Frederick Gaudreau gets five-year extension as Wild end regular season

NASHVILLE – The Wild have completed the regular season but still don't know who they'll square off against in the first round of the playoffs.

After they fell 4-3 in overtime to the Predators on Thursday in front of 17,519 at Bridgestone Arena, the Stars and Avalanche won their respective games to set up a photo finish for the Central Division crown.

Dallas is in first place, wrapping up its schedule with 108 points, one more than Colorado. But the Avalanche have one game left on Friday at Nashville and need a victory to overtake Dallas; the Stars hold the tiebreaker if they end up even.

"Now the hard work begins," goaltender Filip Gustavsson said.

Because the Wild (46-25-11, 103 points) were locked in third place earlier in the week, their last dress rehearsal had no bearing on the standings. But that's not how Frederick Gaudreau played.

A longtime minor leaguer, including in Nashville's pipeline, Gaudreau finished with a flourish, scoring twice, and in between his goals the Wild announced a five-year, $10.5 million contract extension for him.

"To have the trust from the team for a longer time like that, it's the first time it happens to me for a longer period," Gaudreau said, "and I feel very grateful."

With the Wild resting several regulars and having two players make their NHL debut and another in his second game, Gaudreau was one of the more experienced forwards in the lineup, and he skated like a leader, too.

He responded with a one-timer 14 minutes, 19 seconds into the first period after Nashville seized control of the Wild's lone power play with a shorthanded goal by Mark Jankowski at 8:02.

That tie held for only two minutes: The Predators retook the lead after Kiefer Sherwood was left all alone to swipe in a loose puck.

Cue Gaudreau.

At 10:46 of the second period, he crashed the net to bury a bouncing puck.

"It says a lot for him to come out and play like he played," said coach Dean Evason, who mentioned Gaudreau was held out of the third period for maintenance.

While Gaudreau was away, the Wild continued to rally.

Nashville's Yakov Trenin polished off a give-and-go with 5:56 to go in the third before Nic Petan answered 16 seconds later with his first NHL goal since March 2, 2019.

But Jusso Parssinen shrugged off the Wild for good 2:44 into overtime with a between-the-legs shot vs. Gustavsson, who made 27 saves and wrapped the season 22-9-7. Juuse Saros had 21 stops for the Predators, who blanked on three power plays.

Gaudreau appeared in all 82 games, racking up a career-high 19 goals, which is as many as he had in his entire NHL career (179 games) coming into this season, and 14 of those were with the Wild in 2021-22.

The 29-year-old center added 19 assists for 38 points.

But his production isn't all that established Gaudreau as a bona fide NHLer with the Wild after parts of six seasons and 300 games in the minors.

Since coming over as a free agent in 2021 on a two-year deal, Gaudreau has become a versatile option who can rove up and down the lineup while handling both sides of special teams.

Last month, he became the first player in team history to score two shorthanded goals in a game (he had four all season) and his eight shootout goals led the NHL.

"He's willed himself to be a National Hockey League player," said Evason, who coached Gaudreau when both were with the Predators' American Hockey League affiliate.

Gaudreau also is the player the Wild tabbed to take Joel Eriksson Ek's spot alongside Matt Boldy and Marcus Johansson when Eriksson Ek went down with injury last week, an opportunity that should shift Gaudreau into a key role come playoff time.

His new contract, which has an average annual value of $2.1 million, also includes a 15-team no-trade clause.

"No-brainer, for sure," said Gaudreau, who could have tested the free-agent market. "My heart is here."