The Minnesota Wild are buying winger Justin Brazeau from the Boston Bruins in trade for forwards Marat Khusnutdinov and Jakub Lauko and a 2026 sixth-round draft decide, according to ESPN’s Kevin Weekes. Minnesota has made the deal official.
With Boston shifting right into a vendor’s mindset over the past week, Brazeau grew to become an apparent commerce chip. The New Liskeard, Ontario, native was within the closing yr of a two-year, $1.55M contract and was one of many few pending unrestricted free brokers of worth on the Bruins’ roster.
Brazeau is in his first full NHL season after splitting final yr between the Boston and Windfall Bruins. He has 20 factors, break up evenly, in 57 video games this season and ranks seventh on the staff with 89 hits. Minnesota was drawn to Brazeau’s lofty 6-foot-6, 227-pound body — and his right-hand shot — shares Michael Russo of The Athletic.
Brazeau’s professional profession started on an ECHL contract with the Newfoundland Growlers within the 2019-20 season. He broke into the professionals with 55 factors in 57 video games, sufficient to earn a midseason call-up to the AHL’s Toronto Marlies and an on a regular basis position with the squad within the following yr. Brazeau’s AHL begin was slow-going within the shortened 2020-21 season, backed by simply 5 factors in his first 22 AHL video games. The Marlies opted to maneuver on from Brazeau within the following summer time, setting him up for a transfer to the Bruins group.
On the again of chilly scoring, he returned to the ECHL for the beginning of the 2021-22 marketing campaign. However Brazeau rapidly earned one other call-up after netting 20 factors in 18 video games. He didn’t let his second probability slip, netting 31 factors in 51 video games in his first season in Windfall. He doubled down with 45 factors in 67 video games of the 2022-23 marketing campaign and 37 factors in 49 AHL video games final yr — scorching sufficient scoring to earn the lumbering winger his first NHL call-up.
The Bruins have stored Brazeau on the NHL roster since his first recall in February 2024. He’s totaled 15 objectives and 27 factors in 76 profession NHL video games — and appears to be discovering higher footing as a third-line position specialist this yr. He’ll carry a robust net-front presence to a Wild roster that solely has one participant — fringe defenseman David Jiricek — taller than 6-foot-3.
