The Wild reassigned Wallstedt to AHL Iowa on Thursday.
Minnesota had only six healthy defensemen since Declan Chisholm is out with an illness, so they demoted Wallstedt, who was set to be the Wild's third goaltender Thursday, and they promoted Daemon Hunt as their seventh defenseman. Wallstedt is expected to see plenty of action at the NHL level this season, as the Wild are likely to share the net between Wallstedt, Filip Gustavsson and Marc-Andre Fleury, unless one of the threesome gets hot. Wallstedt should make approximately 25-30 appearances this year, as he is the Wild's goaltender of the future.
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Wild's Daemon Hunt: Recalled from Iowa
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Hunt was recalled from AHL Iowa ahead of Thursday's tilt versus Columbus.
The Wild were in need of a seventh defenseman, as Declan Chisholm is unable to play due to an illness. Jon Merrill is expected to claim Chisholm's role on the bottom pairing, while Hunt is expected to be an extra. The Wild sent goaltender Jesper Wallstedt to the AHL in a corresponding move.
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Wild's Filip Gustavsson: Starting versus Columbus
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Gustavsson will patrol the blue paint versus Columbus at home Thursday, Michael Russo of The Athletic reports.
Gustavsson gets the Opening Night assignment, and the Wild will begin the regular season with Gustavsson and Marc-Andre Fleury as their goaltending options after Jesper Wallstedt was sent down Thursday. Gustavsson was mediocre last season, as he had a 20-17-5 record, with a 3.06 GAA and an .899 save percentage. He faces lowly Columbus, who finished the 2023-24 campaign with 66 points, the worst in the Eastern Conference.
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Wild's Declan Chisholm: Unavailable Thursday
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Chisholm (illness) is not practicing and will not play versus Columbus on Thursday, Michael Russo of The Athletic reports.
Chisholm also missed practice Wednesday. Chisholm had three goals and six assists in 31 regular-season games, split between the Wild and Winnipeg in 2023-24, including two goals and three assists on the power play. Jon Merrill will play in place of Chisholm on the third defense pairing Thursday.
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Wild's Jacob Middleton: Available for Opening Night
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Middleton (bruise) will be available for Thursday's Opening Night matchup against the Blue Jackets, Jessi Pierce of NHL.com reports.
Middleton dealt with a bruise last in training camp, but he returned to practice Monday and will be able to suit up for the regular-season opener. The 28-year-old logged seven goals, 25 points, 161 blocked shots and 147 hits while averaging 19:49 of ice time over 80 appearances for Minnesota last year.
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Wild's Matt Boldy: Set to play Thursday
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Boldy (lower body) will be available for Minnesota's Opening Night matchup against Columbus on Thursday, per Jessi Pierce of NHL.com.
Boldy had 29 goals and 69 points across 75 games with the Wild in 2023-24, marking the second straight campaign in which he exceeded the 60-point milestone. He has a good chance of generating a similar amount of offensive production this season while serving in a top-six capacity and on the first power-play unit.
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Wild's Declan Chisholm: Absent from practice
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Chisholm wasn't on the ice for Wednesday's practice due to an illness, Michael Russo of The Athletic reports.
Chisholm appeared in 29 regular-season games for the Wild last year after they acquired him from Winnipeg. In those outings, the 24-year-old blueliner recorded three goals and five assists, including five power-play points. While he might struggle for regular minutes with the man advantage this year, in part due to the return of Jared Spurgeon, Chisholm should be a regular in the lineup. If he can't play Thursday against the Jackets, Jon Merrill figures to step into a third-pairing role.
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Wild's Jacob Middleton: Practices Monday
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Middleton (bruise) took part in Monday's practice session, John Shipley of The Pioneer Press reports.
Middleton looks to be on track to play in the season opener against the Jackets on Thursday. If the defenseman does suffer a setback in his recovery, Declan Chisholm would likely see the biggest uptick in ice time while Jon Merrill would move into a third-pairing role. Offensively, Middleton remains somewhat limited even after his career-best 2023-24 in which he posted seven goals and 18 helpers.
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Wild's Matt Boldy: Full participant in practice
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Boldy (lower body) was a full participant in practice Monday, the St. Paul Pioneer Press reports.
Boldy sustained a lower-body injury in late September and was labeled as week-to-week and missed preseason games. However, Wild owner Craig Leipold had said he was confident Boldy would be ready for the start of the regular season last week, the Pioneer Press also reported.
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Wild's Jesper Wallstedt: Lands contract extension
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Wallstedt signed a two-year, $4.4 million contract extension with the Wild on Monday, Michael Russo of The Athletic reports.
Wallstedt made his NHL debut last year, as he made three appearances for Minnesota and posted a 2-1-0 record, 3.02 GAA and .897 save percentage. He's one of the top goaltending prospects in professional hockey and could see increased work for the Wild this year, although he'll likely begin the season behind Filip Gustavsson and Marc-Andre Fleury. Wallstedt's deal will keep him under contract with the Wild through the 2026-27 season, as the agreement won't start until next season.
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Wild's Graeme Clarke: Dealing with injury
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Clarke is expected to miss about a month with a lower-body injury, Dylan Loucks of The Hockey News reports Saturday.
Clarke sustained his injury while blocking a shot during Minnesota's preseason game against the Stars on Sept. 29, and he'll begin the year on season-opening injured reserve. Once he's healthy, the 23-year-old will likely split time between the NHL and AHL clubs, which limits his fantasy value.
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Wild's Daemon Hunt: Put on waivers
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Hunt was placed on waivers by the Wild on Saturday.
In the 2023-24 regular season, Hunt recorded three goals and 29 points in 51 contests with AHL Iowa. He also had an assist in 12 NHL appearances with Minnesota. The 22-year-old is expected to start the campaign in the AHL if he clears waivers, but it wouldn't be surprising to see him summoned to Minnesota at some point during the 2024-25 campaign.
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Wild's Ben Jones: Goes on waivers
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Jones was placed on waivers by the Wild on Saturday.
Jones is expected to pass through waivers and be sent to AHL Iowa. The center had 21 goals, 22 assists and 59 PIM in 72 regular-season appearances with AHL Calgary in 2023-24.
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Wild's Joel Eriksson Ek: Supplies two helpers
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Eriksson Ek recorded two assists, three hits, three blocked shots and a plus-2 rating in Friday's 6-1 preseason win over the Blackhawks.
Eriksson Ek was a force in the preseason with three goals and five assists over three games. The 27-year-old center's position in the lineup isn't certain yet -- he'll be an every-game player, but he could play anywhere from the first line to the third line. The Swede improved his point total for the fifth straight year in 2023-24, producing 30 goals, 64 points, 267 shots on net and 169 hits over 77 appearances. If he can fend off Marco Rossi for the top-line gig between Kirill Kaprizov and Mats Zuccarello, Eriksson Ek would be a strong and consistent fantasy center.
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Wild's Marcus Johansson: Buries goal Friday
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Johansson scored a goal on four shots in Friday's 6-1 preseason win over the Blackhawks.
Johansson stretched the Wild's lead to 5-1 by finishing a give-and-go with Liam Ohgren in the third period. Johansson is set to reprise his role as a middle-six forward for the Wild this season. In 2023-24, he put up just 30 points over 78 outings, and he adds very little in the way of physical play, making him a tough sell as a depth option in fantasy.
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Wild's Brock Faber: Records pair of points
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Faber scored a goal on four shots and added an assist in Friday's 6-1 preseason win over the Blackhawks.
Faber set up a Mats Zuccarello power-play goal late in the second period before scoring at even strength just 13 seconds into the third. With five points (three on the power play) over three preseason outings, Faber looks ready to turn the page to his second full NHL campaign. The 22-year-old defenseman had 47 points, including 16 on the power play, over 82 games last year, and he could show significant growth in 2024-25.
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Wild's Jonas Brodin: Strikes from long range
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Brodin scored a goal on three shots, added an assist, went plus-3 and blocked two shots in Friday's 6-1 preseason win over the Blackhawks.
Brodin caught Petr Mrazek napping at 7:05 of the first period, scoring on a shot from the neutral zone. This was Brodin's lone preseason appearance, but that shouldn't be any trouble for the 31-year-old blueliner. He's expected to serve in a shutdown role alongside Brock Faber on the top pairing. Brodin had 27 points, 142 blocked shots and a plus-22 rating in 62 appearances last season, and his best chance of generating more offense this year will come from staying healthy.
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Wild's Marco Rossi: Pair of points in win
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Rossi scored a goal on four shots and added an assist in Friday's 6-1 preseason win over the Blackhawks.
Rossi began the game as the first-line center, but Joel Eriksson Ek also saw time in that role. However, it was on the power play where Rossi made his impact. He scored the opening goal late in a double-minor to Patrick Maroon in the first period, and he then helped out on a Mats Zuccarello tally late in the second. Regardless of which line he's on, Rossi is poised to be a major contributor for the Wild this year after generating 40 points in 82 regular-season appearances as a rookie last season.
