Almost getting shut out wasn’t the best first impression by the Wild as they began playing without Mats Zuccarello for the foreseeable future, but there’s reason to believe their coping skills will improve.
Their offense didn’t stay lukewarm Saturday night in the 2-1 loss to Dallas, instead heating up in the third period after a tepid start to incite a nail-biting finish at Xcel Energy Center thanks to Kirill Kaprizov’s team-leading 11th goal.
“I feel like we have, like, more energy and play a little bit faster and create more chances,” Kaprizov said.
Matt Boldy also had a hand in the play, the third goal he and Kaprizov have combined on since they began taking regular shifts together Nov. 10 at Chicago during a 2-1 overtime loss.
But what could really buoy the Wild in Zuccarello’s absence is reuniting Kaprizov and Boldy with Joel Eriksson Ek once Eriksson Ek heals, a possibility that could be imminent because his lower-body injury is progressing.
“Ekky feels a lot better,” coach John Hynes said.
Zuccarello and Eriksson Ek were injured last Thursday in the 3-0 victory over Montreal, but each is facing a much different timeline for a return.
While Zuccarello is anticipated to require three to four weeks to recover after surgery on a lower-body injury he suffered when he appeared to get hit by a Brock Faber shot in the midsection, Eriksson Ek is considered day-to-day.