Though he ultimately wound up signing a one-year contract with the Wild, center Matt Cullen acknowledged to Dane Mizutani of the Pioneer Press that he originally thought he’d be retiring following his second straight Stanley Cup with Pittsburgh. However, he recovered from the wear and tear of last season much quicker than expected which motivated him to play for one more year. However, instead of re-signing in Pittsburgh where he could potentially have had a bigger role, he opted to sign with Minnesota for family reasons.
More from the Central:
- Still with the Wild, the team is hoping that winger Zach Parise will be able to return to the lineup for the home opener next weekend, notes Michael Russo of The Athletic (Twitter link). The veteran has been dealing with lingering back issues that caused him to miss the entire preseason. Also, Russo notes via Twitter that center Mikael Granlund is expected to miss tonight’s game versus Carolina. He was spotted limping yesterday although the team hasn’t specified what his injury is.
- Although Stars goaltender Ben Bishop left Friday’s game after being cut from a puck hitting his mask, head coach Ken Hitchcock told reporters, including Mike Heika of the Dallas Morning News, that although team doctors advised him to keep his starter out for the rest of the game, he is fine and should be in uniform tonight against St. Louis. He will take part in the morning skate although Kari Lehtonen is expected to get the start.
- After being a healthy scratch in the season opener, Colorado defenseman Nikita Zadorov will return to the lineup today against New Jersey, reports BSN Denver’s Adrian Dater. While some speculated that his benching had something to do with his contract discussions over the summer, head coach Jared Bednar had said Zadorov “had a lot of catching up to do” before being ready to step into the lineup.
- Predators winger Kevin Fiala won’t play tonight due to an upper-body injury, the team announced via Twitter. The team has listed him as day-to-day. Winger Pontus Aberg is expected to play in Fiala’s place which will mark his first appearance of the season after being a regular for a good chunk of their postseason run back in the spring.