Victories have been tougher to come by when the Wild return home from the road.
Same with reinforcements.
The Wild regrouped from their latest trip for practice Tuesday at Tria Rink in St. Paul without their injured players, and coach John Hynes didn’t think any of them would be back in action Wednesday vs. Edmonton at Xcel Energy Center in the nationally televised rematch of the Wild’s worst loss of the season.
“They’re all making good progress,” Hynes said. “I wouldn’t classify the injuries as day to day, but their readiness could be day to day.”
That 7-1 thrashing by the Oilers on Dec. 12, led by Leon Draisaitl’s four points, came against a shorthanded Wild lineup, but the team is even more decimated now.
Top-pairing defenders Brock Faber and Jonas Brodin haven’t suited up since both were hurt last week against St. Louis, with Faber getting elbowed high and Brodin blocking a shot with his right skate.
Captain Jared Spurgeon has resumed skating after the defenseman was slew-footed into the boards on New Year’s Eve by Nashville’s Zachary L’Heureux. But out the longest have been forwards Kirill Kaprizov (nine games) and Jakub Lauko (14).
When he stopped playing to address a lingering lower-body injury, Kaprizov was tied for fourth in NHL scoring with 50 points and was the first-half favorite for league MVP. Currently, he’s tied for 12th, while the likes of Colorado’s Nathan MacKinnon (points leader) and Draisaitl (first in goals) have bolstered their cases.