Minnesota Wild star forward Kirill Kaprizov turned down a contract extension that would have made him the highest-paid player in NHL history, TSN reported on Wednesday.
Per the report, Kaprizov rejected an eight-year, $128 million offer from the Wild. The deal would eclipse that of Edmonton Oilers star Leon Draisaitl, who holds the distinction of having the league’s most expensive contract in terms of total value ($112 million over eight years) and average annual value ($14 million).
It’s also worth noting that Oilers superstar captain Connor McDavid is entering the final season of his eight-year, $100 million contract.
Currently, the $12.5 million average annual value of McDavid’s deal ranks fourth in the league behind Draisaitl, Toronto Maple Leafs captain Auston Matthews ($13.25 million) and Colorado Avalanche forward Nathan MacKinnon ($12.6 million).
As it stands, Kaprizov has one season remaining on his five-year, $45 million contract he signed in 2021. The 28-year-old Russian will be an unrestricted free agent after the 2025-26 season.
Wild owner Craig Leipold told The Athletic last week that “we’re not that far off” in coming to terms on an agreement with Kaprizov.
“This will be a huge deal — likely the biggest in the NHL ever,” Leipold said at the time. “There’s no better human being or better hockey player or better person than Kirill. I think it will be a good conversation that we’ll have with him. I’m very anxious and looking forward to that conversation. I think we’ll move quickly after that.”
Kaprizov recorded 56 points (25 goals, 31 assists) and a plus-19 rating in just 41 games during an injury-riddled season in 2024-25.
The Calder Trophy recipient as the NHL’s top rookie in 2020-21, Kaprizov has totaled 386 points (185 goals, 201 assists) and a plus-71 rating in 319 career games with the Wild.
