Wild load up on defensemen with six picks in 2024 NHL draft

LAS VEGAS – Technically, the Wild made only one pick in the first round of the NHL draft.

But they felt like they chose three.

After trading up to add University of Denver defenseman Zeev Buium 12th overall on Friday night, two of the five prospects the Wild selected Saturday at Sphere in Las Vegas were projected to be first-rounders before injury interrupted their seasons.

Ryder Ritchie, a speedy scorer whose dad Byron is a former NHLer, was sidelined after a knee-on-knee collision, while Finnish defenseman Aron Kiviharju suffered a dislocated kneecap.

The Wild nabbed Ritchie in the second round, at No. 45, before trading back in the fourth round and getting Kiviharju at No. 122 along with forward Jakub Lauko from Boston in exchange for the Wild’s 110th pick and Vinni Lettieri.

“The numbers don’t pop this year because of the limited play,” Wild director of amateur scouting Judd Brackett said. “But that doesn’t mean we question the skill level or hockey sense or what the future holds for them.”

Buium, whose 50 points as a freshman helped Denver to a national championship, was rated one of the top defenders in the draft, and the Wild dealt a 2025 third-rounder to Philadelphia and No. 13 to move up a spot and guarantee Buium’s addition.

Last year, Ritchie and Kiviharju were also generating first-round buzz.

Ritchie, 17, was the reigning Western Hockey League Rookie of the Year and playing at almost a point-per-game pace for Prince Albert when that knee-on-knee hit caused a quadriceps hematoma that knocked out him out of action for 10 weeks. He returned in February, the 6-foot-1, 175-pound winger finishing with 19 goals and 44 points in 47 games, before helping Canada to a gold medal at the Under-18 World Championship.

“I lean on him a ton,” Ritchie said of his dad, who suited up for Carolina, Florida, Calgary and Vancouver. “To have him in my life is unreal. He’s my biggest supporter and getting to talk to him through this process especially has been huge.”

Kiviharju played even less, skating in only seven games with HIFK in Finland’s top league before he dislocated his knee after his skate got caught in the ice while shooting one-timers after practice.

“Two hundred days without playing hockey,” Kiviharju said.

Then in his first game back with Finland at the Under-18 Worlds, Kiviharju’s throat got cut by a skate.

“Pretty close calls,” the 18-year-old said, “and that’s when you remember that this is only hockey.”

Still, Kiviharju acknowledged he has a chip on his shoulder and Brackett believes he felt overlooked.

The 5-foot-10, 185-pound defender has represented Finland multiple times internationally, including as a captain, and is praised for his passing. He’s also friends with Rasmus Kumpulainen, whom the Wild drafted a year ago.

“If you’re a top-five pick, then it’s a bit different,” Kiviharju said. “But if you’re a late first round, early second, fourth-rounder, it doesn’t matter. You kind of start from the same line of competition of who will be playing in the NHL in future years. That’s why we are here, to make the organization, to win the Stanley Cup one day.”

In the deal with the Bruins that secured the pick the Wild used to draft Kiviharju, the team also brought in help for their NHL roster.

Lauko, 24, is a 6-foot, 196-pound bottom-six winger who had two goals and eight assists in 60 games with Boston last season. Lettieri exits after chipping in five goals and four assists through 46 games, the former Gopher and grandson of Lou Nanne a call-up from the minors because of injuries to other forwards. His contract carries almost the same cap hit as that of Lauko, who’s at $787,500 for next season.

“He fits exactly what we’re trying to do in that part of the lineup,” President of Hockey Operations Bill Guerin said. “He’s got some grit. He’s got speed. He’s a tough kid, and he’s got some playoff experience, too.”

All the Wild’s other pickups at the draft were prospects.

In the fifth round, they chose another Finnish defenseman in Sebastian Soini with No. 140.

The 6-foot-2, 187-pound 18-year-old moves well and has a quality shot.

Chase Wutzke was also a fifth-rounder, the goalie getting called two spots after Soini.

While he still has room to grow his 6-foot-2, 161-pound frame, the Wild love his intangibles: Wutzke, 17, is athletic and battles for every puck.

“There’s only about 200 people from my town,” said Wutzke, who plays for Red Deer in the WHL after growing up in Saskatchewan. “Seeing Las Vegas and seeing all the people in this building is kind of crazy.”

With their last selection, No. 174 in the sixth round, the Wild took one more defenseman, 19-year-old Stevie Leskovar from Mississauga in the Ontario Hockey League, who brings size (6-4 and 207 pounds) and physicality to the blue line.

All six draft picks are expected to be at Wild development camp, which starts July 9.

That four of those players are defensemen isn’t a critique of the prospects currently with Iowa in the American Hockey League, said Brackett, who explained defense is one of the most difficult positions to develop.

What the Wild have done is bolstered their depth, which is key.

Case in point: that’s also what the team wants to accomplish when NHL free agency kicks off on Monday.

“If it pushes others, that’s great,” Brackett said. “That’s what we want. That’s competition.”