Western Conference Rivals Complete Trade for Former World Juniors Star

The Minnesota Wild traded defenseman Kyle Masters to the San Jose Sharks in return for winger Oskar Olausson. Both are currently in the AHL and will report to their respective AHL affiliates.

Olausson has experienced nothing but turmoil in his first year. The Swedish winger, who will be 23 next month, was a 2021 first-round draft choice of the Colorado Avalanche but was unable to gain momentum in the NHL.

After posting fairly humble AHL statistics, he was dealt to the Sharks this season for Daniil Gushchin's signing rights. Olausson did not appear in one game for San Jose's AHL team before being dealt again.

For the Wild, it's a gamble for profit with minimal loss. Olausson has played only four NHL games without registering a point, but his size (6'2") and goal-scoring vision are a project worth restoring.

He had 20 points in 39 games for AHL Colorado during the 2023-24 season after rehabbing injuries, although his numbers fell to 26 points in 61 games last season. Minnesota is hoping that a change of scenery will restore some of that early promise.

And Masters, taken in the fourth round of 2021, spent most of his time in the pros shuttling between the AHL and ECHL.

At age 22, he'll join San Jose's ECHL affiliate in Wichita with an even but unremarkable record of 32 points in 59 games in the ECHL.

For San Jose, the deal buys developmental time for some of its younger, rising wingers like Ethan Cardwell, Cameron Lund, and Quentin Musty.

For Minnesota, it is a minor but fair roll of the dice at inserting a little goal-scorer opportunity into their minor-pro system, and perhaps, just perhaps, discovering a future NHL contributor.