- McCarron is closing in on a long-term deal to stay in Minnesota, per The Athletic
- The 6-foot-6 center has never had real term on an NHL contract until now
- Read below for the money, the trade that brought him in, and why Guerin wants him
Michael McCarron is about to get something he has never had in the NHL: term.
Russo and Joe Smith of The Athletic report that the big center is closing in on a long-term deal to stay with the Wild. Minnesota had him near the top of its offseason list, and it sounds like both sides are nearly there.
The holdup has been simple. McCarron has never had real security on a contract, with his longest deal being the entry-level pact he signed back in 2013. Getting some years attached to this one was always going to be the price of keeping him.
Minnesota grabbed McCarron from Nashville just before the trade deadline, shipping a 2028 second-round pick to the Predators for the 6-foot-6 right shot. Russo had the trade back in March:
He played 20 regular-season games after the swap, chipping in three goals and two assists with 40 hits. The Wild leaned on him harder once the playoffs started. His ice time climbed to nearly 15 minutes a night and he added two goals and two assists across 11 games.
The scoresheet is not why he is getting paid. Over parts of nine seasons in Montreal, Nashville, and Minnesota, McCarron has 36 goals and 43 assists in 381 games. The draw is the size, the physical edge, and the ability to slide between center and wing while killing penalties. Anyone who watched him go at it with Josh Manson this spring knows the mean streak is real.
GM Bill Guerin clearly values all of it. McCarron made $900K this season, and a long-term deal is going to cost a lot more. A number north of $3 million per year would not be a shock, which would pay him more in a single season than he banked over the past three combined.
Get it done, and the Wild keep one of the biggest bodies in the league from hitting the open market on July 1.
