Max Pacioretty was placed on injured reserve retroactive to Jan. 18, and missed his second game when the Maple Leafs lost 5-1 to the Columbus Blue Jackets on Wednesday. Initially, he was listed as day to day, but coach Craig Berube said Wednesday that the timeline has changed.

It wasn’t too long ago that Kaprizov was viewed by many as the frontrunner for the Hart Trophy. The pace he was on is best illustrated by the fact the he still leads the Wild with 50 points (23 goals, 27 assists) despite missing so much time.

Minnesota Wild head coach John Hynes said he is "cautiously optimistic" that star forward Kirill Kaprizov and captain Jared Spurgeon will return to the lineup against the Utah Hockey Club on Thursday.

Kirill Kaprizov didn’t think he’d be out of commission for as long as he was, but the Wild winger believes he’s put the injury that sidelined him for the last month behind him. Kaprizov will return tonight against Utah Hockey Club at Xcel Energy Center after sitting out 12 games because of a lower-body injury.

The Minnesota Wild placed their top-scoring contributor on LTIR on Friday in Kirill Kaprizov because of an aggravated lower-body injury. Minnesota has been one of the NHL's biggest surprises in 2024-24, sitting in second place of the Central Division with 58 points.

The Minnesota Wild have activated star Kirill Kaprizov and captain Jared Spurgeon from injured reserve to put two integral players back in the lineup.

Kirill Kaprizov will return to the lineup for the Minnesota Wild against the Utah Hockey Club on Thursday (8 p.m. ET; HULU, ESPN+). The forward has missed the past 12 games because of a lower-body injury that was considered day to day.

The Minnesota Wild are getting a perfect storm of returns for Thursday evening against the Utah Hockey Club as both star forward Kirill Kaprizov and defenseman Jared Spurgeon have been activated from IR.

PAUL - The Minnesota Wild (28-15-4) are in action tonight against the Utah Hockey Club (20-19-7) for the third meeting between the two teams this year. The Wild are welcoming Kirill Kaprizov and Jared Spurgeon into the lineup tonight.

Vejmelka has been one of Utah’s biggest difference-makers this season. It was highlighted by a post-to-post save on Wild superstar Kirill Kaprizov, who doesn’t miss from that spot often. But when a goalie is hot, it takes a lot to get pucks past him.

The Wild have a hard time explaining why there’s been such a difference in home/road splits this season. They boast a .740 points percentage (tops in the NHL) on the road so far, and .500 at home (23rd in NHL). Their Corsi-For per 60 at home in five-on-five play is 54.65 (30th in the league), and 55.03 on the road (23rd).