5 30 0.91
Career 918 219 483 702 50 347 0.76
Forecast 73 15 37 52 - - 0.71

Being moved off a line with Kirill Kaprizov led to Zuccarello falling off in terms of his five-on-five offensive numbers–in fact, they cratered without Kaprizov in '23-24. His overall scoring numbers stayed about the same as 2022-23 largely because he averaged 4:02 of power-play ice time, which helped him produce 33 of his 63 points.

Defensemen

Goaltenders

Zach Bogosian

  • Age: 34
  • Ht: 6-3
  • Wt: 231
'23-24 GP G A P +/- PIM P/GP
TB/Min 65 3 11 14 11 63 0.22
Career 942 64 180 244 -75 823 0.26
Forecast 67 2 8 10 - - 0.15

The third player taken in the 2008 draft has played 16 NHL seasons despite never finishing with more than 10 goals or 30 points. He is a defense-first blueliner who placed in the Wild's top five in both hits (105) and blocked shots (81) last season–despite playing just 61 games. He also had a plus-11 rating, matching his career best.

Jonas Brodin

  • Age: 31
  • Ht: 6-1
  • Wt: 194
'23-24 GP G A P +/- PIM P/GP
Min 62 7 20 27 22 16 0.44
Career 881 61 208 269 109 268 0.31
Forecast 72 6 22 28 - - 0.39

Steady Brodin's offensive game bounced back last season, although he missed 20 games due to ailments. He was his usual solid self when healthy, averaging 23:22 of ice time (including 3:01 SH TOI/GP) and finishing third on the squad with 142 blocked shots. The Wild felt his absence significantly when injury kept him out of the lineup.

Declan Chisholm

  • Age: 24
  • Ht: 6-1
  • Wt: 190
'23-24 GP G A P +/- PIM P/GP
Wpg/Min 31 3 6 9 -7 18 0.29
Career 111 5 18 23 -9 30 0.21
Forecast 75 5 26 31 - - 0.41

Elated to get away from the blueline logjam in Winnipeg, Chisholm showed he has NHL capabilities. He skates well, has excellent offensive instincts and showed that he has the on-ice vision, playmaking skills and shot to be able to quarterback the second power-play unit. Chisholm will have to prove he can do all that over a full year.

Brock Faber

  • Age: 22
  • Ht: 6-1
  • Wt: 200
'23-24 GP G A P +/- PIM P/GP
Min 82 8 39 47 -1 26 0.57
Career 191 24 67 91 -4 55 0.48
Forecast 82 9 36 45 - - 0.55

The former University of Minnesota captain is coming off a campaign that saw him make the NHL All-Rookie Team and become a Calder finalist. He devoured ice time (24:58 TOI/GP, sixth in the NHL), was solid in his own zone and productive offensively. He got on-the-job training as a power-play quarterback and proved to be a quick study.

Jake Middleton

  • Age: 28
  • Ht: 6-3
  • Wt: 219
'23-24 GP G A P +/- PIM P/GP
Min 80 7 18 25 -15 77 0.31
Career 333 22 61 83 18 319 0.25
Forecast 81 5 17 22 - - 0.27

To say that Middleton had a career season in 2023-24 is an understatement: his seven goals matched the combined NHL total of his first seven pro campaigns, and he blew past his prior career best in points. He is also willing to give up his body: he led the Wild in blocks (161) and penalty minutes (77) and placed fourth in hits (148).

Jared Spurgeon

  • Age: 34
  • Ht: 5-9
  • Wt: 166
'23-24 GP G A P +/- PIM P/GP
Min 16 0 5 5 5 2 0.31
Career 962 118 302 420 119 166 0.44
Forecast 66 6 18 24 - - 0.36

Veteran Spurgeon will try to rebound from a lost season that saw him limited to 16 games by injuries that necessitated back and left hip surgeries. The good news? He is confident he will be ready for the start of '24-25. When Minnesota's captain is fully healthy, he devours huge minutes, plays in all situations and can put up points.

Marc-Andre Fleury

  • Age: 39
  • Ht: 6-2
  • Wt: 185
'23-24 GP W L OT SO GAA Sv%
Min 40 17 15 5 2 2.98 0.895
Career 1051 575 339 95 76 2.6 0.912
Forecast 29 12 - - 1 2.94 0.901

The second-winningest netminder in NHL history is coming off his lowest save percentage (.895) since entering the league ('03-04), as well as his highest goals-against average (2.98) since '16-17. At age 39 going on 40, Fleury is not going to carry the starter's load. However, he is still a solid backup who can mentor young 'keepers.

Filip Gustavsson

  • Age: 26
  • Ht: 6-2
  • Wt: 184
'23-24 GP W L OT SO GAA Sv%
Min 45 20 18 4 3 3.06 0.899
Career 187 90 67 23 13 2.68 0.912
Forecast 46 22 - - 2 2.84 0.905

Following the best campaign of his career (second in the NHL in goals-against average and save percentage in '22-23), Gustavsson will try to bounce back after seeing his goals-against average rise by nearly a full goal per game and his save percentage plummet below .900. He was rarely able to string solid efforts together in 2023-24.