ST. LOUIS PARK, Minn. — Minnesota Wild captain Jared Spurgeon admitted before the season that the back and hip surgeries that ended his 2023-24 season would require daily maintenance throughout 2024-25, and sure enough, on Thursday general manager and team president Bill Guerin confirmed that the reason Spurgeon has missed the past two games was indeed related to last season’s injuries.
This, Guerin said, is “part of the healing process.”
In other words, Guerin is insinuating that Spurgeon is experiencing soreness and stiffness but that doctors have examined him and didn’t find a recurrence or setback.
“You’re always concerned when players have injuries, when players have surgeries, and, you know what, sometimes you just have to be patient,” Guerin said. “Like it takes time for their body to heal. And a lot of the times — hey, look, I’m no doctor, but sometimes it just takes a long time to heal. It might not be the actual injury. It’s just part of the process.”
Spurgeon won’t travel with the Wild to Columbus on Friday or the Florida-Tampa Bay portion of the team’s upcoming road trip. He’ll stay off the ice for a couple of days, let things calm down and then the plan is for him to start skating again. Guerin said once the team sees how Spurgeon is doing, it will be determined if he can join the Wild when they wrap up their seven-game trip Oct. 26 and 29 in Philadelphia and Pittsburgh.
On Thursday, after playing the first two games of their current trip in Winnipeg and St. Louis, the Wild made a pit stop back in Minnesota and practiced outdoors in front of a packed house at St. Louis Park Rec Center.
The good news?
Joel Eriksson Ek, wearing a full bubble shield, practiced for the first time since missing the past two games. On Monday, Eriksson Ek underwent surgery to have his broken nose reset.
“Just talking to him and seeing it, he feels a lot better,” coach John Hynes said. “I saw the pictures of his nose right after the surgery. It didn’t look good. And then he walked in today and I was like, ‘Wow.’ It looked like he got beat up a little bit but not jumped on.”
Joel Eriksson Ek wears a bubble shield at practice on Thursday. (Michael Russo / The Athletic)
Marcus Johansson, who like Eriksson Ek and Spurgeon missed Tuesday’s game against the Blues with a lower-body injury, also practiced. Defenseman Jonas Brodin did not, for maintenance reasons. Hynes said he expects Eriksson Ek, Johansson and Brodin to practice Friday and play Saturday.
As for Spurgeon, who played only 16 games last season because of the hip and back injuries and an earlier shoulder injury, Guerin said, “We’ll know more as we go along. … We really have to take it day by day, week by week.”
“I’ve talked to Spurge. I try to talk to all the players because … they want to heal quickly. They want to get back. They don’t like being out and away from the team and not playing and contributing. So then frustration can build. … They put pressure on themselves. But they’ve got to know that they’re not under any pressure from us. When they’re injured, we just want them to get better.”
In other words, Guerin wants Spurgeon to be patient so this doesn’t cause a setback or make this a season-long recurrence. Spurgeon did attend Thursday’s practice.
Hynes told Spurgeon that he sees this as good news — that sometimes after surgery, the first initial “major activity” causes discomfort.
“Today’s news is really good, and talking with Spurge, he looks good and sounds good,” Hynes said. “He felt pretty good through the training camp, which we weren’t sure if this would happen in training camp or if he got through training camp it might happen where it is now. But fortunately, there’s no major issues there. It’s just part of that process of getting his body back to being able to do what these guys have to do every day.”
The Wild are expected to recall defenseman Daemon Hunt for the road trip. He made his season debut in St. Louis but was sent back to AHL Iowa on Wednesday so the Wild could accrue cap space for a few days until he’s needed as an extra defenseman.
“I like where he’s at in his game,” Hynes said of the 22-year-old’s 13th NHL game. “He’s going to have some (tough moments) as a young player — as every guy did (against the Blues), there’s good moments and bad moments. He looks like an NHL player. And what I mean by that is, I (like his) size, the pace, the competitiveness, his ability to move the puck.
“I think his confidence level out there is pretty high.”
With Spurgeon out, Hynes will have to use a left-shot defenseman on the right side, whether that’s Declan Chisholm, Jon Merrill or Hunt.
Hynes was asked if the Wild will have to look for a right-shot defenseman via trade if this becomes a season-long issue. Right-shot defense prospect David Spacek doesn’t look NHL-ready.
“A lot of it could depend on Spurge,” Hynes said. “In saying that, my understanding medically, from our guys, is that what he’s going through now is probably going to happen at some point. It’s just happening right now. But I think once he gets up and running again, it should be OK.
“If it winds up where it happens later in the season and he’s out, yeah, the right side is a little bit, you know, something that we can talk about. But right now it’s not a focus.”
Last season, the Wild got inundated by injuries early and things unraveled quickly. This season, the Wild are 2-0-2, haven’t trailed for a second and are coming off a 4-1 short-handed win in St. Louis.
“I’m really encouraged by it,” Guerin said. “This is why training camp was hard. … This is the first little bit of adversity that we’re having. And so far the guys have really stepped up and played really well. This is part of pro sports. We have to be able to play through this stuff.
“But I also think a lot of our young players are a year older. They’re more confident. They’re more assertive in their games. So that’s a big part of it, too. And (goalie Filip Gustavsson) has been fantastic.”
After Monday’s surgery, Eriksson Ek wasn’t sure if he’d be back by Thursday’s practice. He said his swollen and sore face wasn’t pretty.
But he looked and felt good after Thursday’s practice.
Eriksson Ek looks and feels good and is in great spirits after surgery Monday. Says there was too much blood from nose and hard to breathe when he tried to wear bubble first shift of third period vs. Seattle. Now it’s fine. Thinks he’ll wear bubble for a couple weeks. pic.twitter.com/YwU6GpRuMN
— Michael Russo (@RussoHockey) October 17, 2024
Now it’s about trying to get used to playing with a bubble. After breaking his nose in the second period Saturday against Seattle on an elbow from Kraken defenseman Adam Larsson, he played one shift in the third period but had to leave for good. He said blood was dripping out of his nose into the bubble and he was having trouble breathing.
Now, he said, playing with a bubble is fine and he’ll probably have to wear it for a few weeks.
Will this stop his persistent goalmouth scrums?
“Ah, we’ll see,” Eriksson Ek said. “Once you get out there and it’s competitive, that side usually takes over.”
Luckily for him, his mom, Anna, wasn’t watching the game live from her home in Karlstad, Sweden.
“She’s better now, I think,” Eriksson Ek said. “She was a little bit worried when I first called her, but I think she’s kind of used to it. Dad (Clas) used to play, so I think mom is pretty used to it.”
GO DEEPER
Wild hope captain Jared Spurgeon’s absence doesn’t signal repeat of last season
(Top photo of Jared Spurgeon: Steph Chambers / Getty Images)
