The Minnesota Wild will be without Marcus Johansson for the rest of the playoffs after he broke his arm in last night’s loss. Head coach Dean Evason told reporters including Sarah McLellan of the Star-Tribune about the injury today after Johansson crashed into the net and was forced from the game.
Though he hadn’t been much of a scoring threat this season, Johansson was still playing a substantial role for the Wild, averaging nearly 17 minutes through the first two games of the series against the Vegas Golden Knights. This year the 30-year-old forward had six goals and 14 points in 36 games and contributed on both the powerplay and penalty kill.
Immediately, the fact that Zach Parise has been a scratch through the first part of the series comes to mind. The veteran forward has been such a big part of the Wild for so long that it’s hard to see him pushed to the sidelines, but Evason wouldn’t commit to whether or not he will come in for Johansson. The team also does have the interesting option of someone like Matthew Boldy, the 20-year-old phenom who scored 18 points in 14 AHL games after signing out of Boston College. Boldy has exactly zero NHL experience, but could potentially give the Wild a shot in the arm as they try to even the series on Saturday night.
Shot in the arm? Pun intended?
@Gavin – You *almost* got away with it… ;) …and with top cheddar…
wink
As much as I would like to see Boldy in the next game, it should be Parise. No questions asked. Possible last game at Excel this season, possible last game for Parise in a Wild sweater. The Wild are not going anywhere far this year, so just let Parise show what he has left in the tank to try and attract some type of value in a trade.
Why not both? Add phenom talent and experience. Drop someone on line 4 and slide the lines around. Just my opinion.