Kirill Kaprizov signed a five-year, $45 million contract with the Minnesota Wild on Tuesday. It has an average annual value of $9 million.
"I am extremely happy to get this done," Kaprizov said Wednesday. "From Day One, it seemed the team was obviously very happy, and now I just want to focus on hockey, and we can play the game and play it right. ...
"Obviously it was stressful. The whole process was hard. Coming out of last season, I thought things would get done a little bit quicker, but these things take time. I completely understand. I'm really happy that I'm here now and I can just focus on hockey. Obviously extremely happy to be a part of the Minnesota Wild."
The 24-year-old, who won the Calder Trophy voted NHL rookie of the year last season, was a restricted free agent. He led the Wild in goals (27), points (51), points per game (0.93) and overtime goals (two), and scored three game-winning goals, in 55 games last season.
"Getting this deal done with Kirill was big for our team, big for the organization, I think big for our fan base, and we couldn't be happier," general manager Bill Guerin said. "I appreciate the work that Kirill put into it, because he was very involved. It was a good process all along the way. These things, like I've said in the past, they take time. But what comes of that is a fair deal that both sides are happy about, and you know what, now it's just time to play hockey. I know this is what Kirill wants more than anything, just to get back in the dressing room and on the ice with his teammates."
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Kaprizov is vaccinated for COVID-19 and has served his quarantine after arriving from Russia. He is able to practice when the Wild open training camp Thursday.
"I give Kirill and his agent a lot of credit for planning ahead and planning for the future and getting here with ample time to quarantine and get vaccinated and do all the things that would've really taken weeks, so they deserve the credit in planning for that," Guerin said. "I was thrilled."
Guerin said he met Kaprizov in Florida this week to complete the negotiations.
"Kirill and I and his agent (Paul Theofanous) had a chance to sit down face to face," Guerin said. "This was the first time I sat face to face with Kirill, and I think that was the most important thing, that Kirill and I had a chance to look across the table at each other. But also, for me to express my feelings about the negotiations and where we are and, just as importantly or more importantly, what Kirill had to feel and what Kirill had to say. And that was important for me to see that, so not to get on a soap box, but that's what we've kind of missed the last year and a half with all this. It's easy to be tough on people over the phone and over a Zoom call or something like that. But you can't beat meeting in person, and I think at that point in time it was extremely important, and I think that's really how we were able to come to something yesterday."
Kaprizov led NHL rookies in goals, points, power-play goals (eight) and shots on goal (157). He was second in even-strength points (38) and power-play points (13), and was tied for third in rating (plus-10).
Kaprizov, who averaged 18:18 of ice time per game and had a shooting percentage of 17.2 percent, set Wild rookie records for goals, assists and points.
"I think he's just one of those guys, he's [going to] play the same whether he makes his entry-level salary or $9 million a year," Guerin said. "He's just [going to] play. There's an inner confidence with him that not everybody has. I think he just really believes in himself and he'll go and perform. ...
"Kirill's more than just on the ice. He's helped bring a new look to the Minnesota Wild. He's an exciting player, and that's worth something too. I think he's right where he should be. I think he's worth every penny of this."
Video: Kaprisov inks five-year, $45 million deal with Wild
He helped Minnesota (35-16-5) finish third in the Honda West Division and reach the Stanley Cup Playoffs. He scored three points (two goals, one assist) in a seven-game loss to the Vegas Golden Knights in the Stanley Cup First Round.
"I've always had a really good relationship with my teammates, so even before the signing we've always kept in touch and things just kind of rolled over once I signed," Kaprizov said. "They all were extremely happy and very congratulatory."
The Wild this offseason bought out the final four seasons of the 13-year contracts of defenseman Ryan Suter and forward Zach Parise to free NHL salary cap space. Each had a $7.54 million AAV.
"We've made a lot of changes," Guerin said. "I feel really good about it. Coming into this job two years ago now, it was something that I knew had to happen. We had to go through some change like it or not. That's just the way it is. But I feel like with the help of a lot of people and the hockey ops department, we've made some good, smart, thought-out moves, some small, some big. But all necessary to move in the direction that we've wanted to.
"I think we're in a really good place right now. We've got a lot of new faces. Players want to be here. They like playing here. They love playing here. It's a great market. They like living here. They like a lot about it. We continue to try to build on what we've done already."
NHL.com staff writer Tom Gulitti and independent correspondent Jessi Pierce contributed to this report
Kaprizov signs five-year, $45 million contract with Wild - NHL.com
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