A productive former Blackhawks forward is a great choice to be signed by the Minnesota Wild this summer.

The notion that former Chicago Blackhawks forward Tyler Johnson wants to win is likely still very much real even though he hasn’t signed with a new team yet.

Johnson was traded to the Blackhawks in July 2021 after winning back-to-back Stanley Cups with the Tampa Bay Lightning. The 33-year-old spent the last three seasons of his seven-year, $35 million contract with Chicago at the bottom of the standings.

When the 2023-24 season ended, Johnson didn’t mince words. He said he missed that feeling and experience of playing meaningful games and wanted to move on.

Just as Chicago has sped up its rebuild and added a lot of talent, Johnson is still a free agent and without a team, not to mention an opportunity to return to the postseason. He’s not going to get a great contract at this point of free agency, but he may still have the chance to play in the playoffs in 2024-25.

This opportunity could come from the Minnesota Wild who, with around $1.5 million in cap space, should be figuring out who is the final piece to add to a weaker forward group.

The Wild need help throughout the lineup and that’s what comes with allocating $14.7 million in dead cap to former buyouts of Zach Parise and Ryan Suter. While this coming season is the last in which millions will be wasted like that and Minnesota can finally add big pieces, the Wild need to continue to work with what they have or make more minor additions for one more season.

Throughout the time that the Wild have had those dead caps on the books, the team has still been competitive, only missing the playoffs last season by falling out of the race late due to injuries.

Minnesota’s goal is to return to the playoffs and the team was nearly inactive in free agency. There are a few options left, but Johnson was one of the most productive players, scoring 17 goals and 31 points in 67 games. His playoff experience and experience in general is also very valuable.

The top-6 is set for the Wild as the lack of cap space doesn’t allow for any more players to be acquired to play in that role, but the bottom of the lineup needs a bit more.

Instead of someone like Jakub Lauko getting everyday playing time as he has six career goals, Johnson can easily add what could turn out to be game-changing goals to the bottom-6. The Wild have a bit of cap space left and it can’t go unused when upgrades are at their fingertips. Johnson is going to get signed for cheap and he’s not returning to Chicago next season, so why not Minnesota?