Marcus Foligno signed a four-year, $16 million contract with the Minnesota Wild on Friday. It has an average annual value of $4 million.
"Just happy to be here, happy to be here for a while and make this more of a home than it already is," Foligno said Saturday. "It's unfinished business here that I didn't really want to walk away from. We have a great team and the future's bright. It's a great team, great group of guys and something that I feel like I've been a part of for a while and want to continue to see it through."
Foligno is entering the final year of a three-year, $9.3 million contract ($3.1 million AAV) he signed with the Wild on Jan 12, 2021, and could have become an unrestricted free agent after the season.
"We’re thrilled to have Marcus locked up," Wild general manager Bill Guerin said. "Now it’ll be another five years. Marcus is a very important part of our team. He’s a big part of our leadership group. What he’s brought to the organization each and every night is something that we value a great deal."
Asked about the length of the new contract, Guerin said, “We wanted to keep him here. When a player’s approaching UFA years, you have to kind of weigh what you think they’re going to get on the free market not just dollars but in years. We felt that on the free market, teams would step up for somebody like Marcus and we didn’t want to see it get to that. He’s just a great fit here, and he wants to be here. We want him here. I’m not afraid of the term at all. It’s just been a really good fit and something that I think will work.”
The 32-year-old forward had 21 points (seven goals, 14 assists) and led the Wild in penalty minutes (97) and hits (237) in 65 games last season. He had one goal in six Stanley Cup Playoff games.
In six seasons with the Wild, Foligno has 156 points (67 goals, 89 assists) and 415 penalty minutes in 396 regular-season games and seven points (two goals, five assists) in 28 playoff games. He has been an alternate captain since the 2021-22 season.
"When I got traded here (June 30, 2017), I never saw this day coming or being here as long as I have," he said. "I just tried to take it day by day. You look back on the first year here, it was a grind and there's a lot of ups and downs and probably more downs that season, but just trying to find your role and have a lot of great people around me, a lot of good guys in the room."
Selected by the Buffalo Sabres in the fourth round (No. 104) of the 2009 NHL Draft, Foligno has 272 points (116 goals, 156 assists) and 749 penalty minutes in 743 regular-season games with the Wild and Sabres.
"It's a business of people coming and going, so very fortunate, blessed, to have been traded here," Foligno said. "Found a role in this team and to be with the people here. Yeah, it's crazy to think about how long it's been but I don't want to be at the end of this four years without a Cup. That's the main thing. We have the structure to do it with the guys to do it, and that's what's most exciting."
The Wild also signed forward Mats Zuccarello to a two-year, $8.25 million contract ($4.125 million AAV) on Friday.
Zuccarello, 36, is entering the final year of a five-year, $30 million contract ($6 million AAV) he signed with the Wild on July 1, 2019, and could have become an unrestricted free agent after the season.
He had 67 points (22 goals, 45 assists) in 78 games with the Wild last season, leading them in assists and finishing second on the team in points behind Kirill Kaprizov (75). Zuccarello had five points (two goals, three assists) in six Stanley Cup Playoff games.
"Between [Foligno] and 'Zuccy' today, we feel we've had a good day," Guerin said. "These are players that we value a lot. It's a good day."
NHL.com independent correspondent Jessi Pierce contributed to this report
