Goligoski has retired from hockey, Joe Smith of The Athletic reports Thursday.
Goligoski played 17 seasons in the NHL, finding the back of the net 87 times while adding 388 assists in 1,078 games for Pittsburgh, Dallas, Arizona and Minnesota. The 39-year-old defenseman played his last three seasons with the Wild, picking up 10 assists in 36 regular-season games in 2023-24.
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Wild's Alex Goligoski: Gets on scoresheet with assist
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Goligoski posted an assist and blocked four shots in Saturday's 6-2 win over the Sharks.
Goligoski has been in the lineup for four of the Wild's last six games after sitting out all but one game in February and March combined. The 38-year-old defenseman is up to 10 helpers, 30 shots on net, 37 blocked shots, 25 hits and a minus-8 rating through 34 appearances this season. Goligoski's limited role gives him virtually no fantasy appeal this late in the campaign.
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Wild's Alex Goligoski: Chips in with helper
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Goligoski posted an assist and two shots on goal in Friday's 4-3 overtime loss to the Flyers.
Goligoski has two helpers over his last four games. The 38-year-old hasn't always had steady playing time this season, but he's gotten some recently with Jonas Brodin (upper body) and Jared Spurgeon (lower body) sidelined. Goligoski is at seven assists, 19 shots on net, 17 hits, 25 blocked shots and a minus-1 rating through 23 appearances, which is already stronger production than the six points he managed in 46 outings a year ago.
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Wild's Alex Goligoski: Picks up assist Thursday
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Goligoski generated an assist against the Lightning on Thursday.
Goligoski has yet to score a goal this season while chipping in six helpers over 20 games. With the veteran blueliner averaging less than a shot per game (.85), he is unlikely to break out of his goal drought any time soon, especially considering he is averaging the lowest ice time of his career (15:13).
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Wild's Alex Goligoski: Activated from LTIR
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The Wild activated Goligoski (lower body) from long-term injured reserve Friday.
Goligoski played in the opening two games of the season before he suffered the injury at practice Oct. 16. Goligoski's activation required the Wild to demote Vinni Lettieri and Dakota Mermis to the minors in order to get under the salary cap. Goligoski had two goals and four assists in 46 games last season with the Wild.
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Wild's Alex Goligoski: Close to returning
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According to Michael Russo of The Athletic, Goligoski (lower body) "is a full go at this point" and close to being activated off long-term injured reserve.
The Wild will likely have to make a roster move or two in order to fit Goligoski's $2 million cap hit once the veteran defenseman is cleared to rejoin the lineup. Goligoski appeared in the first two games of the campaign before suffering a lower-body injury, going scoreless while posting a minus-3 rating over that span. He only collected six points through 46 contests last campaign, so fantasy managers shouldn't expect much from Goligoski in terms of offensive production upon his return.
Goligoski (lower body) was placed on the long-term injured reserve list Wednesday, Jessi Pierce of NHL.com reports.
Now that he's on LTIR, Goligoski won't be eligible to be activated until Nov. 9 versus the Rangers at the earliest. Goligoski has no points, a minus-3 rating, two hits and five blocks in two contests with the Wild in 2023-24.
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Wild's Alex Goligoski: Won't play Tuesday
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Goligoski (lower body) won't be available to play Tuesday against Montreal, Michael Russo of The Athletic reports.
Per Russo, the absences of Goligoski, Jared Spurgeon (upper body) and Matthew Boldy (upper body) will result in the Wild playing with just 11 forwards and six defensemen in Tuesday's contest. Goligoski, who was injured during Monday's practice, has been credited with one shot on goal, five blocked shots and two hits in two games this season.
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Wild's Alex Goligoski: One of each Wednesday
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Goligoski scored a goal, dished an assist, blocked four shots and added two PIM in Wednesday's 8-5 win over the Blues.
Goligoski scored on a breakaway in the second period and set up Ryan Reaves' tally in the third. This outing snapped a 12-game point drought for Goligoski, who has seen more defensive usage in a bottom-four role lately. The 37-year-old blueliner has just six points with 57 shots on net, 53 blocked shots and a minus-7 rating through 36 contests.
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Wild's Alex Goligoski: Being used sparingly
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Goligoski has been a healthy scratch for Minnesota's last three games.
Goligoski has been used in just 19 of Minnesota's 48 games this season despite staying healthy. When he has been in the lineup in 2022-23, the 37-year-old's contributed a goal, three points, 19 hits and 26 blocks while averaging 17:02 of ice time. Unless an injury to a defenseman forces Minnesota to alter its plans, Goligoski is unlikely to see his role significantly grow as the campaign progresses.
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Wild's Alex Goligoski: Nets OT winner
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Goligoski scored a goal on two shots in Saturday's 2-1 overtime win over the Hurricanes.
Goligoski played the hero in this one with his first overtime goal since 2017. He struck 1:12 into the extra session on a feed from Sam Steel. Prior to Saturday's game, Goligoski was honored for reaching 1,000 NHL contests, a mark he achieved Oct. 20 versus the Canucks. He's only played in two of the 14 games since, so he's far from a regular in the lineup at 37 years old. The defenseman has contributed eight shots on net, four blocked shots, two hits and a minus-5 rating through six appearances this season, and his goal was his first point of the year.
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Wild's Alex Goligoski: Will play Saturday
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Goligoski is practicing on the third pairing Friday, according to Joe Smith of The Athletic.
Goligoski has been a healthy scratch in each of his last six games and 12 of his last 13 contests and coach Dean Evason said that he would return to the lineup Saturday. The veteran defenseman was practicing on the third unit with Calen Addison. Goligoski is pointless in five games this season.
Goligoski hasn't gotten much work this season and has a minus-5 rating without a point through four games.
Goligoski was a healthy scratch for Saturday's 4-3 overtime loss against Boston, but even before that he was used sparingly. He logged 18:31 of ice time in his Oct. 13 season debut followed by an average of just 12:58 over his next three games. This slow start comes after his steep decline from an average of 23:00 TOI in 2020-21 to 18:56 last season. He's 37 years old, so his fall is understandable and a comeback might not be in the cards.
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Wild's Alex Goligoski: Playing alongside Spurgeon
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Goligoski has served on a pairing with Jared Spurgeon throughout training camp, reports Michael Russo of The Athletic.
That arrangement continued during Thursday's preseason game against Chicago. Goligoski logged 22:30 and registered his second assist of the preseason. Last season, he saw his average ice time dip below 20 minutes for the first time since 2008-09. That's understandable given that he was 36 years old -- now 37 -- at the time, but he still appears to have something left in the tank.
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Wild's Alex Goligoski: Healthy scratch Friday
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Goligoski will not be in Friday's lineup against Seattle, Michael Russo of The Athletic reports.
Goligoski is averaging 18:48 of ice time with 30 points through 69 games this season. The 36-year-old will get a night off as the Wild prepare for the postseason. Jordie Benn will take his place in the lineup and Goligoski could return as early as Sunday against Nashville.
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Wild's Alex Goligoski: Provides helper
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Goligoski notched an assist, four blocked shots, two hits and a plus-2 rating in Sunday's 5-1 win over the Capitals.
Goligoski has had an eventful week, sitting out three games as a scratch and signing a two-year contract extension. He's played in the last two contests with Jon Merrill (upper body) on the shelf, and Goligoski was able to snap a five-game point drought with his helper Sunday. For the season, Goligoski is at 29 points, 68 shots on net, 79 blocked shots, 48 hits and a plus-37 rating in a bottom-four role through 60 appearances.
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Wild's Alex Goligoski: Signs contract extension
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Goligoski agreed to terms on a two-year, $4 million contract extension with the Wild on Wednesday.
The veteran defenseman has been a stabilizing force on the Wild blue line this season, registering a plus-34 rating in 58 games. Goligoski has also added two goals and 28 points this year.
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Wild's Alex Goligoski: Scratched again Tuesday
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Goligoski will once again be a healthy scratch heading into Tuesday's matchup with the Flyers, Jessi Pierce of NHL.com reports.
Goligoski's place in the lineup was always going to be tenuous once the Wild brought in Jacob Middleton at the deadline and now the 36-year-old veteran finds himself watching from the press box for a second straight contest. While Goligoski should push Dmitry Kulikov and Jon Merrill for a spot on the blue line, neither his eventual return or absence should impact the majority of fantasy players given his limited offensive upside.
