Minnesota Wild star forward Kirill Kaprizov is expected to be out for three to four weeks with a lower-body injury The team announced on Thursday,
Kaprizov left Wednesday’s game against the Winnipeg Jets midway through the third period after defenseman Logan Stanley fell on top of him, the forward going down awkwardly. Stanley — all 6-foot-7 and 228 pounds of him — essentially crushed the much smaller Kaprizov, who struggled to get back on his feet and off the ice.
No penalty was awarded on the play. The Wild won 4–2, with Kaprizov not assisting on Ryan Hartman’s game-winning goal in the second frame.
when asked about his play postgame media availabilityWild head coach Dean Evanson kept his opinion of the sequence to himself.
“I have no idea on that,” Evason said through a palpable grin.
The 25-year-old leads Minnesota in scoring, with 39 goals and 35 assists in 65 games. He is coming off a career-high 47-goal, 108-point season in only his second year in the NHL. Kaprizov was awarded the Calder Trophy as the NHL rookie of the year in 2021 after putting up 51 points in 55 games.
The Wild will surely miss their superstar run for stretches of the season, currently tied for the top spot in the Central Division with the Jets with a 37-21-7 record and 81 points. The Colorado Avalanche are only five points behind second place in the division with three games in hand.
