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Wild's Fletcher content after early stages of free agency
Chuck Fletcher sounded quite content after the first day of NHL free agency.
The Minnesota Wild GM largely just kept a few players in house on Wednesday, namely signing the youthful and talented Mikael Granlund. Minnesota also signed Nate Prosser, Ryan Carter and former Minnesota Gophers defenseman Mike Reilly.
Now, Fletcher is overseeing a club that could have 14 players age 25 and under next season.
"We're pretty excited about our future," Fletcher told reporters.
The GM said Minnesota's young skaters, like the 23-year-old Granlund, "deserve an opportunity to grab more ice time and get a bigger share of the pie. . . .When you combine those guys with the solid group of veterans we have, we're a good hockey team.
"I really like our youth," Fletcher added. "I like our speed, our skill. We're a team that has continued to get better the last three seasons."
Granlund, who re-upped with Minnesota for two more seasons, finished last season with 39 points, including eight goals.
"I don't think anybody aticipates Granlund being an eight-goal, 40-point guy for the rest of his career," Fletcher said. "I think he's gonna take off here over the next two years.
"So," Fletcher added, "I think what a two-year deal does is it gives that flexibility to price him fairly on what he's done to this point in time. And then, two years from now, you can have a more accurate (projection) as to what he's going to do going forward."
The Wild GM said he's glad to have Prosser and Carter next season due to their versatility. And, Fletcher hinted that Reilly, a 21-year-old who was a Hobey Baker Finalist while with the Gophers, could make his way to the NHL relatively soon.
As Minnesota's roster is currently constituted, Fletcher's club has 12 forwards, eight defensemen and three goalies. Wild brass love their franchise's current depth on defense and in goal.
So, even if Minnesota is done making offseason splashes, Fletcher will remain relatively pleased.
"Right now, this is our team," Fletcher said, "and we'll see how things go over the summer. Things change quickly, but we don't anticipate signing any more players (Thursday) at the NHL level.
"I think we have a good corps," the GM added, "and a good team, and we're happy with what we have going forward."
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