Wild must sign or trade Gaborik

I saw this story over on Truth & Rumors. Make no mistake about it the Minnesota Wild are down to crunch time; there is no sugar coating it. The Wild must either sign Gabby or trade him for a worth while replacement, they can't let him go to free agency.

I do wonder if the fact that Hossa is only signed for one year with the Detroit Redwings is having some affect where Gaborik goes or what he wants to do?

It does make me wonder what the heck Gaborik is thinking? Gabby must know that the Wild aren't going to let him wait until next summer to see what he can get on the open market. I would also like to see where Hossa wants to go in the offseason.

The Wild are in negotiations to retain their marquee player, Marian Gaborik, but if they can't sign him, will they trade him before he can become a free agent next summer? As the lengthy negotiations continue, the only deadline -- and it's a soft one -- seems to be general manager Doug Risebrough's desire to have a deal done before the season starts Oct. 11 against the Boston Bruins at the Xcel Energy Center. And yet the specter of a world without Gaborik, the leading scorer in franchise history and its last original member, haunts Wild Nation. On the team's Web site, there were 65 pages dedicated to the topic as of Saturday afternoon, and for good reason. If Gaborik waits for free agency, he virtually could have his pick among 30 NHL teams that would pay him as much or more than the Wild are offering.

St. Paul Pioneer Press