Wild acquire David Jiricek in swap of defensemen, draft picks

By The Associated Press

ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) — The Minnesota Wild acquired defenseman David Jiricek in a trade with the Columbus Blue Jackets on Saturday.

Jiricek, who turned 21 on Thursday, was the sixth overall pick in the 2022 draft. He has one goal and 10 assists in 53 career NHL games — all with Columbus.

He was assigned by the Wild to Iowa of the American Hockey League.

Minnesota also received a fifth-round pick in the 2025 draft from Columbus in exchange for defenseman Daemon Hunt and four draft picks; the Wild’s first-round pick in 2025 (top five protected), Colorado’s 2026 third-round pick, Toronto’s fourth-round pick in 2026 and the Wild’s second-round pick in 2027.

The 22-year-old Hunt was the Wild’s third-round pick in 2020. He had one assist in 13 games with Minnesota.

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AP NHL: https://apnews.com/NHL