wild/nhl

"I remember Minnesota as always being a hard-working team, a solid defensive team with talent, a lot of speed," he said. "They were always difficult to play against."

Hall, who will be a restricted free agent after this season, is earning $975,000. Dupuis, who is making $798,000, is scheduled to become an unrestricted free agent. That means the Wild owes Hall about $60,000 more for the rest of the season than it would have paid Dupuis, trimming its space under the salary cap to about $1.25 million.

"I'm sad to see a guy I played with for five years go," Wild center Wes Walz said. "But that's the reality of life as an NHL player."

Said Dupuis: "They gave me my first chance. And I want to thank them for that."

Kent Youngblood • kyoungblood@startribune.com