New Wild defenseman David Jiricek reports for duty in ‘a hockey state’

David Jiricek’s knowledge of Minnesota is limited, but he knows the bullet points.

“I heard it’s a hockey state,” Jiricek said. “So, that’s the first thing I know, and the second thing is it’s freaking cold out here.”

Jiricek’s arrival confirmed his impression about the weather, the defenseman skating on Monday at Tria Rink in snowy downtown St. Paul.

As for the hockey part, the 21-year-old is about to get a crash course on the NHL-­leading Wild after the team added him in a trade with Columbus over the weekend.

“Good first day for him, and we’ll just keep bringing him along,” coach John Hynes said after Jiricek practiced with the team. “Hopefully he gets more comfortable each day and gets comfortable quickly.”

Because of his age, Jiricek might be more important to the Wild in the future.

Alongside Brock Faber and University of Denver’s Zeev Buium, whom the Wild drafted 12th overall in June, Jiricek joins a budding core of young defensemen overlapping with longtime veterans such as captain Jared Spurgeon and Jonas Brodin — a mix that could set the Wild up for the next few years.

But that doesn’t mean Jiricek can’t also help in the present.

He won’t draw in immediately: Even with Brodin injured, the Wild have six defensemen available, and they have played well during the three-game win streak the team will take into its homestand finale on Tuesday vs. Vancouver.

Plus, the Wild want to get Jiricek integrated, and he said he needs to get up to speed; he has appeared in only 10 games this season.

“And four of them were in the minors,” he pointed out. “I’m just going to take some time, that’s for sure.”

Still, the 6-4, 204-pound defender debuted at practice as advertised.

“He’s tall, and he has a long, good stick and a lot of skill for being that big,” Faber said. “I haven’t seen many people that big that can kind of move with the puck like that on the blue line. Fun to see. Glad he’s on our team.”

Jiricek’s size, knack for offense and right shot are what enticed the Wild to send fellow up-and-coming defenseman Daemon Hunt, their next first-round draft pick and three other selections to the Blue Jackets to acquire him and a fifth-round pick; the first-rounder the Wild included in the deal, however, is protected, so the Wild would hold onto the pick if it’s in the top five and instead pass along their 2026 first.

Despite those attributes, and a solid international track record that includes being named the top defenseman at the 2023 world junior championship when he represented Czechia, Jiricek and Columbus didn’t jell.

“Sometimes it’s just not a good fit,” he said.

After he was drafted sixth overall in 2022, Jiricek split time between the NHL and American Hockey League the past two seasons.

He was productive in the AHL, less so when he was with the Blue Jackets, but never stuck in their lineup for good. Before he was traded — by a different regime than the one that drafted him — he was sent to Columbus’ AHL affiliate after six NHL games.

“It’s been hard,” said Jiricek, who will wear No. 55. “I’m still young, but that was my first — I hope — last trade, too.”

The Blue Jackets wanted him to home in on his play without the puck, and Jiricek said he wants to be a “two-way, 200-foot defenseman and help the team on both ends,” when asked about his style.

“Like any young player, it’s just developing the size, the strength, the skating, the power to be able to defend in certain areas,” Hynes said. “But it’s intriguing because you have a pretty highly talented player that’s a pretty accomplished player before getting here that’s got size and he’s got some real good upside. So, that’s exciting.”

Aside from playing against Faber and Marco Rossi, Jiricek knows Jakub Lauko after the two skated together last summer in Prague.

He was on a road trip with Columbus’ minor league team when he was traded, flying into the Twin Cities on Sunday from Grand Rapids, so he will have to return to retrieve his belongings at some point. But preparing for a Minnesota winter is a bigger priority.

“I need some warm clothes right now,” he said. “That’s the first thing I have to do.”

Xcel Energy Center, 7 p.m. Tuesday

TV; radio: FanDuel Sports Network North; 100.3 FM

Canucks update: This is Vancouver’s last stop on a six-game road trip that started Nov. 23 in Ottawa. Since then, the Canucks have won four out of five games, including two in a row in overtime. Their latest victory, 5-4 against Detroit on Sunday, included LW Jake DeBrusk finishing off a hat trick with 1 minute to go in overtime and Quinn Hughes becoming the franchise leader in assists among defensemen with 313. Hughes’ 28 points lead the team, as do DeBrusk’s 10 goals. Kevin Lankinen is the first goalie in NHL history to win his first 10 road games to start a season.

Injuries: Wild D Jonas Brodin (upper body), LW Jakub Lauko (lower body) and RW Mats Zuccarello (lower body) are out. Canucks G Thatcher Demko (knee) and D Filip Hronek (upper body) are out.