The Minnesota Wild have made an important decision on a key restricted free agent forward. Marco Rossi and the Wild have decided on a bridge deal. It is a three-year deal, worth $15 million. Michael Russo is reporting that he will earn $4M in year one, $5M in year two, and $6M in the final year. This allows his qualifying offer to be at that $6M level.
Marco Rossi’s deal will carry a $5 million AAV. $4 million, $5 million, $6 million, so his QO heading into his unrestricted year will be $6 million
— Michael Russo (@RussoHockey) August 22, 2025
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Marco Rossi Signs Extension with Minnesota Wild
Rossi has only played for the Wild across his four-year NHL career. This past aseason, he totaled a career-high 24 goals and 36 assists for 60 points in 82 games. The 23-year-old had a Corsi for of 55.4 and a relative Corsi of 11.1.
The Feldkirch, Austria native has 45 goals and 56 assists for 101 points in 185 career games. Minnesota originally drafted him in the first round, ninth overall in the 2020 NHL Entry Draft.
Rossi has represented his native Austria at the junior and senior levels in international play. He played for the Austrian squad at the 2021 IIHF World Junior Championships. The forward has also played for his home country at the senior level with 2023 and 2024. His teams never finished above 10th in any of those tournaments.
What It Means
Rossi now gets an opportunity to shine for Minnie. He played well over the last couple of seasons. However, it seemed to be a money issue as to why the holdup in the contract process. In the end, general manager Bill Guerin had an easy decision in re-signing Rossi.
The Austrian had been the subject of trade rumours due to stalled contract talks. Wild fans love that Rossi is here to stay. However, they needed to make the money work. That was the reason for the delay. Minnesota needs to pony up a big-money extension to Kirill Kaprizov that will start in the 2026-27 season. The buyouts of Zach Parise and Ryan Suter get greatly reduced this summer. However, the Wild have plenty of holes to fill.
Rossi’s minutes diminished in the Stanley Cup Playoffs and he feels like he deserves a bigger role. He’ll now get a chance to fulfill that promise, and prove he is worth the big money he was seeking, in a long-term deal.
Main photo by: Matt Blewett-Imagn Images
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