The Minnesota Wild have the second most points in the National Hockey League at the moment with 70. Wild General Manager Bill Guerin made a blockbuster deal before Christmas as he acquired star defenseman Quinn Hughes from the Vancouver Canucks.
However, there is a genuine feeling among the Wild organization that they need to upgrade their offense. The Wild only have two forwards on their roster that are averaging more than a point per game (Kirill Kaprizov of Novokuznetsk, Russia and Matt Boldy of Milford, Massachusetts) and even though Minnesota has scored a respectable total of 175 goals, that only puts them 10th in the NHL. The consensus is they simply do not have enough scoring come playoff time.
The one player on the Wild that Minnesota may be willing to trade to get more scoring may surprise you. The answer happens to be goaltender Jesper Wallstedt of Vasteras, Sweden.
Wallstedt in 2025-26
Wallstedt has a record of 13 wins, five regulation losses and four losses in extra time. He has a goals against average of 2.71, save percentage of .912 and four shutouts. Wallstedt’s four shutouts are the second most in the NHL. The only goaltender with more shutouts is New York Islanders goaltender Ilya Sorokin of Mezhdurechensk, Russia, who has six shutouts.
Who has Wallstedt shutout?
Wallstedt has blanked the Calgary Flames 2-0 on November 9, the Anaheim Ducks 2-0 on November 15, the Winnipeg Jets 3-0 on November 23, and the Edmonton Oilers 1-0 on December 2.. However since blanking the Oilers, Wallstedt has not been very good. In 12 games, Wallstedt only has a record of five wins and seven losses.
Lost the no.1 goaltending duties
When Wallstedt was hot in November, he was the number one goaltender for the Wild. However, he is no longer the top option for Wild head coach John Hynes. Despite having one less shutout, the Wild starting goaltender is fellow Swede Filip Gustavsson of Skelleftea. Gustavsson has a record of 17-9-6 with a goals against average of 2.62, save percentage of .907 and three shutouts.
What NHL teams may be interested in Wallstedt?
Two teams that could show interest are the Montreal Canadiens and Ottawa Senators. Sam Montembeault of Becancour, Quebec has not had a good season. He has a goals against average of 3.46 and a save percentage of .869. That is well below his statistics from last season where he made Team Canada for the Four Nations Faceoff. The Senators meanwhile have uncertainty when it comes to Linus Ullmark, who has not played since December 27.
