Marc-Andre Fleury Deal Keeps the Wild in Contention

The Minnesota Wild have once again given themselves a chance to compete for the Stanley Cup.

On Thursday, Minnesota re-signed three-time Stanley Cup champion Marc-Andre Fleury to a two-year contract worth $3.5 million per year.

After acquiring the 2021 Vezina Trophy winner at last season’s trade deadline, the Wild cruised into the postseason before meeting a solid St. Louis Blues team that eliminated Minnesota in the opening round.

So far this offseason, the biggest move for the team had been trading forward Kevin Fiala to the Los Angeles Kings in a move that felt like it weakened the team’s chances of winning in the short term.

The Wild did well to re-sign Marc-Andre Fleury.

With the extension of Fleury, though, I have renewed confidence that this team can be a contender once again in the Western Conference.

Overall, last year’s group is largely intact, and though Minnesota has minimal cap space to make further moves, its roster seems to be rather complete already.

My favorite part about the new contract between Fleury and the Wild is that it keeps together a solid tandem in the Flower and Cam Talbot. The two veterans can both handle the load, keeping them fresh for the postseason and giving the Wild some flexibility in net.

In 11 regular season contests with the Wild last season, Fleury went 9-2 with a 2.74 goals against average and a .910 save percentage. In his career, the Flower has racked up 520 wins, which is the third-most in NHL history.

This could be the final contract of the 37-year-old netminder’s career, and it is a good fit for both him and the team. At $3.5 million annually, it is affordable for the team, and the deal gives both parties an opportunity to win the Stanley Cup in the coming seasons.

It’s impressive the way that one move can give a team flexibility and a positive outlook, but that is exactly what this contract does for Marc-Andre Fleury and the Minnesota Wild.