Minnesota Wild sign defenseman Matt Dumba to two-year deal
Defenseman Matt Dumba was the subject of trade rumors earlier this offseason, but he and the Minnesota Wild have agreed to a two-year deal.
In terms of their restricted free agents this offseason, the Minnesota Wild had one notable piece of business left. On Thursday it got taken care of, with an agreement to a two-year, $5.1 million deal with defenseman Matt Dumba.
Dumba had been the subject of trade rumors this summer, as the Wild are possibly looking to deal from a surplus of young defenseman to acquire a forward. A new contract doesn’t necessarily mean a trade won’t happen, but on the surface it appears the Wild want to keep Dumba around as he begins to reach his potential.
He was drafted by Minnesota with the seventh overall pick in 2012, and he made his NHL debut in 2013-14. This past season, Dumba set career-highs in games played (81), goals (10), assists (16), hits (83), power play goals (six), game-winning goals (three), shots (152) and blocked shots (56). Over parts of three seasons with the Wild (152 games), Dumba has totaled 19 goals, 25 assists, nine power play goals and 63 penalty minutes.
The most prevalent trade rumor surrounding Dumba this offseason has involved the Edmonton Oilers, and a deal for center (and 2011 No. 1 overall pick) Ryan Nugent-Hopkins. Things ramped up some around draft time in late-June, but nothing came to fruition.
But trade talk surrounding Dumba is hardly dead, it seems. The Hockey Press has recently passed along a rumored offer from the Wild that would send Dumba and winger Jason Zucker to Edmonton for Nugent-Hopkins and winger Benoit Pouliot. The specifics of that rumor of course came before the Wild officially re-signed Dumba on Thursday, but his annual cap hit of $2.55 million is not a big roadblock to a trade.
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Dumba is still just 22 years old, with the legitimate potential to become a top-two or top-four defenseman. Nugent-Hopkins is only a year older, along with being under contract through the 2020-21 season, but even with a new team it’s hard to see him breaking out of a cycle of under-achievement. In any possible deal, including a potential one-for-one trade to Edmonton for Nugent-Hopkins that could still be in play, I can’t fully endorse trading Dumba.
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