Minnesota Wild acquire Pat Maroon from Tampa Bay Lightning

The Minnesota Wild have acquired wingers Pat Maroon and Max Cajkovic from the Tampa Bay Lightning in exchange for a 2024 seventh-round pick.

Maroon, 35, had one year left on a two-year contract with a $1 million cap hit. The Lightning have retained 20% of Maroon’s salary, so he’ll carry an $800,000 cap hit with the Wild.

Maroon had 5 goals, 9 assists, and 14 points in 80 games for the Lightning in 2022-23, the fewest points he’s produced in a full NHL season, but he did set a career high in penalty minutes with 150. He also had an assist in six playoff games for the Lightning.

Maroon was a sixth-round pick of the Philadelphia Flyers in 2007, although he never played an NHL game for them, as he was dealt to the Anaheim Ducks in 2010 before he made his NHL debut in 2011-12. He’s played for the Ducks, Edmonton Oilers, New Jersey Devils, St. Louis Blues, and the Lightning so far in his 12-season career, winning three Stanley Cups in three straight years, one with the Blues in 2019 and two with the Lightning in 2020 and 2021.

Cajkovic, 22, is a prospect, one the Lightning drafted in the third round of the 2019 draft. He spent most of his season with the Orlando Solar Bears in the ECHL, where he had 10 goals, 17 assists, and 27 points in 41 games. He also got into two regular season games with the Syracuse Crunch of the AHL, along with one playoff game, although he was held pointless in all three games.

The trade comes as the Lightning continue to try and clear up salary cap space for next season. They are currently $3.9 million over the salary cap, although that doesn’t include Brent Seabrook’s $6.875 million cap hit that will be placed on long-term injured reserve at the start of the season. They also have to sign winger Tanner Jeannot, who is a restricted free agent with arbitration rights.

The Wild bring in a replacement for Ryan Reaves with this deal, who ended up signing in free agency with the Toronto Maple Leafs. It comes at both a miniscule cost of a seventh-round pick and on a miniscule cap hit of $800,000, so it was an easy deal to work around for them while also getting another player in the deal.