Wild GM optimistic in avoiding arbitration with Granlund, Niederreiter

Minnesota Wild general manager Chuck Fletcher is hopeful he won't need the arbitration process when it comes to locking down two of his brightest stars.

Forwards Mikael Granlund and Nino Niederreiter have both filed for arbitration, with dates scheduled for August 3 and August 4, respectively. However, Fletcher is steadfast negotiations won't reach that point.

"We'll keep plodding along," Fletcher told Michael Russo of the Star Tribune on Wednesday. "Everyone's working hard, we've had good dialogue, but obviously we haven't gotten to the finish line yet. If you look around the league, negotiations tend to go right down to the arbitration day or the day before, or the day after the hearing sometimes even.

"Nothing prods progress more than a deadline."

In this instance, progress is vital as Granlund and Niederreiter played huge roles in Minnesota's 106-point campaign in 2016-17. Both players had career years last season, as Granlund led the Wild with 69 points, and Niederreiter contributed 57.

Fletcher can lock up both forwards long-term by avoiding arbitration, which is a likely scenario for both players.

"We're open to any angle," Fletcher said. "I guess anything's possible, but somewhere in that three-to-five year range would probably work well for everybody. That's not to preclude a longer deal, but that's not where the focus has been on our end."

According to CapFriendly, Minnesota has more than $15 million in cap space to use on new contracts for Granlund, Niederreiter, and the newly-acquired Marcus Foligno, who didn't file for arbitration,