Author: Josh Erickson

The Wild are placing star winger Kirill Kaprizov on injured reserve retroactive to Dec. 23, Michael Russo of The Athletic reports. He’s eligible to come off at any time after missing the last three games with a minor lower-body injury but will still miss at least their next two games, Russo adds. The move creates roster space for a recall from AHL Iowa in place of captain Jared Spurgeon, who left last night’s win over the Predators with a right leg injury and did not return after he was on the receiving end of a slew-foot from Nashville rookie Zachary L’Heureux.

Minnesota hasn’t commented on how long Spurgeon might be out of the lineup, but he’ll miss a game or two at the very least – likely longer. The 35-year-old, who’s missed 72 games since the beginning of last season with back and hip issues that resulted in significant midseason surgery in 2023-24, did not put weight on his right leg as he was helped off the ice (video via Nick Kieser of 102.5 The Game). L’Heureux was assessed a match penalty on the play, although the league’s Department of Player Safety hasn’t yet issued any supplemental discipline.

Spurgeon is still capable of top-pairing minutes and has continued to put up stellar possession numbers in his twilight years, but his point totals haven’t recovered since he dropped from 0.62 per game in 2021-22 to 0.43 per game in 2023-24. Add in the emergence of sophomore Brock Faber as the Wild’s new No. 1 defender, and there have been fewer opportunities for Spurgeon to contribute offensively. He has four goals and 13 points in 32 games this season, working out to a 0.41 points-per-game pace that would stand as his lowest since 2015-16, not counting last year’s 16-game stint in the lineup.

Still, Spurgeon is an incredibly important on-ice and off-ice piece to a Wild team trying to get out of the mud. After a hot start to the season, they’re .500 since the beginning of December and have been hamstrung by injuries to star players, a trend that’s unfortunately continuing into the New Year. Despite the rough patch, they accumulated enough points early on to keep them with a 23-11-4 record, still good for second in the Central Division. The 2008 Islanders sixth-round pick has never suited up for anyone other than the Wild, and his 899 games played rank second in franchise history behind Mikko Koivu. No one’s done better than his career +120 rating for the Wild, either.

Minnesota is already without Spurgeon’s usual second-pairing partner, Jacob Middleton, for another couple of weeks while he nurses a hand injury. That means continued increased responsibility for depth defenders Declan Chisholm, Jonathon Merrill and Zach Bogosian, while the newly-acquired David Jiříček should be in line for a recall from AHL Iowa and some power-play time in Spurgeon’s absence. The 2022 sixth-overall pick has just two points and a -4 rating in nine AHL games since being acquired from the Blue Jackets in November.

Meanwhile, Kaprizov’s absence will last a few more days, although he could miss a bit more. Multiple reports indicate that he hasn’t skated since before the holiday break. The 27-year-old, who becomes eligible to sign what will likely be a fruitful extension in Minnesota next summer, had 50 points in 34 games before exiting the lineup and still leads the league with 20 even-strength goals. Somewhat miraculously, the Wild have gone 2-1-0 in his absence, with Matt Boldy filling in on the top line alongside Marco Rossi and Mats Zuccarello.

The Wild will have two open roster spots after placing Kaprizov on IR, but just $378K in cap space is not enough for an additional recall. They could swap a forward for a defense call-up or create additional financial flexibility by moving forward Jakub Lauko, who hasn’t played since Dec. 14 and remains week-to-week with a muscular issue, from standard IR to long-term injured reserve.

Image courtesy of USA Today Sports.