The Minnesota Wild were eliminated from the second round of the 2026 Stanley Cup Playoffs on May 13 at the hands of the Colorado Avalanche in five games. With the season-ending loss for the Wild, the future of their left winger, Nick Foligno, has come into focus due to the expiry of his contract.

While speaking to the reporters in his exit interview on Friday, May 15, Foligno stated his price for returning to the Wild while jokingly comparing it to his teammate Kirill Kaprizov. As per the post from NHL/Wild scribe for The Athletic Michael Russo on X, the 38-year-old said, “I’m looking for a little less than Kirill, like $16 million.”

All fun and games aside, Russo also relayed the message of uncertainty around Foligno from the press conference, despite how he talked about being invested in the Wild and would love to make a comeback. The scribe mentioned that Foligno has to determine whether he wants to continue with the Wild on a new contract or retire from the NHL altogether.

Notably, the Ottawa Senators brought Foligno on board as the 28th overall pick in the 2006 NHL Draft. He made his debut for them against the Toronto Maple Leafs on October 3, 2007, in a memorable 4-3 win.

From that point onwards, the veteran ended up playing a whopping 1,287 games in his NHL career, scoring 612 points (251G / 361A) till the 2025-26 season.

In his last outing for the Wild in the 2026 NHL Playoffs, Foligno got two goals despite the team losing 4-3 to the Avalanche at the Ball Arena in Denver.

Nick Foligno’s elongated career in the NHL with six different teams

During his elongated career in the NHL, Nick Foligno was a part of six different teams, starting with the Ottawa Senators in the 2007-08 season. He played for five seasons with the Senators, becoming a regular starter before joining the Columbus Blue Jackets in the prime years of his career in 2012.

The Blue Jackets had an upward trend in the first few seasons with Foligno in a key role. In the 2014-15 regular season, he put together his career-high stats, scoring 31 goals and 73 points in 79 games, to secure an NHL All-Star honor.

It helped Foligno become the sixth captain in the history of the Blue Jackets before the start of the 2015-16 season. Some of his best performances in the NHL came in the 2016-17 regular season when he registered 51 points (26G /25A) in 79 games.

This was enough for the Blue Jackets to secure a spot in the 2016 Stanley Cup Playoffs before they made it in the three subsequent seasons.

Before leaving the Blue Jackets as captain for the Toronto Maple Leafs in a deadline trade deal on April 11, 2021, Foligno scored 334 points (142G / 192A) in 599 games for them. He played just seven games for the Maple Leafs, including four in the 2021 Stanley Cup Playoffs, before signing with the Boston Bruins as a free agent in the summer.

While the first season at the Bruins was a tough one for Foligno after playing his 1,000th NHL game, he made amends in the 2022-23 regular season with 26 points (10G /16A) in 60 games. He was a vital player in the leadership group of the franchise, helping them reach the 2023 Stanley Cup Playoffs before losing to the Florida Panthers in the first round.

The Bruins traded Foligno to the Chicago Blackhawks before the start of the 2023-24 season. While the Blackhawks continued with their recent struggles on the field despite his arrival, he became their 36th captain in history on September 18, 2024.

His leadership didn’t make much difference in the Blackhawks’ fortunes before injuries and personal responsibilities kept him out of action for the majority of the 2025-26 season. After playing just 37 regular-season games for the Blackhawks during the campaign, Foligno arrived at the Minnesota Wild in a trade on deadline day, March 6, 2026, to play with his brother, Marcus, at the franchise.

He scored four points (1G / 3A) in 17 regular-season games for the Wild before entering the playoffs.

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Written by

Arjun Sharma

Edited by

Suyashdeep Sason