Wild GM Bill Guerin provided an update on a pair of injured Wild players, telling reporters, including Sarah McLellan of the Minneapolis Star-Tribune, that defenseman Jared Spurgeon and center Joel Eriksson Ek will miss a couple more weeks. Both had been listed as out indefinitely but it appears Minnesota won’t be without two of their top players for much longer. Spurgeon is dealing with a recurrence of a lower-body injury from two weeks ago while Eriksson Ek suffered an upper-body injury a week and a half ago.
Elsewhere in the Western Conference:
- While the Ducks were concerned that Cam Fowler’s upper-body injury in Wednesday’s game could be a long-term issue, it doesn’t appear as if that will be the case. Elliott Teaford of the Orange County Register relays that the blueliner traveled with the team for their two-game road trip that opens up tonight in Vegas which suggests that the veteran may not be out for long. Fowler is having a nice season with 17 points in 33 games while leading the team in ice time at just over 23 minutes a game.
- The Blackhawks received a bit of relief on the injury front yesterday as they announced (Twitter link) the activation of winger Jujhar Khaira and center Henrik Borgstrom from injured reserve. Khaira had missed the last three weeks after being stretchered off the ice in a game against Dallas while Borgstrom had been out just as long with a non-COVID illness.
- The Sharks had good news and bad news on the COVID front yesterday. The team announced that defenseman Mario Ferraro was placed into protocols while winger Jonathan Dahlen was activated. Under the new NHL guidelines, Ferraro could return after five days instead of the ten it has been for most of the season.