Kirill Kaprizov Injury Return Appears Imminent for Wild… but When?

The Minnesota Wild are back on the ice tonight vs the Winnipeg Jets, one of the biggest games of the season. Superstar Kirill Kaprizov missed Saturday’s game vs the Calgary Flames, after a knee-to-knee collision vs the Edmonton Oilers, earlier in the week.

When Kirill was scratched from the lineup in Calgary, there was some concern within the Wild organization that Kaprizov’s injury could be more serious than originally diagnosed, when he was allowed to get back on the ice a couple of nights earlier for 1.5 more periods vs Edmonton, where he totalled 24 shifts and over 22 minutes of ice time.

Minnesota Wild could get Kirill Kaprizov back vs Jets

Thankfully, on Sunday, Michael Russo (The Athletic) reported that Kirill Kaprizov’s injury is minor and set his status as “day-to-day”, after further evaluation and testing back in St. Paul came back without any structural damage to the Wild superstar’s injured knee.

Monday morning, Kirill’s outlook got even more optimistic, when he was spotted on the ice taking part in line rushes during Minnesota’s pregame skate. When asked if that meant we will see Kaprizov tonight in a huge matchup between Western Conference powers, Wild head coach John Hynes wouldn’t give an answer.

#mnwild lines (Kaprizov in rushes, Khusnutdinov not)

Kaprizov-Eriksson Ek-Boldy
Johansson-Rossi-Hartman
Foligno-Gaudreau-Trenin
Lauko-Jones-Shore

Middleton-Faber
Brodin-Spurgeon
Chisholm-Bogosian

— Michael Russo (@RussoHockey) November 25, 2024

Hynes won’t say yet whether Kaprizov and Khusnutdinov will play, but as I said, Kaprizov was in line rushes and Khusnutdinov wasn’t

Gustavsson starts

— Michael Russo (@RussoHockey) November 25, 2024

Related: Minnesota Wild Still Don’t Like Marco Rossi; Trade May be Imminent

Kirill Kaprizov has 13 goals and 21 assists on the season. His 34 points are second-most in the NHL, behind only Colorado’s Nathan MacKinnon. He’s currently on pace to score 40 goals and help on 65 more, if he can get back on the ice ASAP.

Kaprizov needs to stay on the ice to win the Hart Trophy

Kaprizov, who is currently one of the favorites to win NHL MVP (Hart), has scored 40 or more goals in each of the last four seasons, including 2022-2023, when he only played 67 games. The 27-year-old Russian’s most prolific season was 2021-2022, when he potted 47 goals and posted 108 points, in 81 games.

It’s also the only year he has gone for more than 100 points. Unsurprisingly, 2021-22 wasn’t just Kirill’s best statistical season, it was also his healthiest. In 2023-24, he played 75 games, his second-most ever. He reached 96 points (46 goals, 60 assists) last season.