Wild vs Hurricanes: Game Preview and Line Combinations
Tonight, the Minnesota Wild (5-6-3) debut defenseman Daemon Hunt against the Carolina Hurricanes (8-4-0) in the first half of a back-to-back road series. Only one lineup change for the Wild: Hunt will join the third defensive pairing with Zeev Buium, playing his offside as the team has the last line change advantage.
David Jiricek is out of the lineup after going scoreless with a minus-3 rating in ten games. Hunt, 23, hasn’t appeared in an NHL game since October.
The Wild will maintain their fourth line without changes, which means Danila Yurov will be 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.
"Yurov played in one of the two games. He was the third-line center in New York and scored his first NHL goal in that game. He has been scratched in the last two games and the Wild won both."
Yurov’s extended healthy scratch streak raises questions about his future role on the team.
Mats Zuccarello is probable to return for Saturday’s game.
Projected Forward Lines
- Kirill Kaprizov - Marco Rossi - Marcus Johansson
- Vladimir Tarasenko - Joel Eriksson Ek - Matt Boldy
- Marcus Foligno - Ryan Hartman - Vinnie Hinostroza
Defensive Pairings
- Zeev Buium - Daemon Hunt (third pair)
Author’s summary: Daemon Hunt returns to the lineup while Yurov’s continued healthy scratches signal uncertainty about his role after a promising debut.