Minnesota Wild fans across the state woke up to some big news on Saturday. At 2 AM, Elliotte Freidman reported that defenseman Matt Dumba was signed to a 5-year, $30 million contract.
Dumba, who turns 24 on Tuesday, was a restricted free agent due for a new deal. And with an arbitration hearing on Monday, July 23rd, there was urgency to settle on a long-term contract.
The Wild has made it a focus in recent seasons to retain their mid-20s players. Charlie Coyle, Jonas Brodin, Jared Spurgeon, Mikael Granlund, and Nino Niederreiter are all under long-term contracts.