Over the past three days, the Minnesota Wild have signed a one-year contract with three young players. Defenseman Declan Chisholm ($1 million) and forwards Adam Raska ($775k NHL/$97.5k AHL) and Sammy Walker ($775k NHL/$125k AHL) have agreed on their contract with the Wild organization.
Chisholm was picked up by Minnesota after the Winnipeg Jets put him on waivers. He was a good, young defenseman to step into the injury-riddled blue line last spring. In 29 games that he played with the Wild last season, he put up 8 points (3 goals and 5 assists) and averaged 16:52 TOI per game. Before he was with the Wild, Chisholm played only 2 NHL games with the Jets. Chisholm will play with Minnesota, most likely on their third pairing.
Raska was added to the Wild roster last season after being traded to Minnesota from the San Jose Sharks in exchange for Calen Addison and a fifth-round pick in the 2026 NHL Draft. Raska played mostly in Iowa, putting up 7 points (3 goals and 4 assists) and 94 penalty minutes. He also skated in 5 NHL games with Minnesota. His two-way contract means that he will start the season in Iowa.
Walker also signed a two-way contract with the Wild. He was originally drafted by the Tampa Bay Lightning in the seventh round of the 2017 NHL Draft (200th overall) but never signed with the organization. He signed a two-year, entry-level contract with Minnesota on August 18, 2022. Since then, Walker has mostly played with the Iowa Wild. Over two seasons, he’s played 126 AHL games and recorded 93 points (41 goals and 52 assists). During the 2022-23 season, he along with goalie Jesper Wallstedt represented the Iowa Wild in the AHL All-Star Game. Walker has played in 13 NHL games with the Wild and has two points (1 goal and 1 assist).
While Raska and Walker will both play mostly AHL, they join a valuable bunch of newly signed players who will provide a pool of capable players who have played NHL games and can be pulled up as needed. Chisholm proved that he was NHL-ready last season and will continue in his third-pairing role. His one-year contract might be a “prove-it” sort of deal as the Wild now have newly drafted Zeev Buium waiting in the wings as he plays another season for the University of Denver.
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