Kirill Kaprizov's next deal to have domino effect on Jack Eichel, Connor McDavid's contracts, per Elliotte Friedman

Minnesota Wild forward Kirill Kaprizov reportedly denied signing an extension with the team last week. The extension was valued at $128 million over eight years. Being a star offensive producer of the franchise, even Wild owner Craig Leipold expects the discussions to move "forward in a good direction."

As the 2025-26 season approaches, Kaprizov is still unsigned, entering the last year of his current five year contract. NHL insider Elliotte Friedman spoke about Kaprizov’s contract talks on the 32 Thoughts podcast episode on Monday. He said agents and managers are watching closely.

"You talk to agents about this, and you talk to managers about this, the managers really want Minnesota to hold the line," Friedman said. [22:15 onwards] "They really do, like they see where this is going."

Friedman explained that Minnesota may set the market with its offer. If Kaprizov signs for $16 million, other stars may expect more. Players like Jack Eichel and Connor McDavid could see big changes in their upcoming extensions.

"If Kaprizov goes to 16, where does that take? Jack Eichel, maybe not 16, but we're talking 14, 15. Where does that take Connor, you know,"Friedman said. "Where does that take a whole bunch of other players here? And if it goes even higher than 16, where does that pull some of these other guys?"

McDavid is in the final years of his eight-year, $100 million contract. Similarly, Jack Eichel is in the last year of his eight-year, $80 million contract. Both are eligible to sign and are waiting for an extension.

Friedman said many agents believe top NHL players are underpaid compared to other sports. McDavid, for example, might get $20 million if he reached open market. However, Friedman also pointed out that Kaprizov is a winger, and teams usually pay centers more.

"Like, it's all coming out now. Minnesota has to hold the line for the rest of us," Friedman said. "There's a lot at stake here for everybody involved, a lot."

Kirill Kaprizov's importance to Minnesota Wild's offense

Kirill Kaprizov is one of the Minnesota Wild’s top scorers. You can see his importance from the fact that he has three 40 goal seasons in his five year career. And last season, he scored 25 goals and 56 points in just 41 games. If we count the playoffs, he added nine points in six games.

This was the prime reason why owner Craig Leipold said in the first week of September,

"This will be a huge deal, likely the biggest in the NHL ever."

So, Kirill Kaprizov's value and numbers make his case unique.