Wild Take Advantage of Other Teams' Mismanagement in Marc-Andre Fleury Trade

The Marc-Andre Fleury era in Chicago was short-lived and shortsighted.

It probably shouldn't have even happened, but for some reason, former general manager Stan Bowman decided to go for it this season. The Vegas Golden Knights, in need of salary cap space, dealt the 2021 Vezina Trophy winner to Chicago over the summer.

Chicago then traded Fleury on Monday morning—the biggest deal of the trade deadline—to the Minnesota Wild for a conditional second-round pick in the 2022 draft that will become a first-round pick if the Wild reach the Western Conference Finals and Fleury wins at least four games in the first two rounds. The Blackhawks retained 50 percent of his salary. 

Fleury helped bail out a defense that didn't give him much help and played a leadership role in the locker room that the consummate pro has always excelled at. The 37-year-old put up good, but maybe not great numbers this season, going 19-21-5 with a .908 save percentage. 

Despite his initial hesitation to play in Chicago, he was hesitant to move again after his family had settled in the area and grown to enjoy it. He used his no-trade clause to leverage a move to a contender, which is where he belonged from the start.

The big winner here is Fleury, who is now in a position to win his fourth Stanley Cup. Meanwhile, Minnesota might have one of the more enviable goaltending situations in the league at a time when many of the contenders are facing questions in net. Cam Talbot and Kaapo Kahkonen were fine, but fine isn't what a team needs when chasing a Stanley Cup.

The two combined for a .908 save percentage, which was toward the bottom of the league. From February 16 to March 13, the Wild went 4-9-1 and allowed 65 goals.

While his underlying metrics have been good, Kahkonen, still only 25, hasn't had a win in nearly a month. He's gone 0-5-1 in that span and allowed 21 goals (.873 save percentage). That was enough for general manager Bill Guerin to look for an upgrade.

He flipped Kahkonen to the San Jose Sharks shortly after he acquired his former Pittsburgh Penguins teammate in Fleury. Now, the tandem in St. Paul is Fleury and Talbot.

While Talbot has been solid for the Wild this year, even earning an All-Star nod, there have been questions about whether or not he is a goalie who can take a team deep into the postseason.

AP Photo/Andy Clayton-King

Maybe he will be, but the pressure is off of him to do all the heavy lifting. Coach Dean Evason can use a 1-A and 1-B system to split their starts and keep the duo fresh down the stretch, a luxury many teams in playoff positions do not have.

Guerin insists that Talbot does not feel slighted by the move, telling reporters that they had been in communication throughout the process and lauding the goalie's professionalism. 

"There's no room for petty bulls--t," the general manager said. "We're on a team together, and we're trying to we're trying to win, and Cam is an unbelievable teammate, so I know he's going to be awesome."

The Toronto Maple Leafs had reportedly flirted with the idea of adding Fleury, and a public spat between Chicago general manager Kyle Davidson and Toronto GM Kyle Dubas confirmed as much. The Washington Capitals had been eyeing Fleury all season, with subpar goaltending being the team's biggest weakness. 

If anyone knows how important trade deadline acquisitions are, it's Guerin, who was one himself in 2009 when the Penguins won the Stanley Cup. And if anyone knows what Fleury is like at his best, it's Guerin. 

The Wild may not have been on his list initially, but upon landing in Minnesota on Monday night, he told reporters that the fans and the atmosphere at Xcel Energy Center had helped change his mind. The Blackhawks played in Minnesota on Saturday, and as Fleury sat on the visitors' bench, he liked what he saw and said they look like a playoff team.

The club also added forwards Tyson Jost and Nicolas Deslauriers last week and defenseman Jacob Middleton in the Kahkonen deal. These were savvy moves that should help with the overall roster depth during the postseason. The Wild are deeper, tougher and better able to go to battle in a long series against a team like Colorado.

"I was a little worried about chemistry and things like that because it's gone really well this year," Guerin said, "but when the players that we acquired became available, they can all help our team, and I'm so confident in the group that we already have, that they'll welcome these guys with open arms."

Meanwhile, the Golden Knights visit the Wild on Monday night. Fleury is not slated to start, but his presence still rubs salt in the wound for a team that has not cruised through the season as it was expected to

Vegas won the Jack Eichel sweepstakes, but other injuries have hamstrung the team this season and left them chasing the Calgary Flames, the Edmonton Oilers and even the rebuilding Los Angeles Kings in the Pacific Division.

The goalie the Knights chose over Fleury? He's hurt too. Robin Lehner has been battling a lower-body injury all season. 

It's an unfortunate reminder of the turn of events from last summer for Vegas, but Fleury and his new team are happy to reap the benefits.