Minnesota Wild
Insider Reveals Offer Canucks Turned Down to Acquire Top Wild Forward
The Vancouver Canucks had a deal on the table from the Minnesota Wild to land Marco Rossi, so what was the offer?
The Minnesota Wild have never seemed to be fully sold on Marco Rossi, their first-round pick (ninth overall) from the 2020 NHL draft. Despite his relatively solid production, which included a 60-point (24 goals, 36 assists) 2024-25 campaign, general manager Bill Guerin has often been willing to part with the Austrian center, with rumors about the organization being concerned about his 5’9″, 182-pound frame.
That was certainly the case this past offseason, as Rossi’s name was littered on trade boards from all of the NHL insiders, with tons of speculation and rumors linking him to a number of interested suitors.
One of those teams was the center-desperate Canucks, and while a deal never came to fruition, Wild insider Michael Russo recently revealed a deal for Rossi that was on the table, but ultimately rejected by Vancouver.
“Ironically, the Canucks turned down an offer from the Wild for Rossi at the draft that would have involved Aatu Raty (scored two goals and an assist and had one goal overturned against the Wild on Saturday night), the No. 15 pick and goalie Arturs Silovs,”
The 24-year-old Rossi was productive when healthy to start 2025-26, having tallied 13 points (four goals, nine assists) in his first 17 games played before suffering a lower-body injury that he remains sidelined with.
Should Vancouver Have Done the Deal for Marco Rossi?
It’s very interesting to look back on it now and see the price the Canucks would have had to pay to land Rossi.
Goaltender Arturs Silovs was later dealt to Pittsburgh for Chase Stillman and a 2027 fourth-round pick, so the package basically would have been Aatu Raty, Braeden Cootes, who Vancouver took 15th overall in 2025, plus the return from the Silovs trade.
Parting with Silovs would have been no problem, and clearly wasn’t for the Canucks, though Raty and Cootes in particular are a different story. Raty has shown some flashes at the NHL level, but it’s very unlikely he ever reaches the level of Rossi. However, Cootes has a lot of promise, having impressed at training camp and then gone back to the WHL and been very productive.
Given the state of the Canucks — dead last in the NHL and potentially preparing to trade captain Quinn Hughes — it’s probably a good thing they didn’t make the deal. An 18-year-old prospect with upside like Cootes simply fits a rebuilding timeline far better.
Next: Quinn Hughes Saga & Latest NHL Trade Buzz: Canucks, Oilers, Devils
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