Wild Report Cards 2025-26: Vladimir Tarasenko – Hockey Writers – Minnesota Wild

The month of July is halfway over, but the start of the new NHL season is two and a half months away. While looking forward to a new season is always exciting, it’s hard to forget how last season ended, especially for the Minnesota Wild, who looked like they had a bright future and still do.

We’re taking a look back at the past as we continue to release report cards to the Wild’s athletes. We go up the list as we get to the other third lines, and this time Vladimir Tarasenko, who, like his other colleagues, jumped a little on the list to play. In this article, we’ll look at how he performed in the regular season and postseason to come up with a season total.

Tarasenko’s renaissance

The Wild traded Vladimir Tarasenko’s future in June 2025, and a few fans were left scratching their heads. A big offseason was promised, and while Tarasenko was a decent player, he wasn’t what they expected, and this was before Quinn Hughes entered the picture. Tarasenko has had an up and coming career and looks to be on the upswing when he joins the Wild’s roster.

It was not good for the fans to doubt because he was still a little bit younger and in the later stages of his career. However, he continued to bounce around as he played 75 games and scored 23 goals and assisted 24 others with 47 points. It was his highest point total since the 2021-22 season, and 13 of those points came on the power play.

His offense was impressive, but his defense was not lacking as he registered 60 hits and 33 blocked shots. While both stats are respected, a team can always use more blocked shots from all players on their team.

“It was something, yes, it meant a lot to me, especially after last year, but also, even after the season I’m going through, you know, the season and I’m trying to figure out how I did and from what I remember, there were many, many chances that I didn’t score, so, I can never say that I was very satisfied with myself…,” Tarasenko said to the media when he scored his goal during the end of the interview.

After looking at his stats and seeing how he’s improved in almost every important area, it’s hard not to give him decent marks. He got an A-, which may seem high to some, but he had nearly 50 points, which ranked him eighth among Wild players in points, and he was a big contributor to the lineup. However, it is not at the top because, like some of his colleagues, it seemed that he had a lot to contribute but could not.

Tarasenko’s Postseason Production

Tarasenko knows what it takes to win a Stanley Cup; won two during his career – one with St. Louis Blues in 2019 and another with the Florida Panthers in 2024 – so it’s not long since he won. Although the Wild’s postseason run was short, Tarasenko provided both offense and defense. He played in all 11 playoff games, and scored two goals and three assists for five points.

Tarasenko improved his efficiency in the postseason as he scored 14 times, but his blocked shots did not increase as he blocked only seven shots. The Wild could use a bigger offense and block more shots from him as the season progresses. It was difficult to score goals, and it would have made a difference to have more players besides the top scorers.

“I think we just stopped putting pucks deep enough, and I think we reduced the pressure on them, and, you know, we play with a good team that can feel if they have the right opportunity to press. See, I can say, maybe they want too much, and they use their opportunities to tie the game and stay in the program for 60 minutes, which gives them success,” said Tarasenko to the media at the end of his interview when asked by Gameson 5.

His numbers weren’t bad in the postseason, but they weren’t great either, and earned him a B’s. It’s lower than his regular season grade because, while he played fewer games and the lower numbers to be expected, they were much lower. It wasn’t less than a B because he still gave an above average performance and deserved recognition for it, but not enough to earn a lot of money.

Tarasenko’s Total Grade

After his regular season performance, he received an A- and in his postseason, he received a B, and combining those, he earned a B+ for his overall grade for the season. That may seem low given his contributions, but they needed more from him when the playoffs came, and they didn’t get it. It wasn’t low because he found ways to produce, especially in the regular season.

“You have to want it and this team wants it, and I think the biggest ingredient, like I said, is a strong group of guys. If you don’t have a strong group of guys that want to play for each other and sacrifice, you know, for each other, there’s no chance of success. This team has it, and we’re playing two good teams in the playoffs, and yeah, as we see it all season long as we see it all season this team can play with every other team in the league and I think this is possible,” Tarasenko told the media later in that season-ending interview when asked about being on previous winning teams and how he felt the Wild had what it took.

Tarasenko chose to explore the free agency market, but at the time of publication, he had not found a team to settle with. It will be interesting to see if he circles back to the Wild or if they decide to move on. He had a good season with them, and with the right contract, they might bring him back if he decides to come back.