The Wild will turn to Gustavsson between the pipes for the 39th time this season when they travel to Denver on Friday. Gustavsson had a rare off night in his last outing, allowing three goals on 16 shots in a 3-2 loss to the Red Wings on Tuesday. The 26-year-old netminder owns a 22-12-3 record and a .914 SV% on the season. Gustavsson will have his hands full on Friday as the Wild enter action at +265 on the money line.
Bogosian was a late scratch on Friday, with the Wild not announcing his absence prior to warmups. Jon Merrill will draw into the lineup in his place.
Eriksson Ek recorded an assist in Saturday's 4-3 win over the Detroit Red Wings but has been placed on Injured Reserve and is considered week-to-week even though will not be eligible to return until, at earliest, March 2nd against the Boston Bruins. Already without Kirill Kaprizov (lower body), Minnesota can ill-afford to lose Eriksson Ek's offensive production. The 28-year-old Eriksson Ek has 24 points (9G / 15A) in 42 games this season.
Hartman was originally issued a 10-game suspension for roughing Ottawa's Tim Stutzle, which has since been reduced to eight games, making him eligible to return on March 4th. The 30-year-old Hartman has four games remaining in his suspension. He is averaging 14:45 time-on-ice and has 17 points (7G / 10A) in 48 games this season.
Gustavsson strung together several strong performance before the break for the 4Nations Face Off and will make his return to the crease on Tuesday against the Detroit Red Wings. The 26-year-old Gustavsson has had an up-and-down 2024-25 campaign, starting the season with an immaculate .926 SV% in his first 27 games (18-6-3) before posting a subpar .889 SV% in his next 10 (4-5-0).
Sturm missed the final eight games before the 4Nations break but was a full participant in Tuesday's practice and is expected to play Sunday vs. the Flames. Sturm, who has played primarily in a bottom-6 role, has 11 points (5G / 6A) in 41 games this season.
After being outscored 9-0 in two straight games (0-2-0), Minnesota responded with an impressive 2-1 win over the Carolina Hurricanes in one of Gustavsson's best performances lately, saving 37 of 38 shots (.974 SV%). The 26-year-old Gustavsson had struggled before his most recent victory, allowing four or more goals in six of eight contests (2-5-0), posting an ugly .873 SV%. He has a 2.61 GAA and .915 SV% in 36 appearances this season (21-11-3).
Hinostroza scored two points (0G / 2A) in 13 games with the Predators this season before being placed on waivers on Tuesday and being claimed by the Wild on Wednesday. The 30-year-old forward has 387 games of NHL experience but has primarily been an AHL player over the previous two seasons.
Minnesota has been outscored 9-0 in their previous two games and will turn to Gustavsson between the pipes on Thursday against the Carolina Hurricanes. Gustavsson struggled in his most recent outing, allowing six goals on 52 shots (.885 SV%) in a 6-0 loss to the Ottawa Senators. After a tremendous start to the 2024-25 campaign, posting an impressive .926 SV% in his first 27 games (18-6-3), Gustavsson has a troubling .873 SV% in his last eight appearances (2-5-0). Minnesota enters Thursday's contest as +165 home underdogs against a Carolina squad amid a two-game losing skid (0-2-0).
Hartman was recently suspended ten games for roughing Ottawa's Tim Stutzle. The appeal will be heard by commissioner Gary Bettman. If the decision is upheld or is altered to a suspension of six games or more, Hartman will also have the option to appeal to an independent arbitrator.
Hinostroza scored two points (0G / 2A) in 13 games with the Predators this season before being placed on waivers on Monday. The 30-year-old forward has 387 games of NHL experience but has primarily been an AHL player over the previous two seasons.
Jones has split time between Minnesota and Iowa (AHL) this season. He has been productive at the AHL level, scoring 14 points (5G / 9A) in 20 games but hasn't seen that success translate to the NHL, scoring zero points through 26 games this season.
Hinostroza will fill in for Luke Evangelista, who was a late scratch due to a lower-body injury. Hinostroza is yet to score a goal and has just one assist in 12 games this season.
Johansson has not played since January 15th, missing eight straight games due to an upper-body injury, but could return to the lineup on Wednesday against the Boston Bruins. The 34-year-old Johansson has 16 points (5G / 11A) in 44 games this season.
Brodin has not played since January 7th, missing twelve straight games with a lower-body injury. The 31-year-old Brodin is averaging 23:13 time-on-ice and has 16 points (4G / 12A) in 31 games this season. He had five points (1G / 4A) in his last four games before his injury.
Hinostroza will take a seat on Friday to make way for the return of Luke Evangelista (lower-body). Hinostroza has zero goals and one assist in 12 games this season.
Tarasenko did not play on Monday due to an illness but was back at practice on Wednesday. Tarasenko is averaging only 14:44 time-on-ice, his lowest total since his rookie season in 2012-13. He has 20 points (6G / 14A) in 48 games this season.
