{"id":179831,"date":"2025-08-27T13:37:11","date_gmt":"2025-08-27T13:37:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/179831\/"},"modified":"2025-08-27T13:37:11","modified_gmt":"2025-08-27T13:37:11","slug":"why-the-marco-rossi-wild-contract-was-a-smart-compromise-that-benefits-both-sides","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/179831\/","title":{"rendered":"Why the Marco Rossi-Wild contract was a smart compromise that benefits both sides"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Minnesota Wild-Marco Rossi stalemate could very well have lingered into training camp.<\/p>\n

There was no real pressure point, like an arbitration hearing, until then. Everyone was dug in. The Wild were only willing to pay so much. Rossi, a determined and proud player, felt he was worth more.<\/p>\n

It could have been a game of chicken.<\/p>\n

Fortunately for both sides, it didn\u2019t come to that, with Rossi signing a three-year, $15 million contract<\/a> last week. No holdout. No hangup. No hard feelings? When Rossi was asked if he was happy with where everything is, he said, \u201cOne hundred percent.\u201d<\/p>\n

President of hockey operations and general manager Bill Guerin gets players wanting more. He\u2019s been through multiple contract disputes in his career. But Guerin gave Rossi\u2019s camp credit for re-engaging a month ago, sparking last week\u2019s three-year deal. Rossi will make $4 million the first year, $5 million the second and $6 million the third, setting a higher mark for a potential qualifying offer.<\/p>\n

\u201cIn the end, it\u2019s the player\u2019s decision to say, \u2018That\u2019s good. I\u2019ll take it,\u2019\u201d Guerin said.<\/p>\n

This contract seems like a smart compromise for both sides. Rossi, in the end, didn\u2019t have the leverage, especially with no arbitration rights. He could have held out and missed the start of camp to put pressure on the team. But that\u2019s not Rossi\u2019s style, his M.O.<\/p>\n

And as much as Rossi needed the Wild, the team needs him, too. Danila Yurov may be a tantalizing center prospect, but he\u2019s still unproven. Guerin said at the end of last season that his No. 1 priority was getting help up the middle for Joel Eriksson Ek. But the free agent class ended up watered down with top guys re-signing (including target Brock Nelson with the Colorado Avalanche). The trade market was quiet. The Wild added Nico Sturm and dealt Freddy Gaudreau, but that\u2019s it.<\/p>\n

So if they didn\u2019t keep Rossi, there\u2019d be a pretty good hole there, replacing a top-six center who played in all 82 games in back-to-back seasons. That\u2019s not an enviable position for a franchise looking for its first first-round series victory in a decade.<\/p>\n

The Wild are a better team with a motivated Rossi, who plans to arrive in Minnesota the first week of September. And for Rossi, if he continues to grow after a 40-point rookie season and last year\u2019s 60-point follow-up, he\u2019ll be in for a very big payday when he\u2019s next up for a contract.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s a positive thing when players bet on themselves,\u201d Guerin said. \u201cNowadays, it\u2019s different. This might sound harsh, but you\u2019re betting on yourself with $15 million in your pocket. That\u2019s a pretty good safety net. In this league, we\u2019re not really sending anybody to the poor house.<\/p>\n

\u201cBut if you want elite money, if you want more, then sometimes, take a shorter-term deal, bet on yourself, put your money where your mouth is and let\u2019s go. I think Marco is that type of guy and he\u2019ll do that.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Wild GM Bill Guerin says he likes that Marco Rossi is betting on himself with this contract. (Matt Blewett \/ Imagn Images)<\/p>\n

Rossi played in the top six, and sometimes on the top line, for a good chunk of the 2024-25 regular season, ranking second on the team in scoring and third in goals (24). Guerin did point out last week that Rossi\u2019s second-half production dropped (nine goals and 23 points in his final 41 games). Then he was dropped to the fourth line during the first-round series against the Vegas Golden Knights and played the third-fewest even-strength minutes among Wild forwards. He still chipped in two goals while playing with Yakov Trenin and Justin Brazeau. \u00a0Guerin maintained the lineup shuffling was just a product of adjustments in a playoff series.<\/p>\n

But Rossi said after the season that he was \u201cdisappointed\u201d in his usage in the playoffs, saying he had a very \u201chonest\u201d conversation with coach John Hynes at their exit meetings. Hynes understood where Rossi was coming from but gave him credit for how he continued to be a \u201cteam guy\u201d during it.<\/p>\n

Hynes said he texted Rossi after he signed last week, Rossi called him back within a couple of minutes and they had a great chat.<\/p>\n

\u201cTo me, there are going to be things where you have some conflict at times,\u201d Hynes said. \u201cBut how do you communicate through it? And do you have a relationship prior to that? The body of work, through my time with him, he\u2019s played very well. Used as a top-six player. Produced. Had a career year.<\/p>\n

\u201cI believe that, yes, sometimes there can be some disagreement or conflict. It\u2019s no different from when a player makes a decision that costs us. I might be upset. But I believe if you\u2019re open and honest and communicate with the players and they understand what it is and there\u2019s a bit of trust there, some things like that don\u2019t turn into something (more).\u201d<\/p>\n

There were trade conversations with the Wild and other teams about Rossi over the summer. The market, for whatever reason, wasn\u2019t fruitful enough for Guerin to make a move. He wasn\u2019t \u201cdying\u201d to deal Rossi to begin with, he said. There doesn\u2019t seem to be ill will, with GM and player saying publicly there is a path forward.<\/p>\n

\u201cMarco is a big boy, too,\u201d Guerin said. \u201cHe\u2019s a pro. He\u2019s been doing this since he was a kid. He gets it. There\u2019s no worry from my end that Marco \u2014 his feelings are OK.\u201d<\/p>\n

Whether Rossi finishes his three-year deal with the Wild remains to be seen. He does have a very tradeable contract, and he\u2019s not eligible for trade protection. If he plays like he\u2019s capable of playing, he\u2019ll be very attractive to teams, including the Wild. He\u2019s one of the team\u2019s success stories \u2014 a rare homegrown center. He\u2019s been through a ton, especially with the heart condition following COVID-19, forcing him to miss a year of development. He\u2019s shown resilience, performing well after getting sent down to AHL Iowa in 2022-23 and staying in Minnesota for most of the summer after that to train, including skipping his sister\u2019s wedding. He also didn\u2019t participate in Austria\u2019s Olympic qualifiers late last summer, taking heed of Hynes\u2019 advice heading into a very important year.<\/p>\n

Rossi has garnered his share of respect from teammates in the room.<\/p>\n

\u201cI have nothing but great things to say about Marco as a hockey player, as a person,\u201d Matt Boldy said. \u201cAnd I think he\u2019ll be the first person to tell you that he didn\u2019t care where he was. He wanted to win. \u2026 If we won that series and he was our fourth-line center, I\u2019m sure he\u2019d be one of the happiest people in the world right now. And I think that speaks to him as a person.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe fact that he can be our first-line center and then go play and be our fourth-line center and be equally as effective speaks to his game. It\u2019s hard to do. It\u2019s really hard to do.\u201d<\/p>\n

Rossi said he worked on getting bigger, faster, stronger this summer, and climbing the Austrian mountains didn\u2019t hurt that. He also did some faceoff work with Joe Thornton, having already improved from 44.7 percent to 46.8 percent last season.\u00a0\u201cI got everywhere better,\u201d Rossi said.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think he\u2019s just scratching the surface,\u201d Guerin said. \u201cI think a three-year contract gives him good runway to really turn into the player he can eventually become.\u201d<\/p>\n

Michael Russo contributed to this report\u00a0<\/p>\n

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