Insider reporting that a UFA winger is on the cusp of signing a new deal in Minnesota

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Mike Armenti
September 16, 2023 (2:26 PM)

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Training camps begin this weekend, starting with player physicals, before moving towards on-ice sessions this coming week. We have seen, in recent weeks, a number of teams ink players to professional tryout agreements as they look to finalize their training camp rosters and now it appears as though we'll have a late addition to the Minnesota Wild's training camp roster, whether it be on a PTO or a 1-year contract.

On Saturday, NHL insider Elliotte Friedman had reported on Twitter that the Wild are working on a contract with veteran grinder Jujhar Khaira.

Khaira, 29, was drafted by the Edmonton Oilers in the 3rd round back in 2012, and spent the first 6 seasons of his NHL career with the Oilers before becoming an unrestricted free agent in the summer of 2021. After some deliberation, Khaira opted to sign a 2-year deal in Chicago worth just under $1M per season in hopes of receiving some playing time and hopefully making a strong case for himself to receive a longer-term deal for more money this summer. Unfortunately, it didn't work out that way.

Last season, Khaira suffered a season ending back injury, which forced him to be stretchered off the ice. He would later undergo surgery to repair the damage. Originally, the injury was thought to be a possible career-ender, but the surgery was a success and will, thankfully, allow Khaira to continue his NHL career.

The Surrey, BC native is a gritty, hard-nosed winger with a lot to prove after several rough seasons, during which his health has become a bit of a concern. Khaira has never played a full NHL season during his 8-year career. He has appeared in 336 regular season NHL games, amassing 33 goals and 47 assists for a total of 80 points, also racking up 229 penalty minutes over that span. Khaira also has 1 goal in 8 career playoff games.