The Minnesota Wild and the Nashville Predators have agreed to a trade. The trade sends a depth centre to the Minnesota Wild in exchange for a 2028 second-round pick. The Wild get Michael McCarron.
TRADE ALERT: #MNWild acquire Michael McCarron from #Preds for 2028 2nd round pick, per @RussoHockey
— NHL News (@PuckReportNHL) March 4, 2026
McCarron Traded To Minnesota
McCarron doesn’t have any eye popping stats, but he certainly pops off on the eye test. Standing at 6’6″, he has some size. He mixes in some nice defensive play with the occasional point. McCarron has 12 points in 59 games with the Predators this season. One thing that he should be able to help with is the faceoff circle.
McCarron has been a 50-60% faceoff man for the past half decade. The Wild are currently second worst in the league with a 46.2% faceoff-win percentage. McCarron could be used at the start of 3v3 overtime periods just to win the opening faceoff with those stats. Overall, centre depth in the midst of a cup contending run is never a bad thing. Minnesota adds size and a faceoff guy, not a bad pickup for Bill Guerin.
Nashville Selling
It’s no surprise that the Predators are looking to gain some future assets. They haven’t triggered a full on rebuild yet, but this is a happy medium. They gain a nice asset for a pending unrestricted free agent. It’s smart of Barry Trotz, the Nashville general manager, to acquire that second round pick years in the future. Minnesota is currently the fifth best team in hockey, meaning the second round pick this year would be the 60th-overall pick if the season ended today.
Who knows what the standings will be two years from now? The likelihood that the second-round pick is better in two years is significantly higher than the likelihood that it’s worse.
The McCarron trade makes sense for both sides. He’s cheap for Minnesota, and Nashville gains a nice asset for a guy that has helped them win hockey games.
Main Photo: Steve Roberts-Imagn Images