Wild vs Hurricanes: Game Preview and Line Combinations
The Minnesota Wild (5-6-3) will face the Carolina Hurricanes (8-4-0) on the road tonight in the first game of a back-to-back series. There is only one change to the Wild’s lineup:
- Rookie defenseman Daemon Hunt will make his season debut, paired on the third defensive line with Zeev Buium. Hunt, 23, has not played an NHL game since October and will be playing on his offside. David Jiricek, who has zero points in ten games and a -3 rating, will be scratched.
- The Wild will retain their fourth line intact, leaving Danila Yurov as a healthy scratch for the third straight game.
The line of Ben Jones, Yakov Trenin, and Tyler Pitlick has played three games together, with the Wild winning all three. Interestingly, Yurov scored his first NHL goal while centering the third line in one of those games but has been scratched for the last two victories.
“Yurov being scratched for three consecutive games will be something to keep an eye on.”
Mats Zuccarello is expected to return for Saturday’s game.
Wild Projected Line Combinations
- Kirill Kaprizov – Marco Rossi – Marcus Johansson
- Vladimir Tarasenko – Joel Eriksson Ek – Matt Boldy
- Marcus Foligno – Ryan Hartman – Vinnie Hinostroza
Defense Pairings
- Third Pair: Daemon Hunt – Zeev Buium
Author’s summary: Minnesota's lineup adjustment highlights Hunt’s debut and Yurov’s extended scratch, signaling key developments as the Wild seek to maintain their winning momentum on the road.