Minnesota Wild News

Tarasenko left last Thursday’s game vs. Los Angels with an injury that we now know will require surgery. This is a devastating blow for the defending Stanley Cup Champions. Tarasenko has missed just 15 games over the last five years but will be out until at least late-March, effectively ending his 2019-20 campaign. The in-house replacement for Tarasenko appears to be Robert Thomas for now but with Tarasenko heading to LTIR, don’t be surprised if the Blues make a move for a winger.

Eriksson Ek has missed the last three games with a lower-body issue but will play Saturday vs. the Kings. Eriksson Ek has just one assist in seven games this season.

Tarasenko will not travel on the Blues two-game weekend road-trip because of an upper-body injury that he suffered in the first period of Thursday’s win. Oskar Sundqvist and Robert Thomas moved up in Tarasenko’s spot, so look for one of them to play an expanded role on Saturday.

Eriksson Ek was set to miss his second straight game with a lower-body injury and his move to IR opened up a roster spot for Mats Zuccarello to be activated.

Zuccarello has missed the last four games with a lower-body injury but will play Tuesday vs. the Oilers. Zuccarello had no points and a minus-6 rating in his first four games with the Wild. He will skate on the second-line with Eric Staal and Jordan Greenway on Tuesday.

Trenin made his NHL debut on Saturday but was returned to Milwaukee on Sunday, suggesting that one or both of Rocco Grimaldi and Filip Forsberg will be back in the lineup on Tuesday. Trenin has four goals and one assist in three AHL games this season.

The Wild lost Joel Eriksson Ek for at least a week, so they moved Zuccarello to IR to open up a roster spot to recall Gabriel Dumont from Iowa (AHL). There has been no indication when the Wild expect to have Zuccarello back.

Eriksson Ek was spotted leaving the arena in a walking boot on Thursday but is only expected to miss at least one week. The Wild recalled Gabriel Dumont from Iowa (AHL) to replace Eriksson Ek in the lineup.

Trenin was a second-round pick of the Predators in 2015 and he has made it to the NHL after 126 AHL games. Trenin has had a hot start to the season, scoring four goals with one assist in three games with Milwaukee.

Zuccarello was originally expected to accompany the team on their road-trip but was instead held back in Minnesota and will not play until they return home on Sunday at the earliest. Victor Rask Ryan Donato is the most likely candidate to draw back into the lineup and replace the veteran winger.

Zuccarello missed Sunday’s practice with “bumps and bruises” and may not play Monday against the Senators. The Wild shuffled their lines without Zuccarello and recalled Gerry Mayhew from Iowa (AHL).

Middleton was set to start the season in the AHL but an injury to Dalton Prout has opened up a roster spot for Middleton to be recalled. He had one assist in three NHL games last season and added 19 points (5G / 14A) in 57 AHL contests.

Pitlick was questionable for the opener due to a wrist injury that he suffered in the preseason. With Pitlick being cleared, Joel Farabee has been sent back to the AHL.

Pitlick recently joined Flyers practice in a non-contact capacity but his status for the season opener remains cloudy. If Pitlick is out, look for Carsen Twarnyski to make the team and start the year on the Flyers fourth-line.

Spurgeon’s $7.575M AAV cap-hit makes him the highest paid player in Minnesota Wild history (by AAV). Spurgeon is coming off of a career-year, posting 14 goals and 29 assists (43 points) in 82 games. In 2020 he will be heavily featured in the Minnesota top-4 and his career 7.2 SH% makes him a threat for for double-digit goals every year.

Since being picked No.20 in 2015, Eriksson Ek has not topped 16 points in his first two NHL seasons. However, once Mikko Koivu went down last year, Eriksson Ek had five goals and two assists in 22 games while averaging 15:23 TOI/gm—averaged 12:22 prior. Koivu will likely be eased back into action early in the season, giving Eriksson Ek an opportunity to get off to a hot start in 2020.

After finishing his Junior season at Clarkson University, Sturm turned pro and appeared in two NHL games with the Wild at the end of 2019. The 24-year-old led Clarkson with 45 points (14G / 31A) in 39 games. Sturm has NHL-size (6-foot-3, 207 lbs.) but with Eric Staal, Mikko Koivu, Joel Eriksson Ek and Victor Rask ahead of him on the depth chart, he is likely headed for the AHL to start the year.

Petersen spent the majority of last season in the AHL, where he went 13-22-1 with a 4.02 GAA and .896 SV% in 38 games. The 24-year-old actually posted much more impressive numbers with the Kings, where he was 5-4-1 with a 2.61 GAA and.924 SV%. Petersen will likely be Ontario’s (AHL) No.1 netminder to start 2020.

Aube-Kubel had 16 goals and 14 assists (30 points) in 54 AHL games and appeared in the first nine NHL games of his career with Philadelphia in 2019. The 23-year-old doesn’t have great size but can play a solid two-way game with some offensive flair for the bottom-6. He will likely start 2020 in the AHL but could be one of the Flyers first call-ups.