The Minnesota Wild have been looking for centers ever since Chuck Fletcher took over as general manager last year. The search has been largely unsuccessful.Perhaps Fletcher will be able to turn things around this year. On the first day of free agency, he has landed one of the top available centers. The Wild have agreed to terms with former Ottawa Senator Matt Cullen, a Minnesota native.
Cullen revealed his decision to Minneapolis Star Tribune writer Michael Russo in a text message.
It's a three-year deal worth $3.5 million per season.
Cullen grew up in Minnesota, playing high school hockey in Moorhead (western Minnesota) and then moving to St. Cloud State for college hockey. St. Cloud is about an hour northwest of St. Paul's XCel Energy Center, the home of the Wild.
This will be Cullen's sixth NHL team. He spent the most time with the Anaheim Ducks (six seasons).
Cullen, 33, has 169 goals in 880 NHL games. He's a strong center who is good on faceoffs and can put the puck in the net. He's a good two-way player and should develop into one of the Wild's leaders.
It's a key pickup for Minnesota, who really needs depth at center, and it's the kind of player who wasn't highly in demand, but could still be a very effective guy in Todd Richards' system.
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