Minnesota Wild Buying Out Both Zach Parise & Ryan Suter

The Minnesota Wild are buying out veterans Ryan Suter and Zach Parise, as general manager Bill Guerin continues to make his mark on the franchise. Michael Russo of the Athletic was the first to report the news.

The buyouts of Parise and Suter will cost the #MNWild combined:

2022: $4.744M
2023: $12.744M
2024: $14.744M
2025: $14.744M
2026: $1.667M
2027: $1.667M
2028: $1.667M
2029: $1.667M

— Brandon Holmes (@BHolmes_Hockey) July 13, 2021

Why does the buyout cap hit increase drastically in years 2, 3, and 4?

This is because the contracts were front-loaded, since the initial base salary for those years is so low, the salary savings are reduced, and therefore the cap hit savings are also reduced.#mnwild https://t.co/RDHmqjGhSi

— CapFriendly (@CapFriendly) July 13, 2021

Suter is 36, and signed for four more seasons at $7.5 million per season. Long regarded as one of the best defensemen in the league, his production dropped last season to 19 points in 56 games after reaching 40-plus points on a regular basis. Some wondered if the team would ask him to waive his no-movement clause to go to Seattle. Turns out now know his answer.

As for Parise, he's soon-to-be 37 and also has the exact four seasons left on his deal, making identical dollars. Last season the one-time sniper scored seven goals and recorded 18 points in 45 games. There were times he saw his ice-time dip tremendously or was scratched all together. With 25 and 28 goals the previous two seasons, there's certainly going to be interest.

The buyouts allow the team to protect defenseman Matt Dumba, re-sign Kirill Kaprizov, and have room to add others to their roster. Now we have two fresh names for the free-agent market as the things are getting Wild in Minny.

Photo credit:  Brad Rempel-USA TODAY Sports

#mnwild General Manager Bill Guerin today announced the team will buy out the final four years of the contracts of forward Zach Parise and defenseman Ryan Suter. pic.twitter.com/ivQ7i9MvVd

— Minnesota Wild PR (@mnwildPR) July 13, 2021