Wild are already winners of the Jacob Middleton trade

Writer Chris Schad argues that the Minnesota Wild are already winners of their trade that sent defenseman Jacob Middleton to the Calgary Flames. In Minnesota's 3-1 season-opening victory over the Nashville Predators, new acquisitions Blake Coleman and Olli Maatta made immediate impacts. Maatta registered an assist on Nick Foligno's opening goal, while Coleman scored a power-play goal and provided physical play on the second line.

Minnesota traded Middleton along with three future draft picks to Calgary, while the Flames retained 50 percent of Coleman's salary. Schad notes that both Maatta and Coleman also bolstered the penalty kill, whereas Middleton posted a minus-2 rating in Calgary's opening 6-1 loss to the Seattle Kraken.