Wild winger Charlie Coyle taken off LTIR, could play tonight

Injured winger Charlie Coyle will play for the Wild this week -- perhaps as early as tonight.

The Wild activated Coyle from Long Term Injured Reserve on Monday. The team said forward Zach Parise would go on LTIR after his back surgery Oct. 24.

"Don't know if it's tonight, tomorrow or the weekend," coach Bruce Boudreau said of Coyle. "But he's a big strong guy that is healing quite quickly."

Coyle has been sidelined since he suffered a right fibula fracture Oct.12 against the Blackhawks when he was hit with a shot from teammate Jared Spurgeon. He underwent surgery the next day and was expected to miss six to eight weeks. This Thursday marks six weeks since he was injured.

Before getting hurt, Coyle tallied two assists in three games and had rattled off a franchise-best 316 consecutive games.

"You always want to help, so just to be out there and be with the guys again, even practicing, it's a good feeling," Coyle said Monday after participating in the team's morning skate at Xcel Energy Center ahead of tonight's game against the Devils. "You kind of feel away from the team. You miss road trips and stuff like that, so I'm just really looking forward to being with the guys again and hopefully do it real soon."

Although the team didn't practice Sunday after playing Saturday night in Washington, Coyle got on the ice and Tuesday would be his first practice with the group. Getting his timing down and brushing up on his skills have been the focus.

"It's getting better every day," Coyle said. "I'm moving comfortable enough, not thinking about it too much, so I'm on the right track."

Projected lineup:

Jason Zucker-Mikko-Koivu-Mikael Granlund

Marcus Foligno-Eric Staal-Nino Niederreiter

Daniel Winnik-Joel Eriksson Ek-Luke Kunin

Tyler Ennis-Matt Cullen-Chris Stewart

Ryan Suter-Jared Spurgeon

Jonas Brodin-Matt Dumba

Gustav Olofsson-Kyle Quincey

Devan Dubnyk

Key numbers:

5: Consecutive games in which winger Nino Niederreiter has tallied a point.

133: Saves for Dubnyk over the past 137 shots he's faced.

0: Wins by the Wild against the Devils last season in two meetings.

.915: Devils goalie Cory Schneider's save percentage in 18 career games against the Wild.

4: Victories by the Wild this season on home ice against Eastern Conference opponents in five tries.

About the Devils:

This is the final stop on a four-game road trip for the Devils, who are 1-1-1 so far. They got off to an impressive start, going 9-2. Since then, New Jersey has been up-and-down but the team has been effective on the road at 6-2-2. This summer's No.1 pick, Nico Hischier, has 15 points in 19 games, while fellow rookie blue liner Will Butcher has also chipped in 15 points. "They've played really good right from the start," Boudreau said. "They've gotten contributions from players I don't know if they really thought would be big contributors this year, but they have been. And they feel good about themselves, and they should rightfully."