The Avalanche made their second trade in less than 24 hours, sending forward Tyson Jost to the Wild for forward Nico Sturm.
🚨 TRADE 🚨
We have acquired Tyson Jost from the Colorado Avalanche. #mnwild pic.twitter.com/s8LbG8GHXs
— Minnesota Wild (@mnwild) March 15, 2022
Both Jost and Sturm were playing bottom-six minutes for their respective clubs, but the key here is the financial benefits for Colorado. The move clears about $1.3 million off the books for the Avalanche, who most certainly are gearing up to land a bigger splash before the March 21 deadline.
Jost has 14 points in 59 games played this season, competing in a fourth-line role for the best team in hockey this season. The University of North Dakota product is in his fifth season in the NHL.
Sturm also was playing a fourth-line role, recording 17 points in 53 games for the Wild. This is the fourth season in the NHL for the German forward.
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Tyson Jost trade details
- Wild get: Tyson Jost
- Avalanche get: Nico Sturm
On the surface, it’s a bit of a head-scratcher why the Wild would make this trade. Not only is helping a fellow contender clear cap space to make a bigger trade, but it’s another team in the same division.
Besides the salary space, Sturm provides the Avalanche with some size in their bottom-six. The Clarkson University product is listed at 6-foot-3, 209 pounds, and can play a strong two-way game. He’s had better offensive numbers this season than Jost and comes at a cheaper cost.
Despite his production on the ice, he had been scratched a number of times by coach Dean Evason and with prospect Marco Rossi likely to fill a center role next season, Sturm was not going to have a place in Minnesota’s top-12 forward group come next year.
Nico Sturm, traded to COL, has put up very solid results in quite sheltered fourth-line minutes. He’s a couple years older than Jost but quite a bit cheaper as well. #GoAvsGo pic.twitter.com/JdGBMdRPtX
— JFresh (@JFreshHockey) March 15, 2022
What the Wild do get is a chance for Jost to benefit from a change of scenery. The forward plays a sound defensive game but has struggled to produce on the score sheet. At worse, he’ll add some depth to the bottom-six in Minnesota.
Expect another trade or two, especially on the Avalanche side, in the coming days.
What is Tyson Jost’s contact?
According to Spotrac, Jost signed a 2-year $4 million contract fully guaranteed. Jost’s cap hit was $2 million and 2.45 percent of the Avalanche’s cap in 2021-22.
Jost is set to become an unrestricted free agent after the 2022-23 season.