Overview
- The Minnesota Wild and Calgary Flames completed the trade on Thursday, July 2, 2026, sending Blake Coleman and Olli Määttä to Minnesota in exchange for Jake Middleton and three draft picks (a 2029 second, a 2027 third and a 2028 fourth).
- Calgary will retain 50 percent of Coleman’s $4.9 million cap hit for 2026–27, which reduces Minnesota’s immediate salary burden and made the deal affordable for the Wild.
- Blake Coleman, 34, scored 20 goals and had 35 points in 69 games last season and is entering the final year of a six‑year, $29.4 million contract, while Olli Määttä, 31, provides veteran, low-risk depth with roughly a $3.5 million cap hit and remaining term.
- Jake Middleton, 30, has three years left on a $4.35 million AAV contract and saw a full no‑move clause convert to a modified no‑trade clause on July 1 that required a 15-team list, which did not prevent this trade.
- The deal reflects different team phases: Minnesota adds playoff-tested leadership and two-way depth to push its contention window, and Calgary gains a younger, NHL-ready defenseman plus draft capital to accelerate a youth-oriented rebuild.