Minnesota Wild sign Adam Gilmour to Entry Level Contract

The Minnesota Wild have signed a forward out of Boston College to an Entry-Level Contract!

Just maybe not the one you'd have thought.

While Boston College teammate and fellow Wild prospect Alex Tuch could sign in the coming days (he's currently mulling over his options), it was Adam Gilmour who inked a deal with Minnesota today, mere days after he helped the Eagles get to the NCAA's Frozen Four.

Gilmour, a center, was drafted in Round 4 of the 2012 NHL Draft, taken out of prep school in Massachusetts. Seen as a bit of a project upon his drafting, possessing an NHL frame, but without all of his skills development. Dan Chan (formerly of Hockey Wilderness) had this scouting report on him when he was drafted.

Plays a simple, two-way game. He does everything you want as a forward well. He battles hard, drives to the net, forechecks well, and plays with energy. He doesn't have the most dynamic hands or deadly shot, but at times does show flashes of stick skills. Although he relies on an effective game, he does sometimes use those skills of his, but he'd rather just keep it simple.

Gilmour's freshman year at Boston College was a solid one as a role player, but he was given more offensive responsibility in his sophomore season when he was paired with Tuch. Tuch and Gilmour finished 1st and 2nd on the team in scoring, respectively, with Gilmour improving from 20 points in his freshman year to 27.

Gilmour went on to only score 26 points for the Eagles this season, but that was hardly a step back for Gilmour. First of all, his role had changed. An influx in talented freshmen like Colin White and Miles Wood bumped Tuch and Gilmour down to BC's second line. Making up for the lost power play time, Gilmour became more effective at even strength, with his ES goals rising from 4 in his sophomore season to 11 this past year. He also became a more aggressive shooter, going from 70 shots on goal in 14-15 to 92 in 15-16.

Like Nashville's Jimmy Vesey (or Mike Reilly in Columbus last year), Gilmour had the option to not sign with Minnesota and become a free agent, signing with any other team in the league. Instead, he joins Mario Lucia as Wild prospects who chose to forgo free agency to sign with the Wild. When you combine those two with Erik Haula choosing to pass up free agency in order to sign with Minnesota three years ago, and you can see that acquiring and retaining their talent from the NCAA is a huge organizational strength for Chuck Fletcher's front office.

As for what's in store for Gilmour? If he can stick at center (he's shifted between the pivot and right wing), it wouldn't be shocking to see Gilmour get a cup of coffee in the next year or so, particularly if injuries occur. But his most likely future is to start in Iowa and be part of a movement to really bolster Minnesota's AHL depth. Gilmour is likely going to be a bottom-six type player, and while he could provide some secondary scoring, his value is likely going to lie in his defense.

Gilmour was the final cut from the 2015 Hockey Wilderness Top-25 Under-25, but he made the 2014 list, and you can see his profile here.

As for more recent scouting reports, here are some opinions from our SB Nation sister sites:

Gilmour has shown steady progression in his game over the course of his college career. The Eagles have kept Gilmour alongside fellow Wild prospect Alex Tuch and Capitals pick Zach Sanford most of the year, allowing that line to use their rare combination of size and skill to overpower opponents. Gilmour isn't a huge drive of offense, but makes for an extremely valuable complimentary player that helps his linemates be more effective.- Chris Dilks and Jeff Cox, SBN College Hockey

[Gilmour] had 26 points in 41 games this season [for BC] and was a steady contributor despite not necessarily jumping out as a superstar. That said, he has an NHL frame at 6'3" and likely projects to be a solid bottom-6 forward for a good NHL team.- BC Interruption

Gilmour is a big power forward whose inconsistency frustrated many close to the BC program. When he played with a purpose and used his size and physical tools to his advantage, he was an intimidating force in the offensive zone. But all too often, he seemed to just be in autopilot, lacking that extra gear.- Jeff Cox, SBN College Hockey