The 33-year-old forward is in the final year of a four-year contract he signed with the Blue Jackets on July 1, 2019. He can become an unrestricted free agent after the season.
"Nyquist is extremely quick. Really good hockey sense. Has the ability to make plays," Wild general manager Bill Guerin said. "I think the skating and the hockey sense is really what contributed to a lot of his success in the League.
Nyquist had 22 points (10 goals, 12 assists) in 48 games for Columbus, but he is expected to miss the rest of the season with a shoulder injury he sustained during a 3-2 overtime win against the Edmonton Oilers on Jan. 25.
The shoulder injury will not require surgery.
"With Gus, he was a player we were interested from way back," Guerin said. "Getting the phone call that he had gotten hurt was kind of a downer, but we're willing to take a chance, and talking to him, he feels good. We still have some time to get him back to being a healthy player, but it's a chance that we were willing to take. He's a veteran guy, so he knows his body. He knows what he has to do, and so we're confident that'll it work.
"Hey look, we have to do our job here and make the playoffs. That's going to give Gus the best chance to come in here and have an impact. Like I said, this was a bit of an odd one. You don't see it all the time. We just felt with the extra pick that we had that it was worth it. It's worth a shot."
Selected by the Detroit Red Wings in the fourth round (No. 121) of the 2008 NHL Draft, Nyquist has 423 points (174 goals, 249 assists) in 700 regular-season games with the Blue Jackets, San Jose Sharks and Red Wings, and 21 points (five goals, 16 assists) in 65 Stanley Cup Playoff games.
Minnesota (33-21-6) is third in the Central Division, one point behind the Colorado Avalanche for second and three points behind the Dallas Stars for first. Earlier in the day, the Wild acquired forward Marcus Johansson from the Washington Capitals for a third-round pick in the 2024 NHL Draft.
"I think if you're talking about playoff type players, I think we have enough grit. I think we have enough toughness, size and things like that," Guerin said. "These two players I think are what we were missing. What we needed. And that is, they're highly-skilled guys, excellent skaters. I think they're going to provide us with just some, that natural ability out there. They're both effortless skaters and just high hockey sense guys that can make plays. I think we could really use them."
Columbus (19-35-6) is last in the NHL.
"Gustav Nyquist is a first-class person, who brought great professionalism, leadership and commitment to our organization both on and off the ice over the last five years," Blue Jackets general manager Jarmo Kekalainen said. "We wish he and his wife, Danielle, and their family all the best in the future."
