Nino Niederreiter spent the 2016 NHL offseason strapped to the wing of an airplane, a daredevil feat that provided quite the thrill for the Minnesota Wild forward, and maybe quite the lump-in-throat for his coaches and the Wild brass.

But this offseason? Without a contract in tow, Niederreiter said he took a more grounded approach to the summer months.

"Especially with the contract situation I tried to stay on the ground and not do anything stupid, I would say," he joked Monday on a conference call with reporters.

With his NHL future in question, the 24-year-old thought it prudent to keep all his limbs intact. Now, with a new five-year, $26.5 million deal signed, Niederreiter said he's ready to take flight again, with high aspirations for what his future holds, and that means possibly more ice time for the Swiss-born winger who is coming off his first 25-goal season in Minnesota.

verry happy to be a part of the @mnwild for the next 🖐️ years! #stateofhockey 🏒 pic.twitter.com/e8suXJUpb5 — nino niederreiter (@thelnino22) July 31, 2017

"I feel like I was ready last year, and as a player, you're always ready to play and get more ice time," Niederreiter explained. "At the end of the day that's the coach's job, and I can only control what I can control. That's something which I learned early on in my career that too much thinking is not going to do anything good."

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Niederreiter was sixth among Wild forwards in five-on-five ice time in 2016-17, and eighth among Minnesota forwards in total time-on-ice per game. But Niederreiter also led Minnesota in even-strength points per-60 minutes, effectively navigating his shifts when his name was called.

"I have to do the best with the ice time I get and always prepare myself to get more minutes this year," Niederreiter said. "If that's the case then great, and if not, I'll do whatever I can to be great in the minutes again."

Based off production alone, Niederreiter continues to make the case that he's ready for a more prominent role. He's coming off his third straight season scoring 20 or more goals. His ice time though in Minnesota has plateaued: He actually saw a decrease in average time on ice this past season, down to 15:04 per-game from 15:33.

Niederreier was third on the Wild with 25 goals and fourth with 57 points. He's got his sights set on an even bigger offensive performance though, and knows there will be expectations that come with a long-term, big-dollar extension.

"My big goal is to get 30 (goals) in this league," he said. "For that I have to work hard, and help my game, and shoot more pucks to the net."

That kind of goal-scoring production could help to fulfill some of those expectations Niedereiter talked about.

"I'm not concerned about it at all," Niederreiter said. "I'm still very young and I know I have a lot of room to grow. I haven't had my best season yet.

"With the ice time and everything there's a lot of things I want to get better (at) and can get better. The more money you make the more pressure you will get from the outside perspective, but you have to perform on the ice and you have to do what you can do."

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But the underlying numbers also support Niederreiter getting a long-term committment from Minnesota. Niederreiter has been one of the better puck-possession drivers and best forwards in the entire NHL at suppressing scoring chances.

No matter whom he has skated with, Niederreiter's lines have controlled the puck at high rates. He finished with a Corsi-for percentage of 55.3, tops among Wild players last season.

Looking at his most-common linemates, Eric Staal and Charlie Coyle, each player's numbers took a nosedive when they were not on the ice with Niederreiter. Staal and Coyle saw their Corsi-for percentage dip six and seven points respectively without Niederreiter by their side, according to Stats.HockeyAnalysis.com, where Niederreiter's numbers actually improved without those players.

Over the past two seasons, Niederreiter has played at least 200 even-strength minutes with seven difference forwards, and in every case, his teammates have better numbers with him than without him. Niederreiter said it's one of this strengths.

"I've played with so many players ... I can play with anyone, and I'm an easy player to play with. I try not to think too much about who I play with," he explained. "That's the coaches' job and whatever they think I'm the right fit on what line that's going to be the case."

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No matter who his linemates are, Niederreiter said he's now focused on going out and continue his development arc.

"I've been fortunate to be with the Wild for quite a bit now, and obviously for each year I've been trying to get better and better," he said. "That's been showing the past four years. Now the goal is to get even better, and now getting the chance to stay there for the next five years it's just a matter of getting better, and working harder to be a better player and help the team win."