“What does he want? He wants to win,” Leipold said Tuesday night at Xcel Energy Center during a 7-2 preseason blowout for the Wild over Chicago that included a power-play goal and three assists from Kaprizov. “So, we have to prove not only to him but to other [free agents] that we also want to win, and we’re used to winning. This is the State of Hockey, and we’re going to get back to the winning ways. We’re going to get a perennial playoff team, but it does start with Kirill.
“He’s going to be the focus of what we’re going to do. We plan to re-sign him. I will tell you: Nobody will offer more money than us or longer. So, all we have to do is prove to him that we want to win.”
Leipold hasn’t talked with Kaprizov about his situation but mentioned, “I know enough about Kirill and how he feels,” and to Leipold, success is key.
The money, he figures, will work itself out.
“We need to show to him, and frankly we need to show to a lot of people, we need to show our fans that we’re committed to winning and we’re gonna get there,” Leipold said.
In an uber-competitive division and conference, the Wild will have their work cut out for them.