The Wild’s offseason has gotten off to a rocky start, one that suddenly puts general manager Paul Fenton in a precarious position heading into a busy month that will be critical toward shaping the near and distant future of the Wild.



— Fenton’s first problem: Whatever your opinion is of Phil Kessel and whether or not it makes sense for the Wild to swap Jason Zucker for him in a trade package, it’s not a good sign that Kessel, at least as of now, is unwilling to waive his no-trade clause to come to the Wild and a market he’s so familiar with.



This has been reported by The Athletic’s Pierre LeBrun, Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman and confirmed by more than a half-dozen sources to The Athletic Minnesota and Pittsburgh.



According to several people close to Kessel, the veteran goal scorer has a couple of concerns about playing for the Wild, but the biggest by far is the fact he has examined the Wild’s recently blown-up...