Minnesota Wild forward Vladimir Tarasenko is going to enter the NHL Free Agency on July 1, but his situation involving an agent dispute is unlike any other this offseason.

As per the X post from columnist Pierre LeBrun of The Athletic, on Sunday, June 28, Tarasenko’s new agent, Dan Milstein, apparently got permission to speak directly with teams before free agency kicks in.

“Pending UFA winger Vladimir Tarasenko, who recently changed agents, now represented by [Dan Milstein], is headed to market. Dan Milstein has permission to speak directly to teams ahead of Wednesday,” wrote LeBrun on X.

After learning about this, LeBrun’s colleague from The Athletic, Michael Russo, took to his official X account to quote him and debunk Milstein about having the permission to contact teams.

“Not only does Milstein not have permission from the Wild, the league recently warned all teams they cannot give blanket permission for UFA’s to do this. You can trade rights and then they can talk to that specific team,” Russo categorically mentioned in his X post.

Notably, it was last month when the NHL sent out a memo to remind all 32 teams that allowing a pending free agent to speak with teams is not permitted prior to the start of free agency on July 1. After that, NHL insider Elliotte Friedman actually alluded to how it all plays out in a report published in Sportsnet last month.

“If you want to make the deal and give someone else a player's negotiating rights, you can go out and you can do that,” Friedman explained how the memo can come into effect. “But you can't allow a player to talk to other teams. Permission for a UFA to talk to other teams is a no-no. What (the NHL) did as part of this is remind everybody about tampering fines.”

Ultimately, the failure of a team to comply with the rules could turn out into a hefty fine of up to $5 million and/or loss of picks in the draft.

With that being said, Milstein might have to wait for the NHL Free Agency next month to get in touch with teams when Tarasenko becomes an unrestricted free agent (UFA).

But amidst the dispute, Tarasenko carries a notable resume in the off-season.

How did Vladimir Tarasenko perform for the Minnesota Wild last season in the NHL?

Tarasenko joined the Minnesota Wild in a trade deal with the Detroit Red Wings for future considerations on June 30, 2025.

He had signed a two-year, $9.5 million contract with the Red Wings on July 3, 2024, set to run out at the end of the 2025-26 season, according to Spotrac. The Wild took over his contract for the last season with an $4.75 average annual value (AAV) after bringing him in a trade deal.

He scored 47 points (23G / 24A) in 75 regular-season games before contributing five points (2G / 3A) in 11 Stanley Cup Playoff games in the 2025-26 season. The Russian played a key role in taking the Wild to the second round of the playoffs, where they lost to the Colorado Avalanche in five games.

Moreover, in his illustrious career, which began in 2013, Tarasenko has won the Stanley Cup twice, with the St. Louis Blues and the Florida Panthers, in 2019 and 2024, respectively. It was the first-ever Cup victory in the history of both these franchises in the NHL, a triumph decades in the making.

His overall stats in the NHL read: 709 points (327G / 382A) in 906 regular-season games and 78 points (51G / 27A) in 132 playoff games.

Which franchise will Vladimir Tarasenko join as an unrestricted free agent to play in the 2026-27 season? Let us know in the comments.

Read more at NHL Fan Central.

Written by

Arjun Sharma

Edited by

Soheli Tarafdar